In a potential blow to both automaker Tesla and the burgeoning self-driving car movement, a Tesla Model S was found yesterday to have collided with a parked police vehicle in southern California.The police cruiser, owned by the Laguna Beach Police Department, was apparently totaled by the incident, as reported by the Los Angeles Times - though the officer in charge of the cruiser was not inside at the time.According to a tweet by a Laguna Beach officer (@LBPD_PIO_45), the Tesla driver sustained minor injuries after reportedly engaging the sedans Autopilot mode - although this has yet to be confirmed by Tesla or an official police report:"This morning a Tesla sedan driving outbound Laguna Canyon Road in 'autopilot' collides with a parked @LagunaBeachPD unit," notes the tweet."Officer was not in the unit at the time of the crash and minor injuries were sustained to the Tesla driver."The incident comes mere weeks after a new transport bill came into effect across California that eased restrictions on driverless cars, legally permitting the vehicles to be controlled remotely without a driver behind the wheel - at a time when public trust in such vehicles is waning.Running on autopilotThe driverless feature comes packaged as standard in all Tesla vehicles, which the automakers 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.However, the company openly views its navigation software as an assist mode, meant to ease the burden of long stretches of motorway, rather than a replacement for human navigation.
It is not recommended for use in more complex urban road systems.Its often difficult, of course, to gauge where the fault in such an incident lies.
Teslas usual response cites human error, suggesting drivers were distracted or ignored prompts by the vehicle to resume manual steering.
It the latest in several high-profile collisions with self-driving cars, the most notable being Ubers fatal collision with a pedestrian in March of this year.It comes at difficult time for Teslas public image, shortly after the company was forced to recall a staggering number of Model S cars due to a steering defect.