Man Clicks Strange Paddle in Son-in-Law's Tesla; It Was a $14,100 Mistake


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By C. Douglas Golden  August 14, 2021


You know technology has reached a scary new level when car companies can up sell you on things you don’t want without a) a salesman or dealer being present, or b) your consent.

But Tesla buyers, beware: If you lend someone your car and they press the wrong paddle, you could end up being charged $14,186.25 for some very expensive options.

According to CarScoops, Dominic Preuss — a Twitter blue-check whose primary fame comes from his work as a “product geek” from Google — let his father-in-law borrow his Tesla Model 3. The trouble likely began, Preuss said, when his father-in-law pressed a shift paddle twice while driving.

If you’re familiar with Tesla, you know that the electric automaker is famous for its autopilot function, which steers the car for you and keeps it on cruise control. It’s an extra, however — although one you can activate remotely.

The cars also have what’s known as “Full Self-Driving Capability.” As CarScoops notes, it’s really nothing of the sort, but it gets somewhat closer to what it says it does than the autopilot mode does. It allows the car to navigate on autopilot, automatically change lanes, auto-park, summon the car and exercise control at traffic lights and stop signs.

These are pricey options, something Preuss reportedly found out the hard way.

“For Your Information. If you double click the shift panel twice and accidentally engage the auto-pilot in Model 3, @Tesla will automatically charge you $14,100 if you didn’t previously purchase auto-pilot,” Preuss tweeted on July 27th.

Read more at:  https://www.westernjournal.com/man-clicks-strange-paddle-father-laws-tesla-14100-mistake-report/?utm_source=Email&utm_medium=aa-breaking&utm_campaign=can&utm_content=firefly&ats_es=e103a55ea0944a821e68b1ae798fb68f

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This is the worst thing I have heard about the Tesla cars.  If I had the money to purchase one it would be without the capability to even use their auto pilot.  A $14,100 charge for an extra feature without even asking you if you are sure you want to do this is a terrible option in the car.  And that auto pilot feature is way over priced as well.  Not worth more than about $2,500 in my opinion.

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I've heard of things like this happening with subscription models and such these days and other things.  One of my kids has an Amazon Prime account and watch TV on it.  When I visited they told me not to click on anything that looks like this...or looks like that...etc.  I chose just not to use it or watch anything on their Amazon TV.  Apparently I could accidentally buy something without even meaning to.

IT sounds like this is a similar thing but in a physical product from Tesla.

To me, it sounds shady and unethical for companies to be doing things like this.  No one should be buying anything by accident.

Edited by JohnsonJones
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