Here’s what your Tesla is missing — and how to add it in 15 minutes
In early 2024, a Tesla Model 3 plunged approximately 300 feet off a cliff along the Mulholland Highway near Malibu, California. The remarkable part of the story isn’t just that the vehicle survived — it’s that the occupants climbed out on their own with only mild injuries. That kind of outcome doesn’t happen by accident. It happens because Tesla engineered the Model 3 with an exceptionally rigid body structure, strategic crumple zones, and a battery pack that doubles as a reinforced floor pan. But as a Tesla owner, there are several steps you can take yourself — in about 15 minutes — to make sure your vehicle is configured for maximum safety in an emergency situation like this one.
When news of the Mulholland Highway crash circulated on r/TeslaModelY, the conversation quickly shifted from shock to practical questions: what settings mattered, what should have been configured differently, and what every Tesla owner should check after taking delivery. This guide walks through those exact steps so your Model 3 or Model Y is prepared for the worst-case scenario you hope never happens.
What you’ll need to maximize Tesla Model 3 safety
Time required: 15–20 minutes
Tools needed: None — everything is done through the touchscreen and your phone app
Vehicle compatibility: All Tesla Model 3 and Model Y vehicles (2017–present), all software versions since 2022
You won’t need any physical tools or aftermarket products for this guide. Every safety-critical setting we cover is built into Tesla’s software. The goal is to make sure those features are activated, properly configured, and not accidentally disabled.
Step-by-step: Configure your Tesla for maximum crash safety
Step 1: Verify Automatic Emergency Braking is enabled
What you’re doing: Navigate to Controls > Autopilot > Automatic Emergency Braking and confirm the toggle is switched on.
Why it matters: Automatic Emergency Braking (AEB) is one of the most impactful active safety features in any modern vehicle. According to NHTSA data, AEB systems can reduce rear-end crashes by roughly 50%. In a mountain road scenario like the Mulholland Highway — where visibility is limited and guardrails can appear suddenly — even a fraction of a second of automatic braking can be the difference between stopping at the edge and going over.
Tip: AEB works independently of Autopilot and FSD. Even if you never engage Autosteer, AEB is always monitoring. Some owners mistakenly believe turning off Autopilot disables all active safety — it does not.
Step 2: Check Forward Collision Warning sensitivity
What you’re doing: Go to Controls > Autopilot > Forward Collision Warning and set it to “Late,” “Average,” or “Early.”
Why it matters: Forward Collision Warning (FCW) alerts you visually and audibly before AEB engages. Setting this to “Early” gives you the maximum reaction time before the car intervenes. On winding canyon roads with limited runoff space, early warnings let you begin manual braking sooner, reducing the forces your vehicle’s structure would need to absorb in a worst-case scenario.
Tip: If you find “Early” too chatty in city traffic, switch it to “Average” for daily driving but toggle back to “Early” before any canyon, highway, or unfamiliar route. You can change this setting at any time, even while driving (briefly — have a passenger do it).
Step 3: Confirm your seatbelt pre-tensioners and airbag status
What you’re doing: In the Tesla app, go to Service > and check for any diagnostic warnings related to airbags or restraint systems. Physically inspect that all seatbelts retract smoothly and latch securely.
Why it matters: In the Mulholland Highway crash, the Model 3’s passive safety systems — the body structure combined with seatbelts and airbags — are what allowed the occupants to walk away. Tesla’s seatbelt pre-tensioners fire milliseconds before a crash to pull occupants into the optimal seating position, and load limiters release slightly to reduce chest force. Neither of these works if the system has an unaddressed fault.
Tip: If you bought your Tesla used or it’s been in any previous incident — even a minor parking lot bump — take it to Tesla Service for a restraint system diagnostic. This is a no-cost check on most visits and takes under 30 minutes.
Step 4: Set up Emergency Lane Departure Avoidance
What you’re doing: Navigate to Controls > Autopilot > Emergency Lane Departure Avoidance and confirm it’s set to “On” (not “Off” or “Assist Only”).
Why it matters: Emergency Lane Departure Avoidance (ELDA) provides steering assist to keep your vehicle in its lane if it detects you’re drifting and a collision is imminent. On mountain roads like Mulholland where lanes are narrow and the shoulder is often nonexistent, ELDA can correct an unintentional drift before it becomes a drift off the road entirely. Tesla’s official documentation notes that ELDA only activates when it determines a collision is likely — it won’t fight you during intentional lane changes.
Tip: ELDA is separate from Lane Keep Assist. Many owners confuse the two. ELDA is the emergency-level intervention; Lane Keep Assist is the gentle nudge. You want both active.
Step 5: Enable Collision Safety Response in Service mode (advanced)
What you’re doing: This step is optional but worth knowing. In the event of a significant collision, your Tesla automatically unlocks all doors, turns on hazard lights, disables the high-voltage system, and ventilates the cabin by opening windows slightly (if possible). These happen through Tesla’s built-in Collision Safety Response protocol — no manual setup is needed. However, you should understand this behavior so you know what to expect.
Why it matters: In the Mulholland incident, the occupants were able to exit the vehicle on their own. Tesla’s automatic door-unlock-on-crash protocol likely contributed to this. Knowing the car will unlock its doors after a severe impact means that in a high-stress moment, you won’t waste precious seconds trying to manually unlock.
Tip: Read through your owner’s manual section on “In Case of Emergency.” It covers what happens to the 12V battery, how to manually open doors if power is lost (front doors have mechanical releases — rear doors do not on Model 3), and how to disconnect first responders.
Step 6: Verify your emergency contact information is up to date
What you’re doing: In the Tesla app, go to your account settings and confirm your emergency contact and Tesla account phone number are current.
Why it matters: If your vehicle experiences a severe crash, Tesla’s infrastructure can automatically alert emergency services with vehicle location and impact severity data (where available). This only works if your account information is accurate.
Tip: Update this every time you change phone numbers or move. It’s a 30-second task that most owners set once during delivery and never revisit.
What we learned from the Mulholland Highway crash
The Tesla Model 3 that went off the cliff on Mulholland Highway near Malibu is a real-world validation of what crash test data has shown since the Model 3 debuted. According to testing by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, the Model 3 earned a Top Safety Pick+ rating, with “Good” ratings in every crashworthiness category including the difficult small overlap front test. Tesla’s aluminum-and-steel body, combined with the structural rigidity of the floor-mounted battery pack, creates a survival cage that resists intrusion even during extreme impacts.
What makes the Mulholland case particularly informative is the type of crash. Most crash tests evaluate flat-surface impacts at defined angles and speeds. A 300-foot plunge down a cliff involves repeated multi-directional impacts with rocks, trees, and uneven terrain over an extended distance. The fact that the cabin remained intact enough for occupants to self-extricate suggests the structural design performs under scenarios well beyond laboratory conditions.
One owner noted on a Reddit discussion that the low center of gravity from the battery pack likely prevented the vehicle from rolling — instead, it appeared to slide down the slope, which may have distributed impact forces rather than concentrating them in a single violent rollover event.
3 things most people get wrong about Tesla Model 3 safety
1. Assuming Autopilot being “off” means safety features are off
Many owners — especially recent ones — confuse Autopilot (Autosteer + Traffic-Aware Cruise Control) with active safety features. They are entirely different systems. AEB, FCW, and ELDA operate regardless of whether Autopilot is engaged. If you’ve been poking around the Autopilot menu and turning things off because you don’t trust lane-keeping, double-check you didn’t disable AEB along with it. AEB should always remain on.
2. Not knowing how to manually open the front doors
If your 12V battery fails or the high-voltage contactors disconnect after a crash, your electronic door releases won’t work. On the Model 3, the front doors have a manual release cable located at the base of the window switch assembly — you pull it forward to mechanically open the door. The rear doors do not have manual releases (a well-known criticism). In an emergency where power is lost, rear seat passengers need either the front occupants to help or the mechanical release knowledge. Practice this once in a parking lot so you’re not learning it for the first time at the bottom of a cliff.
3. Ignoring software updates that improve safety performance
Tesla regularly pushes over-the-air updates that improve AEB performance, expand the range of scenarios where FCW triggers, and refine ELDA behavior. As NotATeslaApp regularly documents, some of these updates meaningfully change how quickly and aggressively safety systems respond. If you’ve been postponing updates because you don’t want to lose a feature or deal with UI changes, reconsider — the safety improvements are the changes that matter most.
Before and after: what changes when you complete this configuration
Before: Your Model 3 has default safety settings that may have been changed during a test drive, a software update reset, or a previous owner’s preferences. AEB might be switched off. FCW might be set to “Late,” giving you almost no warning time. ELDA might be set to “Assist Only” instead of full intervention. You might not know how to manually open the doors, and your emergency contact info may be from three phones ago.
After: AEB is confirmed on and will brake for obstacles even if you don’t react. FCW is set to “Early,” buying you precious seconds on canyon roads. ELDA will actively steer you back into your lane if a collision is imminent. You know where the manual door release is and how it feels. Your Tesla account has current emergency contact information. None of this makes you invincible — but it gives you and your vehicle the best combined chance of walking away, just like the occupants on Mulholland Highway did.
Frequently asked questions
Does the Model 3 have better passive safety than the Model Y?
The Model 3 and Model Y share a similar structural philosophy — both use a reinforced battery pan as part of the floor structure, and both earned IIHS Top Safety Pick+ ratings. The Model Y is slightly heavier and has a higher roofline, which changes rollover dynamics. For cliff-plunge or multi-impact scenarios, the Model 3’s lower center of gravity may reduce rollover frequency, but both vehicles are among the safest in their respective segments. Neither has a meaningful crashworthiness disadvantage.
Will these settings void my Tesla warranty?
No. Every setting covered in this guide is a built-in, Tesla-supported option accessible through the vehicle’s touchscreen and the Tesla mobile app. You’re not modifying firmware, not accessing developer modes, and not altering vehicle hardware. These are first-party safety settings, and adjusting them to your preference is explicitly supported.
How difficult is this to do if I’m not technical?
On a scale of 1–5, this guide is a 1. Every step involves navigating touchscreen menus or the Tesla app — no tools, no physical parts, and no vehicle modification. Most owners complete all six steps in under 15 minutes. The only “advanced” step (Step 5) is informational only — there’s nothing to toggle, just knowledge to absorb.
What if my car already crashed — will these steps help retroactively?
If your vehicle has already been in a significant collision, the priority is to have Tesla Service perform a full diagnostic on the restraint and structural systems before returning to regular driving. This guide helps you configure settings before an incident — afterward, the physical condition of your vehicle matters more than software settings. Contact Tesla Service to schedule an inspection.
Conclusion
The Tesla Model 3 that plunged 300 feet off the Mulholland Highway near Malibu proved something that crash-test data had been suggesting for years: the Model 3’s structural design and passive safety systems perform extraordinarily well in extreme, unconventional impacts. But the active safety features that come standard in every Model 3 only work if they’re switched on and properly configured. In 15 minutes, you can verify that AEB, Forward Collision Warning, and Emergency Lane Departure Avoidance are all active — and learn how to manually open your doors if power fails. That’s not a product purchase. That’s not an upgrade. It’s something you can do right now, sitting in your driveway, using only your touchscreen. Take the 15 minutes. Your future self may never need it — but if you do, you’ll be glad everything was set correctly from the start.
