Follow
Over the previous weekend, Tesla drivers in Florida received an unexpected gift from their car brand of choice. The leading automaker in EV market helped them run faster from the path of Hurricane Irma with a free software upgrade. The additional assistance boosted battery capacity which offered Model S and Model X SUV owners 40 extra miles of range.
A Tesla Client Was the First to Suggest the Free Software Upgrade as a Hurricane Irma Relief Effort
The auto company confirmed the system update to media. The procedure was enabled remotely bypassing customers’ need to visit a showroom. Tesla claimed that the idea came from one of their customers actually.
The anxious client was planning to flee Hurricane Irma and asked the company to boost her battery capacity. Once they received the request, Tesla officials decided to run a time-limited free software upgrade for all affected customers. However, the service is to expire next Saturday.
Numerous Tesla clients appreciated the gesture at a time when the tornado caused landfall in Florida on Sunday. On the other hand, others thought of the long-term effects of this decision and didn’t support it at all.
They criticized the company of putting a lot of pressure on the limited capacities of their products just for the sake of profit and advertising. On top of that, they didn’t have a choice either to refuse this service that could damage their property in the long term.
Some Customers Are Concerned of How Much Control Tesla Owns Over Their Assets
However, there was another side that claimed that the humanitarian mask of this move clouded a serious concern. Tesla just proved that the company could attain control over any of the electric vehicles they manufactured at any time.
However, an analyst at Morgan Stanley, Adam Jonas, explained back in July that Tesla is a pioneer in modern auto technology. Their electric cars can receive upgrades and fixes in real time without the need for a Tesla representative to be anywhere near the vehicle. This innovative feature can save the products from becoming redundant over time.
On the other hand, it offered Tesla the possibility of upsale for battery capacity in 2016 for Model S and X. Clients had the possibility to pay $9,500 extra for a total of 75 kilowatt-hours of capacity. Nonetheless, it is reported that the company stopped offering software-limited batteries.
Image source: 1
