Tesla hits parked California police vehicle; driver blames 'Autopilot'

The driver of a Tesla Model S crashed into a parked police vehicle in Laguna Beach, California on Tuesday. The driver said that the car was in "autopilot" mode at the time. 

No one was in the patrol car when the collision took place in the late morning, the Laguna Beach Police Department said in a message.

The driver suffered minor injuries, Laguna Beach Sergeant Jim Cota said, who posted photos of the crash scene showing extensive damage to the front end of the Tesla and the rear side of the police vehicle.

Add WION as a Preferred Source

"When using Autopilot, drivers are continuously reminded of their responsibility to keep their hands on the wheel and maintain control of the vehicle at all times," a Tesla spokeswoman said in response to an AFP inquiry.

"Tesla has always been clear that Autopilot doesn't make the car impervious to all accidents."

Autopilot is a semi-autonomous technology that the company says is a form of advanced cruise control. The driverless feature comes packaged as standard in all Tesla vehicles, which the automaker’s website describes as having “the hardware needed for full self-driving capability at a safety level substantially greater than that of a human driver”.

It is intended to match the speed of the car to surrounding traffic conditions, and use an enhanced vision processing system to navigate obstacles.