If you'd like to get a Tesla with the "fully automated" add-on but can't afford $10,000 all at once, you're in luck. That's because Tesla offers a $199 monthly subscription.

Yes, everything is subscription these days, but in this case it's not such a bad deal. After all, $10,000 is a heck of a lot of money to drop all at once.

Elon Musk has been promising FSD subscription services for several years, but until now only one-off purchases have been available. Purchase prices have steadily risen.

Now, however, FSD subscriptions are available and can be used on eligible vehicles in the US. Tesla owners who only have Basic Autopilot will pay $199 per month, and those who purchased the now discontinued Enhanced Autopilot package will pay $99 per month.

Tesla has not revealed what will happen to the existing $10,000 FSD add-on, which at the time of this writing was still available for purchase on all four Tesla models. However, this may change in the future.

While it would be annoying for companies to move everything to subscription, this does not seem like such a bad idea.

While $199 is a lot to try out a fancy new feature, it is better than throwing $10,000 at something you don't even want to use. Furthermore, at $199 a month, it will be more than four years before you end up paying more for FSD than you would have if you had paid for it up front. And who knows what capabilities the autopilots will have by then?

It is worth pointing out, however, that Tesla's "fully self-driving" is not fully autonomous. An attentive driver must be on board in case something goes wrong. After all, the company has publicly stated that the cars could "do the wrong thing at the worst possible time."

The only major issue here is that the subscription requires a full self-driving computer 3.0; those who don't because they bought their Tesla before 2019 will have to pay $1,500 for the hardware upgrade. must pay $1,500 for the hardware upgrade.

This is troubling to some because Tesla had previously stated that these cars would have all the necessary self-driving hardware and no upgrades would be required. In fact, a 2016 blog post announcing that is still available for posterity.

Nevertheless, FSD Computers 2 and 2.5 were not sufficient for what Tesla wanted, so it upgraded its computers on all models produced starting in 2019. Owners of existing vehicles and FSD add-ons were offered the upgrade at no additional cost. This was because Tesla had promised that the hardware would be included regardless of whether they purchased the FSD software upgrade.

This is very unfashionable for Tesla. Despite the current rather negative consensus on the Tesla forum

, the Telsa's full self-drive capability is not really fully autonomous, as its name suggests. As mentioned before, it requires an attentive driver behind the wheel in case something goes wrong.

But true autonomy or not, the Basic Autopilot and FSD upgrade bundle a number of very useful features.

Basic Autopilot is essentially a smart version of cruise control, allowing Tesla to automatically accelerate and brake depending on road conditions. The car may also steer itself and stay in its lane if there are clear lane markings. Autopilot also includes emergency braking, collision warning, and blind spot monitoring.

"Full self-driving" goes a step further, with more advanced Autopilot features. With the FSD upgrade, the Tesla will be able to automatically change lanes, call out of parking spaces, and automatically parallel and perpendicular park with just one tap on the center console.

The real selling point of FSD Autopilot is that it gives the car the ability to navigate itself on the highway. You still have to be alert and aware, but by most definitions the car drives itself. This feature will be introduced in urban areas by the end of the year.

Tesla owners in the US can check the Tesla app to see if an FSD subscription is available. If a hardware upgrade is needed, the app will clarify this as well. So, as early as today, you may be able to go out and try out the car's "fully automated" features.