Assisted Steer

This topic describes how to enable and use the following driver assistance features.

Note

Depending on options purchased, date of manufacture, software version, vehicle configuration, and Assisted Driving hardware, your vehicle may not be equipped with the following features, or a feature may not operate exactly as described.

Assisted Steer : Like Traffic-Aware Cruise Control, Assisted Steer maintains a set speed (if there is not a vehicle in front of you) or a set following distance (if there is a vehicle in front of you). In addition, Assisted Steer detects lane markings, road edges, and the presence of vehicles and objects to keep Model 3 in its driving lane (see Assisted Steer).
Assisted Lane Change : When you engage a turn signal while Assisted Steer is active, Assisted Lane Change moves Model 3 into the adjacent lane in the direction indicated by the turn signal (see Assisted Lane Change). Assist lane change will activate within the speed range of 5 km/h to 140 km/h.
Assisted Navigate Driving : Assisted Navigate Driving builds on the features of Traffic-Aware Cruise Control and Assisted Steer . While Assisted Steer is active, Assisted Navigate Driving allows Model 3 to suggest and, if configured, automatically change lanes to pass other vehicles and follow the navigation route (see Assisted Navigate Driving).

These features use information from the cameras on Model 3 to detect lane markings, road edges, and other vehicles and road users around Model 3.

CAUTION

Ensure all cameras are clean and free of obstructions before each drive and before using the features described in this topic (see Cleaning a Camera). Dirty cameras and sensors (if equipped), as well as environmental conditions such as rain and faded lane markings, can affect performance. If a camera is obstructed or blinded, Model 3 displays a message on the touchscreen and Assisted Driving features may not be available.

CAUTION

It is your responsibility to familiarize yourself with the limitations of Assisted Steer and the situations in which driver intervention may be needed. For more information, see Assisted Driving Limitations and Warnings.

Before Using Assisted Steer

Before you use Assisted Steer , customize how it works by touching Controls > Assisted Driving .

Set Speed: Choose whether Assisted Steer engages at the currently detected speed limit or your current driving speed. Touch Controls > Assisted Driving and choose either Speed Limit or Current Speed.
Offset: If you choose Speed Limit, you can specify an offset by touching Set Speed Offset. You can choose Fixed (the cruising speed adjusts by a specific amount on all roads) or Percentage (the cruising speed is adjusted as a percentage of the road's detected speed limit).
Assisted Driving Activation : Choose how to activate Assisted Steer . If set to Single Pull, both Traffic-Aware Cruise Control and Assisted Steer engage when you pull the drive stalk down once. If set to Double Pull, you must pull the drive stalk down twice in quick succession to engage Assisted Steer .
Note
Assisted Driving Activation must be set to Double Pull if you want to use Traffic-Aware Cruise Control independently of Assisted Steer .
Green Traffic Light Chime: If on, a chime will sound when you are waiting at a red traffic light and the light turns green. If you are not actively using Traffic-Aware Cruise Control or Assisted Steer and are waiting at a red light with a car in front of you, the chime sounds when the car ahead of you advances.

Assisted Steer

Note

Depending on market region, vehicle configuration, options purchased, Assisted Driving hardware, and software version, your vehicle may not be equipped with Assisted Steer , or the feature may not operate exactly as described.

To enable Assisted Steer :

Touch Controls > Assisted Driving > Assisted Steer .
After carefully reading and understanding the popup window, touch Yes.

Assisted Steer is available when you are driving between 30 km/h and 140 km/h . You can activate Assisted Steer at lower speeds if there is a vehicle detected at least 1.5 meters ahead of Model 3.

Note

To engage Assisted Steer , headlights must be set to On or Auto. Although Assisted Steer is available both during the day and in low light conditions (dusk or dark), it aborts or is unavailable if headlights are set to Off. When Assisted Steer is engaged, Adaptive Headlights (or, on some vehicles, Auto High Beam) is automatically enabled (see High Beam Headlights) and wipers are set to Auto.

To use Assisted Steer :

Move the drive stalk fully down twice in quick succession.
To change the set speed, roll the right scroll wheel up to increase, or down to decrease. For more information, see While Using Assisted Steer.
To cancel Assisted Steer , move the drive stalk upward or press the brake pedal. For more information, see Canceling Assisted Steer.

When you engage Assisted Steer , Model 3 confirms activation with an audible chime and briefly displays a message on the touchscreen reminding you to pay attention to the road and be ready to take over at any time.

To indicate that Assisted Steer is available (but not actively steering Model 3), the top corner of the touchscreen displays a gray steering wheel icon next to the driving gear.

When a Assisted Steer is engaged and actively controlling Model 3, the steering wheel icon is blue.

When Assisted Steer is able to detect lane markings, it displays the edges of the driving lane in blue on the touchscreen.

The Autopilot visualization showing a vehicle with the driving lane highlighted by blue lines

Whenever Assisted Steer is active, Traffic-Aware Cruise Control is active as well.

In situations where the speed limit cannot be detected when Assisted Steer is engaged, Assisted Steer reduces your driving speed and limits the set cruising speed to 70 km/h. Although you can manually accelerate to exceed the limited speed, Model 3 will not brake for detected obstacles as long as you are applying the accelerator pedal. Assisted Steer slows down to the limited speed when you release the accelerator pedal. When you leave the road or disengage Assisted Steer by using the steering wheel, you can increase your set speed again, if desired.

Warning

Assisted Steer is a hands-on assistance feature. Keep your hands on the steering wheel at all times, be mindful of road conditions and surrounding traffic, and always be prepared to take immediate action. Failure to follow these instructions could cause damage, serious injury or death. It is your responsibility to familiarize yourself with the limitations of Assisted Steer and the situations in which it may not work as expected. For more information, see Assisted Driving Limitations and Warnings.

Assisted Lane Change

Note

Depending on market region, vehicle configuration, options purchased, Assisted Driving hardware, and software version, your vehicle may not be equipped with Assisted Lane Change , or the feature may not operate exactly as described.

If you engage a turn signal while Assisted Steer is active, Model 3 moves into the adjacent lane in the direction indicated by the turn signal, provided the following conditions are met:

The turn signal is engaged.
Lane markings indicate that a lane change is permitted.
Midway through the lane change, Model 3 must detect the target lane's outside lane marking. If this lane marking is not detected, the lane change is aborted and Model 3 returns to its original driving lane.
The view of the camera(s) is not obstructed.
Model 3 does not detect a vehicle in its blind spot, or a vehicle or obstacle up to the center of the target lane. If a vehicle or other obstacle is detected in the target lane, it is shown in red in the visualization on the touchscreen and Model 3 does not complete the lane change until it is safe to do so.

Warning

Although Assisted Lane Change is designed to detect vehicles and obstacles in adjacent lanes, it is your responsibility to always perform visual checks to make sure it is safe and appropriate to move into the target lane. If Assisted Lane Change cannot change lanes due to inadequate data, the touchscreen displays a series of warnings. Therefore, when using Assisted Lane Change , always pay attention to the touchscreen and be prepared to manually steer Model 3.

The minimum speed at which Assisted Lane Change changes lanes may vary depending on region, adjacent lane speeds, and other factors. Always be ready to manually steer and change lanes as necessary. When an automatic lane change is in progress, Overtake Acceleration is activated, allowing Model 3 to accelerate closer to a vehicle in front (see Overtake Acceleration).

When you engage a turn signal, Assisted Lane Change moves Model 3 one lane at a time. Moving into an additional lane requires you to engage the turn signal a second time after the first lane change is complete.

As Model 3 changes lanes, it is important to monitor its performance by watching the driving path in front of you and the surrounding area. Stay prepared to take over steering at any time. As you are crossing over into the adjacent lane, the touchscreen displays the location in the lane that Model 3 is moving into.

Assisted Navigate Driving

Note

Depending on market region, vehicle configuration, options purchased, Assisted Driving hardware, and software version, your vehicle may not be equipped with Assisted Navigate Driving , or the feature may not operate exactly as described.

To enable Assisted Navigate Driving , touch Controls > Assisted Driving > Assisted Navigate Driving . Then, to customize how you want Assisted Navigate Driving to operate, touch Customize Assisted Navigate Driving :

Enable at Start of Every Trip: Choose whether to automatically enable Assisted Navigate Driving for every navigation route. When enabled, the Assisted Navigate Driving button on the turn-by-turn direction list is already enabled at the start of every trip.
Speed Based Lane Changes: Assisted Navigate Driving is designed to perform both route-based and speed-based lane changes. Speed-based lanes changes are optional. You can use this setting to disable speed-based lane changes or to specify how assertively you want Assisted Navigate Driving to change lanes to achieve the set cruising speed (Mild, Average, or Mad Max).
Exit Passing Lane: Choose whether you want Assisted Navigate Driving to maneuver out of a passing lane when navigating to a destination. In addition to route-based and speed-based lane changes, Assisted Navigate Driving requests a lane change out of a passing lane as a reminder to stay in a slower lane when you are not passing other vehicles. Choose No to disable this and keep Model 3 in a passing lane except when needed to stay on the navigation route.
Require Lane Change Confirmation: (if equipped) By default, Assisted Navigate Driving requires your confirmation before proceeding with a lane change by engaging the appropriate turn signal. If you do not confirm the lane change within 3 seconds, a chime sounds to remind you that Assisted Navigate Driving requires your confirmation to change lanes.
Lane Change Notification: You can specify if or how you want to be notified of lane changes (Off, Chime, Vibrate, or Both).

If Enable at Start of Every Trip is turned on, Assisted Navigate Driving engages automatically when:

Assisted Steer is active.
You are navigating to a destination.
You are on a controlled-access highway.

Once enabled, the Assisted Navigate Driving button appears on the map’s turn-by-turn direction list whenever a navigation route is active and the route includes at least one controlled-access highway.

If Enable at Start of Every Trip is turned off, touch the Assisted Navigate Driving button above the turn-by-turn directions to enable it. Once the Assisted Navigate Driving is selected, it will engage whenever you engage Assisted Steer .

The Assisted Navigate Driving icon shows in the turn-by-turn direction list when you are navigating to a destination and Assisted Navigate Driving is available but not active.

If Assisted Navigate Driving is active, the icon is blue. If Enable at Start of Every Trip is turned on, the Assisted Navigate Driving icon is selected whenever you start navigation. Touch the icon to cancel Assisted Navigate Driving and revert to Assisted Steer .

Whenever Assisted Navigate Driving is active, the Assisted Navigate Driving button is blue and the touchscreen displays the driving lane as a single blue line in front of Model 3:

Single blue line in front of vehicle displayed on instrument panel

The turn-by-turn directions display the Assisted Steer icon next to the maneuvers (such as off-ramps) that Assisted Navigate Driving will handle.

When Assisted Navigate Driving is engaged Model 3 automatically makes both speed-based and route-based lane changes.

Speed Based Lane Changes: Assisted Navigate Driving changes lanes to reduce driving time to your destination. For example, if Model 3 is behind a vehicle going below the set cruising speed, Assisted Navigate Driving will move into the passing lane to pass it. Speed-based lanes changes are optional.
Route Based Lane Changes: Assisted Navigate Driving changes lanes to route you to your destination. For example, Assisted Navigate Driving will move into the exit lane as Model 3 approaches the off-ramp specified by the navigation route.

If you ignore a route-based lane change suggestion (for example, you are driving in the left lane while approaching an off-ramp on the right side of the highway), Assisted Navigate Driving is unable to maneuver onto the off-ramp and as a result, you are re-routed to your destination.

CAUTION

Assisted Navigate Driving may not always attempt to exit at an off-ramp or change lanes, even when an exit or lane change is determined by the navigation route. Always remain alert and be prepared to manually steer onto an off-ramp, or make a lane change to prepare for, or to exit at, an off-ramp or interchange.

Assisted Navigate Driving activates and deactivates based on the type of road you are driving on. When Assisted Navigate Driving is active and you approach an off-ramp or interchange along your navigation route, the appropriate turn signal engages and Assisted Steer maneuvers Model 3 onto the off-ramp or interchange.

When you leave a controlled-access highway Assisted Navigate Driving reverts to Assisted Steer —a chime sounds and the touchscreen displays the driving lane lines in blue (instead of the single blue in front of Model 3). When Assisted Navigate Driving deactivates, Assisted Steer remains active. Always be prepared to take appropriate action.

Note

Assisted Navigate Driving is a hands-on feature. Keep your hands on the steering wheel at all times, be mindful of road conditions and surrounding traffic, and always be prepared to take immediate action. Failure to follow these instructions could cause damage, serious injury or death. It is your responsibility to familiarize yourself with the limitations of Assisted Navigate Driving and the situations in which it may not work as expected. For more information, see Assisted Driving Limitations and Warnings.

Canceling Assisted Steer

Assisted Steer cancels when:

You move the drive stalk upward
CAUTION
If you move the drive stalk upward and hold it up for more than one second, Model 3 shifts into Neutral after canceling Assisted Steer .
You press the brake pedal.
You exceed 140 km/h .
You shift into Reverse, Park, or Neutral.
A door is opened.
An Automatic Emergency Braking event occurs (see Collision Avoidance Assist).
The driver's seatbelt is released, and/or the driver gets out of their seat.
You take over steering manually.
Warning
If Assisted Driving Activation is set to Double Pull and Assisted Steer cancels because you started steering manually, Traffic-Aware Cruise Control remains active. If Assisted Driving Activation is set to Single Pull and Assisted Steer cancels because you started steering manually, Traffic-Aware Cruise Control also cancels.
You do not respond to repeated reminders to keep your hands on the wheel and subsequent messages on the touchscreen .

When Assisted Steer cancels, a chime sounds and the Assisted Steer icon either turns gray to indicate that Assisted Steer is no longer active, or disappears to indicate that it is not currently available.

Assisted Navigate Driving cancels when Assisted Steer cancels, as described above. In addition, Assisted Navigate Driving cancels when:

You touch the Assisted Navigate Driving button on the map’s turn-by-turn direction list. In this case, Assisted Steer is still active.
You leave a controlled-access highway. When this happens, Assisted Steer is still active.

When Assisted Navigate Driving cancels but Assisted Steer remains active, a chime sounds and the visualization goes from a single blue line in the driving lane to two blue lines on either side of the lane.

When Assisted Steer cancels, Model 3 does not coast. Instead, regenerative braking slows down Model 3 in the same way as when you move your foot off the accelerator when driving normally (see Regenerative Braking).

While Using Assisted Steer

When Assisted Steer is active and maintaining a set speed, the speed is highlighted with blue text on the touchscreen.

When Assisted Steer is active, the steering wheel icon is blue and the lane markings are highlighted in blue on the visualization. If Assisted Navigate Driving is also active, the Assisted Navigate Driving button is blue and the touchscreen displays the driving lane as a single blue line in front of Model 3.

If unable to detect lane markings, Assisted Steer may determine the driving lane based on a vehicle you are following. In most cases, Assisted Steer attempts to center Model 3 in the driving lane. However, there may be situations in which Assisted Steer follows a driving path that is offset from the center of the lane (for example, if guard rails are detected).

Maintaining the Set Speed

When Assisted Steer is active, Model 3 maintains your set cruising speed whenever a vehicle is not detected in front of it. When cruising behind a vehicle, Model 3 accelerates and decelerates as needed to maintain a chosen following distance (see Adjusting the Following Distance), up to the set speed.

You can manually accelerate at any time by pressing the accelerator pedal, but when you release the pedal Model 3 resumes cruising at the set speed.

Model 3 also adjusts the cruising speed when entering and exiting curves.

When Model 3 is actively slowing down to maintain the selected distance from the vehicle ahead, brake lights turn on. You may notice slight movement of the brake pedal. However, when Model 3 is accelerating, the accelerator pedal does not move.

Changing the Set Speed

Roll the right scroll wheel up to increase, or down to decrease, the set speed.

To change the cruising speed to the current speed limit (including any offset you've specified), either:

Push the drive stalk downward and briefly hold.
Press the speed limit sign on the touchscreen.

Image showing a zoombox going to the right scroll wheel with arrows going up and down on the scroll wheel.

It may take a few seconds for Model 3 to reach the new cruising speed.

Note

On a residential road, a road without a center divider, or a road that is not controlled access, the maximum allowed cruising speed is limited and the touchscreen displays a message. The restricted speed will be the speed limit of the road plus 10 km/h.

Adjusting the Following Distance

To adjust the following distance you want to maintain between Model 3 and a vehicle traveling ahead of you, press the steering wheel's right scroll button to the left or right.

The closest following distance is 2.

Image showing a zoombox going to the right scroll wheel with arrows going left and right on the scroll wheel.

Each setting corresponds to a time-based distance that represents how long it takes for Model 3, from its current location, to reach the location of the rear bumper of the vehicle ahead of you. Assisted Steer retains your setting until you change it again.

As you adjust the following distance, the touchscreen displays the current setting.

Screenshot of two cars with a measurement between them and the number "3".

Stopping and Slowdowns

When moving significantly faster than vehicles in adjacent lanes, Model 3 automatically reduces the driving speed. This is especially helpful in heavy traffic situations or when vehicles are constantly merging into different lanes. When Model 3 detects other vehicles driving significantly slower, the touchscreen highlights the adjacent lanes with arrows and detected vehicles in gray, and Model 3 reduces the driving speed as appropriate. To temporarily override this feature, press the accelerator pedal.

The Autopilot visualization with the lane lines highlighted in blue and chevrons showing a slowdown

When following a vehicle, Assisted Steer remains active at low speeds, even when Model 3 comes to a full stop. For example, Assisted Steer remains active even if Model 3 slows down to a complete or near-complete stop in heavy, stop-and-go traffic on a highway. When traffic starts moving more rapidly, Assisted Steer again accelerates up to the set speed.

Sometimes when Model 3 is at a full stop, Assisted Steer goes into a HOLD state. If this happens, briefly press the accelerator pedal to resume cruising.

When the HOLD status is active, the touchscreen displays the HOLD icon and a message that indicates that you need to resume cruise control.

Model 3 goes into HOLD state while Assisted Steer is active in the following circumstances:

Model 3 has been at a standstill for 5 minutes.
Model 3 detects a pedestrian (the HOLD state may clear when the pedestrian is no longer detected).
Model 3 suddenly loses visibility of the vehicle in front of you.
An obstacle is detected in front of Model 3.

Cruising Near or On Exits

When you are cruising near an exit on a controlled-access highway and engage the turn signal toward the off-ramp, Assisted Steer assumes you are exiting and begins to slow down Model 3. If you do not drive onto the off-ramp, Assisted Steer resumes cruising at the set speed.

In a region with right hand traffic, this occurs only when you engage the right turn signal when driving in the right-most lane within 50 meters of an exit. Likewise in regions with left hand traffic, this occurs when engaging the left turn signal when driving in the left-most lane within 50 meters of an exit.

Note

If Assisted Navigate Driving is active, Model 3 will perform a route-based lane change to enter the exit lane and take the off-ramp as necessary to follow the navigation route.

When cruising onto an on-ramp to a controlled-access highway, Assisted Steer automatically adjusts the set cruising speed to the speed limit of the highway, plus any offset you have specified. If Assisted Navigate Driving is engaged, it disengages as you leave the controlled-access highway (see Canceling Assisted Steer). In this case, Assisted Steer remains active.

Overtake Acceleration

Engage the turn signal momentarily to accelerate Model 3 towards the vehicle ahead of it. By momentarily holding the turn signal stalk up or down, you can quickly accelerate up to your set speed without having to press the accelerator pedal as long as:

Traffic-Aware Cruise Control is operating and detects a vehicle in front of you.
No obstacles or vehicles are detected in the target lane.
Model 3 is traveling below the set speed, but over 72 km/h.

Note

If Assisted Steer is active and you fully engage the turn signal, Model 3 will change lanes automatically (see Assisted Lane Change).

Model 3 stops accelerating when you reach your set cruising speed, if changing lanes takes too long, or if Model 3 gets too close the vehicle ahead. Model 3 also stops accelerating if you disengage the turn signal.

Take Over Immediately

In situations where Assisted Driving is unable to steer Model 3, a warning chime sounds and the touchscreen displays the following message.

Take over immediately

When you see this message, take over steering immediately.

Driver Attentiveness

Assisted Steer requires driver attentiveness. Your hands must be on the steering wheel at all times while Assisted Steer is engaged, and you must monitor your surroundings, the road, and other road users.

Assisted Steer periodically displays a message reminding the driver to apply slight force to the steering wheel:

Apply slight turning force to steering wheel

Assisted Steer requires your hands to be on the steering wheel. Assisted Steer detects your hands by recognizing slight resistance as the steering wheel turns, or from you manually turning the steering wheel very lightly (without enough force to take over steering). The cabin camera also monitors attentiveness and driver hand position on the steering wheel.

Please pay attention to the road

Do not use handheld devices while Assisted Steer is engaged.

If you repeatedly ignore prompts to apply slight force to the steering wheel or to pay attention, Assisted Steer disables for the rest of the drive and displays the following message requesting you to drive manually. If you don't resume manual steering, Assisted Steer sounds a continuous chime, turns on the warning flashers, and slows the vehicle to a complete stop.

Assisted Driving temporarily disabled Driver attention warnings ignored

Warning

Attention monitoring cannot replace your constant focus on driving. Due to limitations in the monitoring method and frequency, emergencies may occur between two checks, especially when driving at high speed. Always stay focused on driving, otherwise it may result in property damage or serious personal injury.

Assisted Driving Suspension

Use of Assisted Driving features will be suspended if improper usage is detected.

Use of Assisted Steer is suspended for a week when you or another driver of your vehicle receives five "strikeouts." A strikeout is when the Assisted Driving system disengages for the remainder of a trip after the driver receives several audio and visual warnings for inattentiveness.

You can see how many strikeouts are remaining before Assisted Driving access is suspended by touching Controls > Assisted Driving .

A strikeout is forgiven after half a week (3.5 days), as long as you don't receive another strikeout in that time.

Note

If your access to Assisted Steer is suspended, you can still use Traffic-Aware Cruise Control and all active safety features are still enabled.

There may be occasions where driver intervention is required and you must take over immediately to maintain safe driving. Driver-initiated disengagements do not count as improper usage and are expected from the driver.