Tesla Model 3 Starts Offering “Summon” Feature
#model3 $TSLA @tesla @elonmusk amazing pic.twitter.com/W6UPQjCBjy
— 28_delays_later (@28delayslater) July 1, 2018
The Tesla Model S and the Model X have been enjoying the self-parking Summon feature for quite some time now. But finally, it has arrived in the Tesla Model 3, as announced by the company in a tweet.
Tesla said on Twitter, “Summon [is] now available in the Model 3.”
Apparently, news and press releases are not the venues where we’re going to learn new updates about Tesla. Everything’s on Twitter these days, so better stick with following Tesla CEO Elon Musk.
The Summon feature allows cars to park autonomously without anyone in the car. No one is also remotely controlling the car. This is a huge help when you need to park the car in a very tight space and very close to a wall or a pillar. Getting out of the car is not a problem anymore since you could simply stand and watch your car park itself. Neat, right?
If programmed to do so, the system can even open and close the garage door as it parks and powers down. It can be called out by the owner, too, making it far easier for the driver to get in the car after it has been parked in a tight space.
The tweet was a response to a video posted by Twitter handle @28delayslater, showing the Model 3 parking itself in a tight space in a home garage. The garage door also closed behind it. Mr. Musk replied to the video tweet, saying “Note, no one is in the car or controlling remotely. [The] Car is driving entirely by itself.”
Similar with other Tesla models, the Model 3 can add new features and upgrade existing ones through over-the-air software. Yes, that’s right. There’s no need to bring the car to a dealer and have the system installed. All you need is a pretty strong connection and you’re good to go. Interestingly, this move of downloading software over the air is being adopted by other automakers.