The next over-the-air software updates to Tesla's Model S vehicle will add even more self-driving capabilities to the electric luxury vehicle, CEO Elon Musk said in a a conference call with journalists Thursday. Expected "within three months," the Version 7 software update will enable Automatic Steering. The new features will make it "almost" possible to "travel from San Francisco to Seattle with the driver barely touching the wheel at all," Musk said.

Several autopilot features, including self-parking and collision prevention, are already standard on the Model S. The next Model S update to come early this summer will also enable remote vehicle summoning on private property, according to Tesla.

The Version 6.2 update to the Model S that rolled out on Thursday added two new key applications to the vehicle's software: Range Assurance and Trip Planner. The Range Assurance navigation system communicates with Tesla's network of chargers across the U.S. and parts of Canada to make it "effectively impossible for a Model S driver to run out of charge unintentionally." The Trip Planner calculates the fastest and most convenient routes to take based on where charging stations are located.

Tech Advances Challenge Lawmakers

Many companies -- including Audi, Google, Bosch, Daimler, Delphi, Nissan, Volkswagen and, reportedly, Apple -- are working aggressively to develop autonomous vehicle technology, and several prototypes and demonstration models have already proven their capabilities on test-track and real-life road environments. Government regulations, however, have yet to catch up with what's becoming increasingly possible technologically.

The U.S. Department of Transportation released a preliminary policy statement on automated vehicles in 2013. Several individual states -- California, Nevada and Florida, as well as the District of Columbia -- have also passed laws governing the use of self-driving cars.

Speaking at a technology conference earlier this week, Musk said he expects it will be only a few years before autonomous vehicles become a familiar sight on the road. He added he could envision a day when lawmakers might even outlaw driven cars "because they're too dangerous," although he noted in a Tweet later than "Tesla is strongly in favor of people being allowed to drive their cars and always will be."

Highways and Major Roads Only

During Thursday's conference call, Musk said the coming Automatic Steering update to the Model S will make the vehicle "technically capable of going from parking lot to parking lot." That will not be enabled with this update, however.

"We won't be enabling that for users with this hardware suite because we don't think it's going to be safe in neighborhoods where there's no lane markings and kids playing in the street," Musk said. "It will only be enabled if you're on a highway or major road."

Automatic Steering will also work at low speeds on private property, enabling Model S owners to -- for example -- allow their vehicles to autonomously make their way through a dark, underground parking garage.

The Version 6.2 update to the Model S software, which is rolling out first in beta and is expected to see wider release over the next week or so, will add several other new safety features to the vehicle, including automatic emergency braking, blind spot warning and side collision warning. It also comes with a valet mode that lets owners limit a car's speed, lock the glove box and trunk and protect personal information for times when someone else is driving.