Tesla announced last night that new vehicles built at the Fremont factory can now drive autonomously from the production line to the logistics lot in preparation for transportation. While this has obvious advantages for Tesla’s production and shipping processes, it has also introduced a benefit for new owners.
One of the first things many new Tesla owners want to do after taking delivery of their new car is try out Autopilot or Full-Self Driving (FSD). However, these features aren’t immediately available, with the vehicle requiring the on-board cameras to be calibrated before drivers could fully utilize Autopilot and FSD features.
Tesla’s owner’s manual says this process typically takes around 20-25 miles (32-40 km) of driving after delivery, but could sometimes be twice as much, as it requires driving with highly-visible lane markings in both the driving lane and adjacent lanes.
Now, according to the VP of Autopilot at Tesla, Ashok Elluswamy, this step has been eliminated, and camera calibration is completed while the vehicle moves through the production line. This change means Tesla vehicles are now road-ready with fully calibrated cameras before they even leave the factory floor.
Calibration is now done automatically as the vehicle moves through the manufacturing line.
— Ashok Elluswamy (@aelluswamy) January 29, 2025
As we showed you earlier today, with the cameras calibrated during the production process, new built Tesla vehicles drive can now drive autonomously, without human intervention, from the production line to their designated spot in the logistics lot. The drive covers about 2km (1.2 mi), where the vehicle will encounter other new Tesla vehicles, pedestrians, as well as other vehicle traffic from employees driving around the factory complex.
