What just happened? If you're a prospective Tesla buyer who has been holding off on purchasing one of the cars while you wait for their Full Self-Driving tech suite to be finished, we've got some bad news for you. After a recent beta launch, FSD is apparently sophisticated enough to warrant a hefty price increase – whereas it used to cost $8,000 to include in a vehicle, the add-on will now run you a whopping $10,000.
Even for the wealthier individuals that most Tesla vehicles are targeting, an extra $2,000 might be a tough pill to swallow, especially when the technology is still far from finished. It can automatically change lanes, park, and drive itself to you in certain areas (among other things), but it still has plenty of bugs and missing features.
Regardless, Tesla has made up its mind, and it isn't likely to change now. And in all fairness, CEO Elon Musk did reveal that this change was coming ahead of time on Twitter (as he tends to do for many major announcements) – last week, in fact.
Price change is pushed to Thursday next week. Applies only to US for now. One week clock will start in other countries as beta is released. FSD monthly rental will also be available sometime next year.
--- Elon Musk (@elonmusk) October 22, 2020
On the bright side, Tesla is hoping to make its Full Self-Driving tech suite "widely" available to most US customers by the end of the year, so that could be something for vigilant drivers to get excited for.
The price increase only applies to US residents for now, but it'll expand to other countries one week after the beta becomes available in each. Additionally, if a $10,000 one-off payment is difficult for you to find room in your for, Tesla hopes to launch an "FSD monthly rental" service sometime in 2021, which will undoubtedly come with a lower price tag.