Tesla Model 3
The Tesla Model 3. (Tesla Photo)

Officers with the California Highway Patrol invented a new maneuver to stop a Tesla Model S vehicle after its driver fell asleep at the wheel.

The Los Altos Town Crier reported that when police approached the car on Highway 101 early Friday morning, officers believed the electric vehicle was driving on autopilot at 70 miles per hour.

Police called for additional units — one car stayed behind to block traffic, and another sped ahead of the Tesla, gradually slowing its speed. The Model 3 autopilot system responded by also slowing down and eventually came to a stop.

The 45-year-old was arrested on suspicion of driving under the influence. It’s not clear if the vehicle was in full Autopilot mode. We’ve reached out to Tesla for more details and will update this post when we hear back.

Tesla drivers must keep their hands on the wheel when the car is on Autopilot mode. The car is designed to alert a driver if it does not detect hands on the wheel.

In March, a driver died in California while his Tesla Model X was in autopilot mode. Tesla removed the “Full Self-Driving” option from its cars in October.

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