Chinese Drivers Use Tiny Plastic Heads to Fool Tesla’s Autopilot Safeguards
Tesla owners in China are buying small plastic heads resembling celebrities to trick the car's in-cabin camera, allowing them to be distracted while using driver-assist features.
Cheap and Creative Workarounds
In China, for about $30, you can buy a tiny replica of Dwayne Johnson’s head to place above the rearview mirror and fool Tesla into thinking an attentive driver is present. These figurines are just one example of how Chinese Tesla owners are creatively—but potentially dangerously—circumventing the carmaker’s safety guardrails.
The heads are easily found on Chinese e-commerce platforms like Taobao, Xianyu, and Douyin, priced from $10 to $40 depending on sophistication. They can be installed on the ceiling, windshield, or rearview mirror, carefully positioned to block only the driver’s head.
How It Works
A Tesla Model 3 owner in China, who asked to remain anonymous, said his miniature head (a bald man resembling Dwayne Johnson) worked perfectly. On a 400-mile road trip, he used it for about 250 miles. With the head in place, he could go 30 minutes without interruption while snacking and filming.
Tesla’s system uses a camera above the windshield to monitor driver attention. If it detects the driver isn’t looking ahead for a few seconds, it demands attention. Non-compliance can lead to autopilot being disabled or a week-long ban from driver-assist features.
Other Tricks and Controversy
Some drivers use static pictures or lenticular prints that create a blinking effect as the car moves. A more advanced gadget is a pocket-sized screen that plays a looped video of a person blinking and moving their head. The seller claims it has been tested on Model S, Model X, and Cybertruck with 0% error and sold to customers in the US, Canada, and South Korea.
Currently, these gadgets are a niche market dominated by DIY sellers, but if they become more popular, Tesla may crack down. The company didn’t respond to inquiries about these products.
Many on Chinese social media criticize the use of such devices, comparing them to seatbelt bypass clips. Both put drivers at risk for convenience.
