In a video released on March 15, former NASA engineer and popular YouTuber Mark Rober published a video where he tested Tesla’s (TSLA) ADAS technology using a test inspired by a classic Looney Tunes gag.
In a series of tests compared with an experimental Lexus fitted with a sophisticated LiDAR system by Luminar, a supplier of Polestar and Volvo, Rober took both vehicles though tests in different conditions involving a child-sized mannequin, followed by a test inspired by a Wile E. Coyote gag that saw Rober’s personal Tesla Model Y run straight into a fake wall made to look like the road ahead.
Rober quickly faced controversy as netizens and Tesla enthusiasts pointed out inconsistencies, such as his use of Autopilot instead of Full Self-Driving (FSD) during the test and the final video featuring multiple takes. Additionally, Luminar’s involvement raised concerns about the test’s objectivity.
Another YouTuber tests Rober’s claims
However, in a new video, Tesla owner, Tesla Collision specialist, and YouTuber Kyle Paul took Rober’s claims into consideration and released a video testing it for himself.
In the video, Paul tested the claims using two different Tesla models, a Tesla Model Y and a Tesla Cybertruck.
The first two demonstrations saw Paul showing the cameraperson in the car that it was equipped with Tesla’s Hardware 3 computer running FSD version 12.5.4.2., a previous software release operation on previous-generation hardware.
Despite FSD being fully engaged, the Model Y failed the test, albeit in a much less dramatic or comical fashion.
In both runs, Paul had to take action and slam on the brakes because the Model Y’s screen showed that FSD cameras did not detect the wall while it was fast approaching. He showed that the cameras do not detect the wall until the Model Y is just inches away from impact, which is too little time for any reasonable human being to react.
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Paul is a human being and has all the right to feel worried. While the Tesla in Rober’s video went through a freestanding painted wall made out of styrofoam, the fake wall in Kyle Paul’s video was propped up on the side of a box truck.
However, in the Cybertruck, Paul showed the cameraperson that the black-wrapped polygon was running Tesla’s Hardware 4 computer, which is running FSD version 13. Version 13 FSD is the absolute latest version of FSD software available from Tesla, and HW4 incorporates more advanced cameras that can pick up more detail in its system.
The effects of that are evident. The newer hardware and software detect the fake wall when FSD is on and is visible on the Cybertruck’s touchscreen from a much further distance. Because of this, the Cybertruck came to a full stop by itself.
Paul tried this test several times, each result mirroring the last.
Related: YouTuber exposed Tesla pitfall with a Looney Tunes inspired test
Rober defends his video
Paul’s video comes as Rober defended the legitimacy of the claims made in his video.
In an appearance on the Philip DeFranco show on March 17, Rober explained why he opted to use Autopilot instead of Full Self-Driving, noting that he did not know how to use it without having to input a destination and concluded that he saw no distinction between the two features.
He also noted that he’d “be happy to rerun the experiment in Full Self-Driving, adding:
“I’m pretty confident it wouldn’t be a different result,” he said. “So to me, it was a distinction without a difference.”
He added that the Tesla’s impact with the wall was not faked, but was done multiple times. He noted that the initial take was with just a tarp with the road image printed onto it, and that the styrofoam was later added for dramatic effect.
“Instead of [the Model Y] cutting through it, […] it just kind of tore the side, like a little flap came up,” Rober said. “It was a very interesting finding, that it worked. […] And then we’re like ‘holy crud, I can’t belive that really worked!,’ and then, I don’t know, three weeks later, when schedule permitted, [we filmed] this time with the styrofoam wall.”
“In the edit, we used the start of one of the [earlier] clips,” he said.
Tesla, inc. is traded as TSLA on the NASDAQ.
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