Standard dash cams coming to Teslas

Tesla Model 3 dashboard in Autopilot testing with IIHS [CREDIT: IIHS]

Tesla chief executive Elon Musk revealed on Twitter that the company plans to make dash cams standard in its products with a new software update rolling out in the next few weeks.

Since most Teslas already have forward cameras for the Autopilot system, it seems it should be simple for Tesla to enable the feature.

Many Tesla owners have been asking for a dash cam in their cars.

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In response to a question on Twitter from user Richard Ulmer, whose Tesla was vandalized when he wasn't with it, Musk said beta version of the new dash-cam software will be included with the Version 9 software update, which is due to roll out most Tesla owners in the next several weeks.

Musk says Tesla's engineering team has been focused on adding the feature.

General Motors already includes dash cams on high-end models from Cadillac and on the Chevy Corvette for recording laps on a race track.

Musk said the feature is supposed to be improved again when Version 9.1 of Tesla's operating system rolls out at an unspecified point in the future.

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The Version 9 update, being pushed to a few Tesla early adopters now, revamps the structure of the original vertical display screen in the Model S and Model X.

Musk has also said it will enable the first features of the company's long-promised Full-Self Driving Capability. That's the name Tesla applies to software, though it's uncertain exactly how capable the system will be.

Among the first features will be "on-ramp-to-off-ramp" capability on the highway, Musk has said in a conference call with investors.

Many Tesla owners have paid in advance for the Full Self-Driving Capability option since it was introduced in 2016, even though the features still don't work. Those buyers will automatically have the features enabled via an over-the-air software update in return for a discount compared with buyers who have the option added after the features have been released.

Original Article