Team Breaks Transcontinental Autonomous Driving Record

Three drivers broke a transcontinental record using Tesla's Autopilot technology as part of a team sponsored by fleet tracking company GPS Insight.

by Staff

October 30, 2015

Team Breaks Transcontinental Autonomous Driving Record — *Screenshot via GPS Insight.*

2 min to read

Three drivers broke a transcontinental record using Tesla's Autopilot technology as part of a team sponsored by fleet tracking company GPS Insight.

Deena Mastracci, Carl Reese and Alex Roy used the autonomous driving mode in a Model S to complete the 2,995-mile trip from Redondo Beach, Calif., to New York City in 57 hours and 48 minutes on Oct. 18. They left from the Portofino Inn and arrived at Red Ball Garage.

The time was a record for transcontinental autonomous driving. The driving team used a Model S P85D with the Autopilot update released by Tesla on Oct. 15. The semiautonomous technology allows for hands and pedal-free driving on the highway, making lane changes and adjusting throttle, steering and breaking based on sensor scans.

Evidence of the team’s run has been submitted to the TransContinental Drivers Association for verification.

All three drivers hold current or past transcontinental driving records; Mastracci now with three; Reese with four; and Roy with two. Mastracci and Reese were members of a team that broke the record of least non-driving time to cross the U.S. in an electric vehicle on April 19 of this year. Automotive journalist and author, Roy set a transcontinental driving record from Los Angeles to New York in a gas vehicle in 2006, which was since broken in 2013.

View drone footage of the trip here.

Topics:GPS Insight Battery-Electric Vehicles Autonomous Vehicles Tesla Model S Green Fleet

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