Tesla Says Fixes on Full Self-Driving’s Two Biggest Issues Are on the Way
Tesla AI Director Phil Duan confirmed on X that improvements to pothole avoidance and navigation are coming.
Tesla Full Self-Driving is set to receive targeted improvements for its two most cited shortcomings: pothole avoidance and navigation. While these issues have been on the roadmap for months, recent comments from Tesla leadership suggest active development is underway.
What Happened
Phil Duan, Director of Engineering at Tesla AI, posted on X on October 1, 2026, stating that improvements to both pothole avoidance and navigation "are coming." This announcement follows a long period since pothole avoidance was first listed as an "Upcoming Improvement" in the Full Self-Driving v14.3 update in early April. Despite the initial mention, the feature has not yet appeared in main release notes, indicating a significant development cycle.
On the navigation front, Tesla recently introduced "Preferred Routes" with the Summer Update. This feature prioritizes roads the driver has previously taken, rather than defaulting to the vehicle’s calculated most efficient path. While this has resolved many routing issues for users, challenges remain, particularly with complex maneuvers like exiting parking lots and adhering to local traffic laws, such as restrictions on left turns in certain neighborhoods.
Why It Matters
Pothole avoidance and navigation have been primary factors keeping Full Self-Driving in the "Supervised" category, requiring constant driver attention. Weak modeling of sudden road condition changes has led to unsafe handling of large bumps and potholes, while navigation errors have frequently resulted in illegal or inefficient route suggestions. Addressing these core issues is critical for improving user trust and potentially advancing the system toward greater autonomy levels.
The introduction of Preferred Routes has already mitigated some navigation frustrations by reducing reliance on online routing, which previously caused conflicts with live traffic visualizations. However, the persistent issues with parking lot exits and strange route suggestions highlight that further software refinement is necessary to make the system seamless for daily use.
The Bottom Line
Tesla has officially signaled that fixes for pothole avoidance and navigation are in the pipeline, addressing two of the most persistent complaints from Full Self-Driving users. While specific release dates have not been provided, the confirmation from engineering leadership indicates that these long-awaited improvements are nearing deployment.
