Is there a longer video anywhere? Looking closely I have to wonder where the hell did that deer come from? There's a car up ahead of the Tesla in the same lane, I presume quickly moved back in once it passed the deer? The deer didn't spook or anything from that car?
This would have been hard for a human driver to avoid hitting, but I know the issue is the right equipment would have been better than human vision, which should be the goal. And it didn't detect the impact either since it didn't stop.
But I just think it's peculiar that that deer just literally popped there without any sign of motion.
It depends. If it's on the side of the road it may do the opposite and jump in front of you. This one actually looked like it was going to start moving, but not a chance.
It's the gap between where the deer is in the dark and the car in front that's odd. Only thing I can figure is the person was in the other lane and darted over just after passing the deer.
The front car is probably further ahead than you think, and a deer can move onto the road quickly and freeze when looking at headlights or slow down if confused. I think in this case the deer was facing away and may not have even heard the vehicle approaching so it wasn't trying to avoid danger.
I avoided a deer in a similar situation while driving last week, and the car ahead of us was closer than this clip. Just had to brake and change lanes.
That is because at a distance they freeze in case a predator hasn't noticed them yet. Theey don't bolt until they think an attack is imminent, and cars move to fast for them to react.