Consumer Reports has announced that it is lowering its rating of the Tesla Model S and X models, since both models fail to offer automatic emergency braking, something that Tesla said would arrive by the end of 2016. The updated ratings brings the Model S down from its top spot among ultraluxury sedans, but its even worse for the Model X, which is now near the bottom of its rivals.
In response to the Consumer Reports updated ratings, Tesla has started rolling out its automatic emergency braking technology on vehicles equipped with the second-generation Autopilot 2.0 hardware via an over-the-air update. The Autopilot 2.0 system hardware started to be installed on the Model S and X, last October, but the initial software was less advanced than would be needed for fully autonomous driving.
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Tesla had been in communication with Consumer Reports about the emergency braking technology over the last few months, but the automaker did not make significant efforts to add it to the Model S and X. “When we purchased our latest test car, we were assured automatic emergency braking would be enabled by the end of 2016,” Jake Fisher, director of Consumer Reports’ Auto Test Center, said in the report. “We’ve been waiting for this important safety feature, which is standard equipment on much cheaper cars.”
Once the vehicles are equipped with the automatic braking technology, Consumer Reports is going to re-evaluate the scores for both Tesla models.
Source: Automotive News
