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Comment by mabbo | Hacker News Reader

The article does not say that the autopilot was on.

Presume that it wasn't for a moment. 66 year old in the drivers seat. Car does something unexpected and then drives at full speed into a solid object.

If this was anything other than a Tesla, the headline wouldn't mention what kind of car it was. Because the author is trying to imply this is the fault if Tesla, with no evidence.

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It would be very helpful if they could report whether bystanders saw the car drive at full speed off the freeway into the rest stop. If so, that looks more like it’s the car’s fault. If it was momentary acceleration after a normal-speed exit from the freeway, then it’s more likely driver error. For example, the driver might have been fully in control, but then tried to brake but hit the accelerator instead of the brake pedal. Teslas have such incredible acceleration that even a momentary mistake could be fatal. That’s one uniquely dangerous aspect of Teslas. There are plenty of other very fast cars out there, but senior citizens (who aren’t car enthusiasts) don’t tend to buy them. Even among sports cars, the low end torque of a Tesla is probably unmatched.

There wouldn't be a headline if this was anything but a Tesla.

117 People die per day in the US alone from automobile accidents

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Motor_vehicle_fatality_rate_in...

This implication a 66 year old with decades of successful driving experience is likely to crash doesn't track.

https://injuryfacts.nsc.org/motor-vehicle/overview/age-of-dr...: drivers 65 to 74 account for 13.7% of licensed drivers, but represent only 6.9% of drivers in all crashes and 7.7% of drivers in fatal crashes.

Fair point, but slamming into large, stationary vehicles seems to be a recurring theme for the autopilot incidents. I'd put my money on this being autopilot.

Let's make a friendly $10k bet. We can use any reputable betting site you choose.

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