Teslas new Model S will automatically shift between park, reverse, and drive

Tesla’s redesigned Model S and Model X will have a very unconventional and possibly controversial feature: automatic shifting between park, reverse, neutral, and drive (or PRND). There will be an option to change drive modes on the touchscreen, but CEO Elon Musk made the case for automatic switching on Twitter late Wednesday night.

“Car guesses drive direction based on what obstacles it sees, context & nav map,” Musk tweeted. “After you drive without using a PRND stalk/stick for a few days, it gets very annoying to go back & use a shifter! You can override on touchscreen.”

An internal Tesla document obtained by Electrek expands, slightly, on what Musk means by “guesses”:

The vehicle uses its Autopilot sensors to intelligently and...

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