Terrifying new footage shows a Tesla robotaxi ripping through partially flooded streets in Austin, Texas.

The clip, which went viral on the r/SweatyPalms subreddit over the weekend, shows the modified Model Y blasting past human-operated vehicles that are operating with far more caution — while passing on the right lane, a no-no for prudent drivers.

"That dude is leaving a permanent hand print on that door handle," one Reddit user joked, referring to the person in the driver's seat holding on for dear life.

"There's probably a permanent mark on the seat too..." another user added about the footage, which was shared by a Tesla stan account called AI DRIVR on CEO Elon Musk's social media platform X.

The company's pilot autonomous ride-hailing service launch has already been mired in controversy, from "dropping off" a rider in the middle of a busy intersection and cruising down the wrong side of the road to driving nearly twice the posted speed limit.

Intriguingly, another influencer received a bizarre call during her first trip in a robotaxi last week, requiring her to exit the vehicle immediately due to incoming weather.

In other words, Tesla's policies appear to be far from consistent across its entire fleet, highlighting the sheer amount of kinks the company still has to iron out before its robotaxis can safely coexist with human drivers on public streets.

Tesla staffers were quick to jump in on the discussion.

"Austin streets were very easily flooded, and teams did a lot of tests on hydroplaning and against heavy rain," senior staff engineer Yun-Ta Tsai tweeted in response, seemingly trying to head off any concerns.

However, judging by how the other drivers were treating the onslaught of five inches of rain per hour, the robotaxi could've easily startled a white-knuckling resident trying to get home in a deluge.

Tesla's autonomous driving tech also exclusively relies on camera sensors, making it far more vulnerable to inclement weather conditions, such as heavy fog or rain, compared to vehicles equipped with radar and LIDAR systems. The shortcoming was demonstrated in a damning video shared by YouTuber and former NASA engineer Mark Rober earlier this year.

Is a robotaxi careening through inches of rain really a win for the EV maker, as AI DRIVR made it out to be — or is this an instance of automated reckless driving?

Tesla CEO Elon Musk has long argued that automating all driving tasks will eventually lead to far fewer fatalities. However, given the performance of his robotaxis over the last two weeks, such a future appears to still be a long way off.

More on Tesla's robotaxis: Tesla Robotaxi Rider Gets Bizarre Call Saying She Has to Exit Vehicle Immediately


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