Tesla Drops 'Autopilot' Branding in California Amid Regulatory Pressure
Tesla has stopped using the term 'Autopilot' for its driver-assistance technology in California and removed the 'Autosteer' feature from new vehicles in the state. The changes were made to avoid a potential 30-day sales suspension from the California DMV, which had accused the company of deceptive marketing. The company has also rebranded its top-tier system to “Full Self-Driving (Supervised)” to emphasize the need for driver oversight.
- The California DMV's action originated from accusations filed in July 2022, which stated that Tesla's marketing language, including phrases like "the system is designed to be able to conduct short and long-distance trips with no action required by the person in the driver's seat," was misleading. - Both "Autopilot" and "Full Self-Driving" are classified as Level 2 driver-assistance systems by the Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE). This means the vehicle can control steering and acceleration/deceleration, but the driver must remain fully engaged and ready to take control at any time. - The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) has multiple open investigations into Tesla's driver-assistance technology. One probe is looking into 58 incidents where Teslas on "Full Self-Driving" mode reportedly violated traffic laws. - Since 2016, the NHTSA has launched over 40 special investigations into Tesla crashes where driver-assist systems were suspected of being used, with 23 resulting fatalities reported. A broader analysis of NHTSA data linked these systems to over 700 crashes and at least 19 deaths since 2019. - In December 2023, Tesla initiated a recall of over 2 million vehicles to enhance its driver monitoring systems. This was in response to an NHTSA investigation that found the existing system for ensuring driver engagement was weak and created a "critical safety gap". - An administrative law judge in California initially recommended a 30-day suspension of both Tesla's manufacturer and dealer licenses in the state. However, the final DMV order reduced the penalties, giving Tesla 60 days to change its marketing language to avoid the sales suspension. - In its defense, Tesla had argued that the California DMV was aware of the "Autopilot" and "Full Self-Driving" brand names since 2014 and 2016, respectively, implying a statute of limitations on the deceptive marketing claims. - Tesla reports that its "Full Self-Driving (Supervised)" system has been driven for over 8.2 billion miles and is involved in significantly fewer collisions compared to the national average. However, some recent quarterly safety reports have shown a downward trend in the number of miles driven between crashes.
