this post was submitted on 02 Apr 2025
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TL;DR: Self-Driving Teslas Rear-End Motorcyclists, Killing at Least 5

Brevity is the spirit of wit, and I am just not that witty. This is a long article, here is the gist of it:

  • The NHTSA’s self-driving crash data reveals that Tesla’s self-driving technology is, by far, the most dangerous for motorcyclists, with five fatal crashes that we know of.
  • This issue is unique to Tesla. Other self-driving manufacturers have logged zero motorcycle fatalities with the NHTSA in the same time frame.
  • The crashes are overwhelmingly Teslas rear-ending motorcyclists.

Read our full analysis as we go case-by-case and connect the heavily redacted government data to news reports and police documents.

Oh, and read our thoughts about what this means for the robotaxi launch that is slated for Austin in less than 60 days.

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[–] SkunkWorkz@lemmy.world 12 points 1 day ago

It’s because the system has to rely on visual cues, since Tesla’s have no radar. The system looks at the tail light when it’s dark to gauge the distance from the vehicle. And since some bikes have a double light the system thinks it’s a car in front of them that is far away, when in reality it’s a bike up close. Also remember the ai is trained on human driving behavior which Tesla records from their customers. And we all know how well the average human drives around two wheeled vehicles.

[–] Redex68@lemmy.world 11 points 1 day ago (1 children)

Cuz other self driving cars use LIDAR so it's basically impossible for them to not realise that a bike is there.

[–] jdeath@lemm.ee 1 points 17 hours ago

unless it's foggy, etc.

[–] Ledericas@lemm.ee 25 points 2 days ago (2 children)

the cybertruck is sharp enough to cut a deer in half, surely a biker is just as vulnerable.

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[–] captainastronaut@seattlelunarsociety.org 144 points 2 days ago (15 children)

Tesla self driving is never going to work well enough without sensors - cameras are not enough. It’s fundamentally dangerous and should not be driving unsupervised (or maybe at all).

[–] KayLeadfoot@fedia.io 86 points 2 days ago (8 children)

Accurate.

Each fatality I found where a Tesla kills a motorcyclist is a cascade of 3 failures.

  1. The car's cameras don't detect the biker, or it just doesn't stop for some reason.
  2. The driver isn't paying attention to detect the system failure.
  3. The Tesla's driver alertness tech fails to detect that the driver isn't paying attention.

Taking out the driver will make this already-unacceptably-lethal system even more lethal.

[–] jonne@infosec.pub 65 points 2 days ago (3 children)
  1. Self-driving turns itself off seconds before a crash, giving the driver an impossibly short timespan to rectify the situation.
[–] KayLeadfoot@fedia.io 63 points 2 days ago (1 children)

... Also accurate.

God, it really is a nut punch. The system detects the crash is imminent.

Rather than automatically try to evade... the self-driving tech turns off. I assume it is to reduce liability or make the stats look better. God.

[–] jonne@infosec.pub 36 points 2 days ago* (last edited 2 days ago) (6 children)

Yep, that one was purely about hitting a certain KPI of 'miles driven on autopilot without incident'. If it turns off before the accident, technically the driver was in control and to blame, so it won't show up in the stats and probably also won't be investigated by the NTSB.

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[–] Buffalox@lemmy.world 83 points 2 days ago* (last edited 2 days ago) (7 children)

Hey guys relax! It's all part of the learning experience of Tesla FSD.
Some of you may die, but that's a sacrifice I'm willing to make.

Regards
Elon Musk
CEO of Tesla

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[–] AnimalsDream@slrpnk.net 29 points 2 days ago* (last edited 1 day ago) (11 children)

I imagine bicyclists must be æffected as well if they're on the road (as we should be, technically). As somebody who has already been literally inches away from being rear-ended, this makes me never want to bike in the US again.

Time to go to Netherlands.

[–] EndlessNightmare@reddthat.com 9 points 2 days ago

this makes me never want to bike in the US again.

I live close enough to work for it to be a very reasonable biking distance. But there is no safe route. A high-speed "stroad" with a narrow little bike lane. It would only be a matter of time before some asshole with their face in their phone drifts into me.

I am deeply resentful of our automobile-centric infrastructure in the U.S. It's bad for the environment, bad for our wallets, bad for our waistlines, and bad for physical safety.

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[–] the_three_tomatoes@lemmy.world 4 points 1 day ago (1 children)

You mean they are providing organ donations more than any other car. Silver lining. /s

[–] KayLeadfoot@fedia.io 1 points 1 day ago

They call it the Model 3 because the Tesla Organ-Harvester didn't translate well to Chinese

[–] 0x0@programming.dev 52 points 2 days ago* (last edited 2 days ago) (6 children)

This is news? Fortnine talked about it two years ago.
TL;DR Tesla removed LIDAR to save a buck and the cameras see two red dots that the 'puter thinks it's a far away car at night when indeed it's a close motorcycle.

[–] LesserAbe@lemmy.world 20 points 2 days ago (3 children)

It's helpful to remember that not everyone has seen the same stories you have. If we want something to change, like regulators not allowing dangerous products, then raising public awareness is important. Expressing surprise that not everyone knows about something can be counterproductive.

Going beyond that, wouldn't the new information here be the statistics?

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[–] IDKWhatUsernametoPutHereLolol@lemmy.dbzer0.com 17 points 2 days ago (10 children)

Remember, you have the right to self-defence, against both rogue robots and rogue humans.

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[–] Gork@lemm.ee 68 points 2 days ago (12 children)

Lidar needs to be a mandated requirement for these systems.

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[–] 9488fcea02a9@sh.itjust.works 35 points 2 days ago (1 children)

Sounds like NHTSA needs a visit from DOGE!

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[–] SocialMediaRefugee@lemmy.world 22 points 2 days ago

Trucks in general have gotten so big they are pedestrian deathtraps

[–] DarrinBrunner@lemmy.world 28 points 2 days ago (1 children)

Five years ago, you could not have brought this up without Musk simps defending it.

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[–] lnxtx@feddit.nl 36 points 2 days ago (2 children)

Stop dehumanizing drivers who killed people.
Feature, wrongly called, Full Self-Driving, shall be supervised at any time.

[–] SouthEndSunset@lemm.ee 28 points 2 days ago

If you’re going to say your car has “full self driving”, it should have that, not “full self driving (but needs monitoring.)” or “full self driving (but it disconnects 2 seconds before impact.)”.

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[–] Visstix@lemmy.world 30 points 2 days ago (21 children)

Why is self-driving even allowed?

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[–] PalmTreeIsBestTree@lemmy.world 10 points 2 days ago (2 children)

This is another reason I’ll never drive a motorcycle. Fuck that shit.

[–] KayLeadfoot@fedia.io 11 points 2 days ago (1 children)

It's like smoking: if you haven't started, don't XD

[–] mutual_ayed@sh.itjust.works 10 points 2 days ago (5 children)

As a fellow meat crayon I agree

[–] KayLeadfoot@fedia.io 5 points 1 day ago (2 children)

Bahaha, that one is new to me.

~~Back when I worked on an ambulance, we called the no helmet guys organ donors.~~

This comment was brought to you by PTSD, and has been redacted in a rare moment of sobriety.

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[–] Klear@lemmy.world 4 points 1 day ago (1 children)

Negative. I'm a meat popsicle.

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[–] Substance_P@lemmy.world 30 points 2 days ago* (last edited 2 days ago) (1 children)
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[–] kreskin@lemmy.world 8 points 2 days ago (1 children)

I wonder if a state court judge could mandate its use as unsafe?

[–] slaneesh_is_right@lemmy.org 9 points 1 day ago (1 children)

They are illegal in every developed country.

[–] merdaverse@lemmy.world 5 points 1 day ago

But muh innovation! How are genius CEOs supposed to innovate if they can't use the public at large as guinea pigs??

[–] werefreeatlast@lemmy.world 19 points 2 days ago (2 children)

Every captcha.....can you see the motorcycle? I would be afraid if they wanted all the squares with small babies or maybe just regular folk...can you pick all the hottie's? Which of these are body parts?

[–] arrakark@lemmy.ca 4 points 1 day ago (2 children)

What bike is that in the photo?

[–] KayLeadfoot@fedia.io 5 points 1 day ago

My partner and I were actually debating that exact question before I posted it!

It's just stock art, but of a rider in the Midwest. Custom exhaust, custom saddle and rack for that cafe racer look, and I just barely can't make out the model on the engine fairing.

Here it is all big, let me know if you can figure it out: https://unsplash.com/photos/a-person-riding-a-motorcycle-on-a-city-street-kPfwWyUWubA

Looks hot, that's why I picked it.

[–] lando55@lemmy.world 2 points 1 day ago

It looks a great deal like a Royal Enfield, but I couldn't tell you which model. A Bullet, maybe?

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