--- title: "Tesla Returns Autopilot Features to Used Car After Outrage" description: "Tesla decided to reinstate $8,000 worth of Autopilot features to a used 2017 Model S after the owner found the company had removed them after he bought it." date: "2020-02-14" modified: "2020-02-14" authors: - name: "Victor Tangermann" job_title: "Senior Editor" link: "https://futurism.com/authors/victor" url: "https://futurism.com/the-byte/tesla-returns-autopilot-features-outrage" categories: - "Advanced Transport" - "Tesla" tags: - "autopilot" - "tesla" - "the digest" --- # Tesla Returns Autopilot Features to Used Car After Outrage ![Tesla decided to reinstate $8,000 worth of Autopilot features to a used 2017 Model S after the owner found the company had removed them after he bought it.]() *\Image: Marco Verch via Flickr/Victor Tangermann\* ## Yoink Last week, an [investigative report by *Jalopnik*]() revealed that electric car maker Tesla had remotely [removed $8,000 worth]() of Autopilot features from a used 2017 Model S after it changed hands in November. Luckily, it sounds like Tesla has realized it made a mistake — and returned the yanked features to the vehicle. ## Remote Access The affair left a bad taste — the used car lot clearly stated the features were part of the deal, according to *Jalopnik*. "What concerns me is the very idea that remote updates have that kind of access to the car," Futurism reader Adam Lawson wrote in a [Facebook comment](). "It seems as though that would give hackers the option to cause an accident." ## "Miscommunication" A week later, Tesla seems to have resolved the situation. According to forum posts by the owner, [spotted by *The Next Web*](), Tesla has apologized and returned the features. A customer experience rep "apologized for my troubles, told me that Tesla has restored all missed options cited a miscommunication and it was not intentionally!" [according to a post](). Despite the happy ending, the incident still goes to show that car companies will have the final say as to what features will or will not be available to those who buy used cars in the near future — and without ever needing to get their hands on the vehicle. **READ MORE:** [Tesla owner says remotely disabled Autopilot features have been restored]() \[*The Verge*\] **More on the saga:** *[Tesla Is Remotely Removing Autopilot Features From Used Cars]()* ## Author I've been at Futurism since 2017, where my role has evolved to encompass design, writing, and increasingly editing. I've always been fascinated by space exploration and advanced transportation, which I've leaned into by interviewing luminaries in those fields while closely following the dimensions of policy and regulation that allow next-generation projects to succeed -- or, sometimes, to fail. I'm also keenly interested in the effects of generative AI on society, policies, and democratic institutions, as well as clean energy, physics and biology, and the vagaries of tech leadership. My work for Futurism has been cited by publications including Ars Technica, Gizmodo, PC Magazine, Jalopnik, Fox News, and the New York Post. I spent my childhood living in locations including Manila, the Philippines, and Geneva, Switzerland, attended McGill University, and now live in Toronto, Canada. Before Futurism I worked at AskMen and a small photography studio. In my free time, I'm an avid gardener, foodie, and craft beer lover, as well as a maker of artisanal hot pepper sauces. I have a magnificent dog named Freida. ### Author social links [Bluesky]()