Robotaxi jolt: Tesla autonomous driving test goes poorly for Truist Securities

Truist Securities reported back on what it said was a test drive of Tesla’s (NASDAQ:TSLA) updated version of its autonomous driving software.

Analyst William Stein said the new version was impressive, but does not solve autonomy. “The shortcomings that we observed make it challenging to imagine what TSLA will reveal in its RoboTaxi event in October,” highlighted Stein. He wrote in detail on some of the positive advancements included in FSD V12.3.6, while also highlighting some notable problems on the test drive.

“For example, the Model Y accelerated through an intersection as the car in front of us had only partly completed a right-turn. My quick intervention was absolutely required to avoid an otherwise certain accident. Another intervention was required when a police officer used hand motions to signal to us to pull to the side of the road to allow a funeral procession to pass. A third intervention was less of a requirement and more of a convenience. Finally, in a section of our route, the highway was curvy and narrow, and had a solid white line separating lanes, signaling a prohibition against lane changes. Still, the Model Y switched lanes twice under that condition.”

Truist Securities said it is hopeful and optimistic that Tesla (TSLA) will continue to provide autonomy features that make it safer, but warned investors that those advancements may not be finalized before the robotaxi event scheduled for October.

Truist Securities has a Hold rating on Tesla (TSLA), which is currently the most common rating on Wall Street.

Shares of Tesla (TSLA) were up 5.53% in afternoon trading on Monday.