On May 6, netizen Tang submitted a letter to the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology on whether Tesla kinetic energy recovery system declared safety as required. The netizen believes that the design of combining the "kinetic energy recovery function" with the accelerator pedal to make the accelerator pedal have obvious braking effect violates common sense and the driving habits of cars for a hundred years, resulting in countless traffic accidents of stepping on the accelerator by mistake. I hope that the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology can provide Tesla's approval documents and related instructions.
On May 3 1 day, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology responded that braking energy recovery and single pedal driving mode are new technologies for new energy vehicles. These technologies are not unique to Tesla. When purchasing and using related new energy products, users should be familiar with the technical characteristics of new energy vehicles to ensure driving safety.
Then the question is, how much does Tesla's recent accusation of brake failure have to do with the "single pedal mode"? Is this mode reasonable?
In the past, a car had three pedals, namely clutch pedal, brake pedal and accelerator pedal. Drivers need to control the clutch with their left foot, control the accelerator and brake with their right foot, and at the same time, their right hand must be put into gear to make the vehicles they drive run smoothly. Later, the car was equipped with an automatic gearbox, and the clutch pedal was gone. The driver only needs his right foot to control the brake and throttle, so that the car can run smoothly.
Nowadays, the global wave of car electrification has started, and the "single pedal mode" came into being. It should be emphasized that "single pedal mode" is not "single pedal design". At present, all passenger cars on the market keep two pedals: the accelerator (electric switch, also known as accelerator pedal) and the brake.
The so-called "single pedal mode" means that the driver can complete the operation of starting, accelerating and decelerating, taxiing and even braking of the vehicle only by manipulating the accelerator pedal.
The principle is that the reversible motor of the new energy vehicle can work as a generator, and the kinetic energy of the vehicle can be converted into electric energy and stored in the power battery, so that the vehicle can slow down or stop when the brake pedal does not do work or does less work, which is the above-mentioned "kinetic energy recovery function".
This function allows the driver to "fuel (electricity), collect oil (electricity) and brake" when driving the vehicle, and the accelerator pedal becomes a reality.
Kinetic energy recovery is obviously an energy-saving and environmental protection "black technology", not a patent of Tesla. "Single pedal mode" is not the unique driving function of Tesla brand vehicles. At present, most pure electric vehicles on the market are equipped with this function, such as Guangzhou Automobile Aian, Weilai Automobile, Tucki P7, BMW iX3, Audi e-tron, etc. It is worth noting that in general, this function is turned off by default and needs to be turned on manually.
Tesla is an exception.
202 1 1 18, the first batch of domestic Tesla Model Y began to be delivered in Tesla delivery centers all over the country. Before and after delivery, potential and new owners of Tesla quarreled on the Internet about an adjustment of Tesla products-Tesla cancelled the "low" option in the "kinetic energy recovery" adjustment option, and the new car was set according to the "standard" kinetic energy recovery, which could not be adjusted or cancelled.
In other words, starting from this batch, Tesla owners can only passively accept the driving experience brought by the "single pedal mode" whether they like it or not.
Prior to this, in order to make people with different driving styles have a pleasant driving experience, Tesla made two calibrations on kinetic energy recovery, namely "low" and "standard". Among them, the "low" kinetic energy recovery is small, just like the state that the fuel vehicle releases the accelerator but does not step on the brake, while the "standard" kinetic energy recovery is large, more like the state that the vehicle slows down when releasing the accelerator and stepping on the brake.
Until June 2020, Tesla cut off "low" kinetic energy recovery on North American models, and took "standard" kinetic energy recovery as a standard function, which could not be cancelled.
Weibo, supported by Tesla customers, previously responded to netizens and shared the explanation about energy recovery braking: energy recovery is a unique and efficient system for electric vehicles, which recovers part of energy during vehicle deceleration, makes full use of every energy and increases cruising range. In the process of driving, the driver can realize driving actions such as starting, stopping, accelerating, decelerating and following the car. Only by simply adjusting the accelerator pedal and constantly switching between the accelerator pedal and the brake pedal can driving fatigue be reduced; In an emergency, energy recovery braking can effectively assist the vehicle braking system and provide multiple guarantees for vehicle deceleration and driving safety.
It is not difficult to see that Tesla has been trying to guide users to learn kinetic energy recovery. The focus of the problem has also developed from the initial technical dispute to the current driving habit dispute.
Some analysts pointed out that braking with kinetic energy recovery function has limited braking force and can only meet daily driving, but when emergency braking is needed, traditional brake discs and brake pads should be used.
If the driver drives in the "single pedal mode" most of the time in daily driving, then over time, his muscle memory will unconsciously become "lifting the pedal equals braking", and the logical setting of "stepping on the pedal equals braking" in traditional driving habits will be erased. In this case, when there is an emergency in front of the vehicle, the driver who is in a state of high mental tension often only lifts his right foot and forgets to step on the brake pedal.
In extreme cases, when the driver found that the speed of lifting his right foot did not slow down and remembered that he should step on the brake, his muscle memory made him step on the accelerator, and the consequences were unimaginable.
Chen Zhen, a well-known car blogger, once said publicly: "You have been driving with one foot. For example, you only lift the throttle by half now, but you may panic in an emergency and step on the throttle as a brake. "
On May 10, Tao Lin, global vice president of Tesla, said in an interview with Xinhua News Agency that Tesla needs to strengthen consumer education in vehicle use.
Tao Lin said: "We need to cooperate with driving schools and transportation departments, and constantly use some technical means at the car end to let everyone know how to use the new car, so as to avoid misoperation during use or other problems caused by functional ignorance."
It is undeniable that pure trams, especially Tesla, are very different from traditional fuel vehicles in driving habits and driving methods, and in the era of software-defined cars, the mutual learning between people and vehicles can not be ignored.