Key takeaways
- A Tesla drove into a California Highway Patrol car on I-80 in Fairfield late on October 13, at a scene where officers were already handling a fatal crash. Two officers were seriously injured. The 22-year-old driver told investigators he was asleep with “Full Self-Driving” engaged. So far, only his word says FSD was on.
- It is not the first time. NHTSA opened an investigation in 2021 after Teslas on Autopilot hit stopped emergency vehicles, which ended with a recall of more than 2 million cars in 2023. In 2024, a Tesla on FSD hit a police car in Fullerton.
- My view: in my opinion, the biggest blame is on Elon Musk and the name “Full Self-Driving”. A CEO who says you can text while driving is, I think, misleading customers and putting other people on the road in danger.
As Electrek reported, two California Highway Patrol officers are recovering from serious injuries after a Tesla drove into their patrol car on Interstate 80 in Fairfield, California. It happened just before midnight on Tuesday, October 13. The officers were at the scene of an earlier crash, where a 19-year-old driver had died about an hour before.
According to CHP, four lanes were closed behind flares and cones when the Tesla arrived at freeway speed, went through the closure and hit a Dodge Charger patrol car with both officers inside. CHP released dashcam video of the impact. The Tesla driver, a 22-year-old from Sacramento, had minor injuries and told investigators he was asleep with Tesla’s “Full Self-Driving” engaged. CHP has not released the Tesla model or software version, and Tesla’s vehicle logs will show whether FSD was really on. CHP said: “Technology does not relieve drivers of their responsibility to safely operate their vehicles.”
In this article: Who is to blame? In my opinion, Elon Musk · “Full Self-Driving” is misleading · A CEO who says you can text while driving · A camera you can beat with a dollar bill · Five years, and the same problem · Robotaxi? I would be scared to death · If Tesla takes out the driver, Tesla takes the blame · Who believes the marketing? Young drivers · To the Tesla fans · Would I trust FSD? Never · What Tesla should do now · FAQ
Who is to blame? In my opinion, Elon Musk
I will say it honestly: in my opinion, the one to blame is Elon Musk. And the name of the Tesla system.
How can someone name a system like this when he knows how many problems it has? I think this man is collecting more and more negative feelings from other people. How can you keep repeating, again and again, something that is not true, when you know it best? You surely have the statistics and the data.
In my opinion, his ego does not let him say: this is a problem. People, pay attention on the road. This is only an assistant, not fully autonomous driving.
Yes, the driver is responsible too, and CHP is right about that. But I think the bigger responsibility is on the man who tells millions of people that the car drives itself.
“Full Self-Driving” is misleading
Is the name misleading? Yes. Tesla agreed this month to stop using the name “Full Self-Driving” in Europe after German regulators called it misleading. I like that. In my opinion, regulators there take more care of people than in the U.S., and they do not let a company simply mislead customers.
Where the name is honest, if something happens, we know for sure the driver did not pay attention. In the U.S., in my opinion, the reason is also the customer being misled by Elon Musk and his Tesla.
A CEO who says you can text while driving
Last December, Musk claimed FSD drivers can text while driving, “depending on context of surrounding traffic.” Texting while driving is illegal in California.
In my opinion, this is far too arrogant and self-confident. I want someone to really start investigating Tesla and force it to hand over the data. I think we would all be surprised.
In my opinion, Elon is an egoist who thinks he has the whole world in his hands and does what he wants. When the CEO of Tesla says you can text while driving, he does not realize that misleading customers puts other people in danger. But as we have seen lately, I think he does not care about people. I say this about everything he does now, everything that turns around him, and the reputation he is starting to have.
A camera you can beat with a dollar bill
FSD is supposed to use the cabin camera to check that the driver watches the road. It should warn, and then turn off. But Electrek reported that drivers can easily bypass it, even with a dollar bill in front of the camera.
Why? In my opinion, for him anything is enough, just make it cheap and sell it expensive. Meanwhile, the competition is now far ahead of him, but he still holds on to Tesla like a king. He is losing positions very fast.
And I will say more. From what he does, I think he does not care, and the camera that watches the driver will be the last thing he replaces.
Five years, and the same problem
In August 2021, NHTSA opened an investigation after Teslas on Autopilot crashed into stopped police cars and fire trucks, many at night, with flares, cones and flashing lights. It ended with Tesla’s December 2023 recall of more than 2 million vehicles, fixed with an over-the-air update. In June 2024, a Tesla on FSD hit a parked police car in Fullerton, again at a fatal crash scene. That driver admitted he was on his phone.
Here I also blame the regulators. Why, when they see that after so many years nothing changes, the same problem is discussed again and again, and the cars still have the same problem, do we still see them on the road? How is that possible? That surprises me the most. The question stays: who is responsible for this?
Robotaxi? I would be scared to death
Musk keeps promising unsupervised FSD. I would be scared to death of that taxi. If this happens with a driver behind the wheel, I am curious what will happen without one. I would never get into that car. I already wrote about a Tesla Robotaxi speeding in a school zone.
And I would say these tests must be made public before it happens. Not just a few thousand miles, but at least hundreds of thousands of miles. Then, yes, we can talk about Elon seeing the problem, or at least starting to fix that something is wrong.
If Tesla takes out the driver, Tesla takes the blame
If Tesla wants to take the driver out by itself, then Tesla carries the responsibility. But for me, it already sounds scary that a machine should decide this. What should it mean? It should be the opposite: only the driver can turn on the assistant, not the other way around. Who even tolerates this? I am already afraid when they have this much power.
Who believes the marketing? Young drivers
The driver was 22. And that is exactly the responsibility of misleading customers. The loud PR and ads that Tesla can do everything by itself, that you can text behind the wheel, and so on. Now it slowly shows.
People like Elon don’t think about what they do and what they say in public, and what effect it has on young people. That really fascinates me.
Electrek’s Fred Lambert wrote the same: “When you tell people the car drives itself, some of them believe you. A 22-year-old driving home at midnight is exactly who believes you.”
To the Tesla fans
When I read on X how fans praise him, even when he says many controversial things, it makes me angry in the end. And I want to ask these people: do you really believe what Musk says so much that you are able to argue for and defend a man who, in my opinion, takes responsibility for nothing, and shows in public that he doesn’t care about anything?
Do you really love him so much that you close your eyes to everything? Is that normal for you? Or do you not read the news about Tesla crashes? Or you don’t want to believe it, or you don’t want to know? I don’t understand it.
Would I trust FSD? Never
Never in my life. And after the last months, I don’t even want a Tesla. I would rather go to the competition. A company that, when it has a problem, is able to take responsibility, fix it, and say out loud: we have to redo this or upgrade it, because we made it wrong.
Not like Elon: there is a problem, and he acts like nothing is happening and says you can text behind the wheel. I will never want a Tesla again, unless Elon becomes the man he was at the beginning, who paid attention to everything.
And honestly, Tesla is busy showing a Roadster that does a flip, while its driver-assist, according to the driver, could not see a closed freeway lit up with flares.
What Tesla should do now
Work on the mistakes. Be honest with us, and don’t say everything is OK. And think about the other people on the road, the ones your Tesla puts in danger.
Featured photo: Chris Yarzab, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons. Illustrative, not the vehicle involved.
This article is opinion.
Tesla FSD crash into CHP car: FAQ
What happened in the Tesla FSD crash in Fairfield?
Just before midnight on October 13, 2026, a Tesla drove at freeway speed through a lane closure on I-80 in Fairfield, California, and hit a CHP patrol car with two officers inside. Both officers were seriously injured. The officers were at the scene of an earlier fatal crash.
Was Tesla FSD engaged during the crash?
The 22-year-old driver told investigators he was asleep with Full Self-Driving engaged. CHP has not confirmed it, and Tesla’s vehicle logs will show whether FSD was active.
Who is responsible when a Tesla on FSD crashes?
FSD (Supervised) is a driver-assistance system, and CHP says the driver must stay alert and in control. Critics argue Tesla also shares responsibility because of the “Full Self-Driving” name and weak driver monitoring.
Has a Tesla hit emergency vehicles before?
Yes. NHTSA opened an investigation in 2021 after Teslas on Autopilot hit stopped emergency vehicles, leading to a recall of more than 2 million vehicles in 2023. In 2024, a Tesla on FSD hit a police car in Fullerton, California.
Is Tesla renaming Full Self-Driving?
Tesla agreed to stop using the name “Full Self-Driving” in Europe after German regulators called it misleading. It still uses the name in the U.S.
Sources: Electrek, California Highway Patrol, NHTSA.
Our Take
A system called “Full Self-Driving” should not need a dollar bill test to show it can’t see a sleeping driver.
In my opinion, the driver is responsible, but Elon Musk is responsible for what millions of people believe about this car. Until Tesla is honest about FSD, I would never trust it, and I would never get into a Robotaxi.
