Sleepy driver puts Tesla on autopilot, leading police on high-speed chase in Germany
The 45-year-old was chased by officers using full sirens and lights for around 15 minutes
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A drowsy driver in Germany had his license revoked after he fell asleep behind the wheel of his Tesla, which had been driving on autopilot and led police on a wild 15-minute pursuit.
The Bavarian Police Department attempted to pull over a Tesla driving on the Autobahn 70 toward Beyreuth on Dec. 28, but the driver would not respond to stop signals or the repeated blaring of horns.
A driver rides hands-free in a Tesla Motors Inc. Model S vehicle equipped with Autopilot hardware and software. (Christopher Goodney/Bloomberg via Getty Images/File / Getty Images)
A Tesla logo on a Model S is photographed inside a Tesla dealership. (Reuters/Lucas Jackson/File / Reuters Photos)
According to a news release, authorities tailed the electric vehicle, with horns blaring, for about 15 minutes without the driver acknowledging that he was being asked to pull over.
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Officers noticed that throughout the chase, the Tesla had kept the same distance from the patrol car and stayed at a constant speed of 110 kilometers per hour, or about 68 miles per hour.
Officers pulled up next to the Tesla’s driver’s side window and noticed the driver, only identified as a 45-year-old male, reclined in his seat with his eyes closed and his hands off the steering wheel.
"This strengthened the suspicion that he had left the controls to the autopilot and had fallen asleep," police said.
The driver eventually woke up after police had trailed the high-tech vehicle for about 15 minutes. The driver immediately followed police instructions to pull over once alerted.
The interior of a Tesla Model S is shown in autopilot mode in San Francisco, April 7, 2016. (Reuters/Alexandria Sage/File / Reuters Photos)
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Police also believed that the driver was under the influence of drugs after he failed a sobriety test. Officers did not note the specific drug the driver had allegedly taken.
Officers also noted that the driver placed a "steering wheel weight," a device used to mimic the weight of hands on a steering wheel, in the foot well of the vehicle.
"This device is attached to the steering wheel to trick the vehicle's safety system by pretending that your hand is on the wheel," the news release said.
The driver is being investigated for criminal endangerment of traffic, and his license has been suspended pending a formal hearing.
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In Germany, it is illegal for a driver to use a fully autonomous driving feature on vehicles, like a Tesla. The law remains that the driver must be in control of their vehicle at all times.