Model S - "Autopilot" Available in Competitors

Others will chime in with more helpful info on other cars, but I'd just like to point out that Tesla didn't have this amazing Auto-Pilot feature a month ago. And now it does.

Why? Because of OTA updates, which no other car (to my knowledge) has.

So even if you do find a gas car out there with something similar or even better than what the Model S provides, it's probably only a matter of months before Tesla will surpass it. Something to think about, perhaps.

Best of luck!

I think Mercedes and Infiniti are generally accounted the best right now.

I have no personal experience with any of the systems, but from what I've read, Tesla is well ahead in terms of staying smoothly in the center of the lane.

As for what's coming, most of the bigger players are showing off demonstrators that go beyond even the current Autopilot, but no one is presenting any sort of schedule for it. I haven't read any credible rumors.
Walter

I think the closest competition right now is Mercedes' system. Here is a review that compares the two:

Autopilot Showdown: Tesla P85D vs Mercedes E63S Wagon

That said, what does your commute look like? Perhaps we can put your mind at ease that it won't be a big deal (or confirm that it is indeed a problem).

Will save you some time by posting the conclusion of ythat aarticle

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Conclusion

Tesla’s Autopilot is not comparable to Mercedes Distronic Plus. It’s on a whole other level. It’s still pretty far from being an autonomous vehicle, but it is much, much closer than anything else I have experienced. While Tesla has had 2-3 years of development over my Mercedes E63S system, I took a spin in a new 2016 Mercedes model with the latest revision of their system, and there is no tangible improvement. That being said, it does feel like Tesla is doing what Apple does. It takes a function and improves it. The Mercedes is like one of the original Smartphones, or a Blackberry. It’s functional. It’s rudimentary and gets the job done. The Tesla is like an iPhone6S. It does everything better and has much more functionality. The screens I had mentioned I had found earlier on my car look eerily similar to the ones found on the Tesla. The switch gear is the same. The Alcantara headliner is the same. The Autopilot is leagues better.

I think the biggest advantage that Tesla has over Mercedes is the over the air updates. Continuous improvement, like Apple. Just like that, tomorrow or next week, all Tesla cars, whether you like or not, can be patched. I am sure the Autopilot will improve over the coming months as reports get back to Tesla. My Mercedes, like older Blackberries, won’t change. That is something that needs to change.

I’m jealous.

I think that Tesla has upped the bar significantly. But for ICE cars, from what I have read, the Merc is the standard bearer for now. Even though Tesla's AP is pretty darn awesome, the Merc is really quite impressive, when compared to the others out there.

I'm not sure if that is a compliment or a slam to ICEs.

We have an '15 Acura MDX with autopilot lite. It partially steers for you. Keeps you in the lane but you are required to touch the steering wheel like every 20 or 30 seconds or it shuts off. Works pretty wells actually. If you move towards a lane line the alarm goes off. I am looking forward to getting the Tesla to do a comparison.

GG

CHG-ON said:

I think that Tesla has upped the bar significantly. But for ICE cars, from what I have read, the Merc is the standard bearer for now. Even though Tesla's AP is pretty darn awesome, the Merc is really quite impressive, when compared to the others out there.

I'm not sure if that is a compliment or a slam to ICEs.

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The Merc used to be the king, but there is a new king in town now and it can update over the air (drops mic and walks out).

I hope Merc rises to the challenge with the 2017 S-class as well as others, but Tesla has the lead and doubt they'll give up that lead without a fight. I hear that they have a pretty awesome team

Discoducky said:

The Merc used to be the king, but there is a new king in town now and it can update over the air (drops mic and walks out).

I hope Merc rises to the challenge with the 2017 S-class as well as others, but Tesla has the lead and doubt they'll give up that lead without a fight. I hear that they have a pretty awesome team

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Agree. I have a 2014 MBZ GL63 (for sale now!) and it doesn't have near the AP functions of my new 2015 Tesla. It finds parking spaces in weird places and takes about 3 mins to actually park. Lane keeping is an annoying wheel vibration and TACC is okay, but rather severe at times in its braking. And no OTA updates, so I'd have to buy a whole new car; yet one week after I bought my new Tesla, I essentially had that brand new car delivered OTA. AP is so much better than in the MBZ I have and the future is bright!

Unless you really drive over 230 miles per day, you have no worries with a Tesla.

I honeslty think they also need a less supercar one. with 2 times the battery (yes heavy but with 50% more range) and when they can charge it in 1/3 the time they do now. THAT is when this will really take off. a daily driver this is not quite there for someone who drives 100+ miles a day sometimes 200.

Up to 200 miles and I would still prefer the Tesla as a daily driver. If you have a commute that long it's probably time to move closer to work anyway.

No one has anything comparable to Tesla Autopilot, and no one will in the foreseeable future. Uniquely, the Tesla autopilot learns from the driver and from the entire fleet of Tesla cars, and updates its system frequently.

Cosmacelf said:

No one has anything comparable to Tesla Autopilot, and no one will in the foreseeable future. Uniquely, the Tesla autopilot learns from the driver and from the entire fleet of Tesla cars, and updates its system frequently.

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+100

My friend has a Merc w/assist and it's prly the closest to Autopilot. He says however the past few years Mercs assist isn't great and hasn't gotten much better. Supposedly the 2017s will have a much improved one. But again none of them are up gradable gotta buy a new car.

The system in the 2015 Hyundai is supposed to be decent. However, it forces you to put your hands on the wheel every now and then. I haven't driven it but there are some nice videos on the web. Hyundai has a very interesting parking assist feature but I don't think it is offered in the US.

ufcpa said:

That said, unfortunately I need to consider non-electric competitors due to my driving profile and very long length of typical commute.

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my commute is 200 miles round trip. I actually max range charge it every day (yes i know, generally bad, but i time it to complete right when i leave for work so its not sitting at 100% for more than an hour or so). so basically I start out at 250 miles and by the time I get home at the end of the day I have about 20 or less miles left. this commute is up and down mountains (lots of hills) and I usually keep cruise control around 80mph (hence the loss of range). this is without autopilot. i can't imagine doing this commute with a non-ev though. that would cost a fortune in gas and oil. currently have 92k miles on my MS. still loving it. highly recommend over any other vehicle.

If you have the money to buy a Model S you have the money to install an HPWC at your place of work, problem solved unless your commute is more than 450 miles.

ufcpa said:

I test drove a new Hyundai Genesis-- admittedly a completely different car than the Tesla, but I heard that the "self-driving" features were good. Having just driven the Tesla, I was in a good position to come to the conclusion that the Tesla autopilot is significantly better than the system in the Hyundai. Criteria in which the Tesla shined included user interface, system recognition of lines in the road, and Tesla operability in stop/go and low speed scenarios. The Hyundai has a very nice finish and is a great value, but this feature is at the top of my list of priorities, so I'm eliminating Hyundai from consideration.

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Great to know. Thanks.