Elon Musk unveiled the “D” overnight in California, and as most people anticipated, the much-hyped announcement was an update to the company’s model S, giving the newest, most expensive versions of the sedan all-wheel drive and “autopilot” capabilities (full specs are here).
The semi-autonomous “autopilot” system uses sensors and camera to detect stop signs, traffic lights, lane barriers and other vehicles. It can also change lanes and park itself. Here is a taste of what that looks like:
The “D” is also Tesla’s most powerful vehicle yet (which is really saying something), with the same acceleration capability as McLaren’s F1, one of the fastest cars in history, Wired reports.
Shares in Tesla are actually sharply lower today (down about 5% at the time of writing) but there is nothing unusual about that, especially given that Tesla is extremely highly valued using traditional measures. In fact there is a Wall Street adage—”buy the rumor, sell the news”—that explains why share prices often fall after big company announcements.