Tesla is in hot water with California DMV over its Autopilot and self-driving claims, which the agency believes are deceptive. The corporate has two weeks to answer the inquiry, or it risks temporarily losing its licenses to operate as a vehicle manufacturer and auto dealer in California.
Through the years, Tesla has been criticized for a way it advertises its Advanced Driver Assistance System (ADAS). Considered one of the essential concerns has been the actual names of the systems: Autopilot and Full Self-Driving Capability. Some people imagine that the names suggest that the systems are autonomous, although they’re only driver-assist systems.
California DMV, which has some authority over Tesla because it has numerous operations within the state, has shared those concerns up to now.
Now it’s putting pressure on Tesla with not one but two filings with California’s Office of Administrative Hearings, claiming that Tesla is falsely promoting those systems as “autonomous” (via CNBC):
As an alternative of simply identifying product or brand names, these “Autopilot” and “Full Self-Driving Capability” labels and descriptions represent that vehicles equipped with the ADAS features will operate as an autonomous vehicle, but vehicles equipped with those ADAS features couldn’t on the time of those advertisements, and can’t now, operate as autonomous vehicles.
The DMV is taking a two-pronged approach where it’s pushing for Tesla to alter its marketing around Autopilot and Full Self-Driving and likewise individually probing the capabilities of Tesla’s system as a part of a security review.
Last yr, Tesla’s communications with the DMV over Full Self-Driving were released, and so they brought some confusion. A few of the comments made by Tesla to the DMV may very well be interpreted as contradicting what Tesla and Elon Musk are saying publicly.
Tesla has been attempting to persuade the DMV that its Full Self-Driving (FSD) Beta isn’t a level 4 or 5 self-driving system so it doesn’t should report data back to the DMV.
On the promoting front, California DMV’s deputy director for the Office of Public Affairs, Anita Gore, said:
It “will ask that Tesla will likely be required to advertise to consumers and higher educate Tesla drivers concerning the capabilities of its ‘Autopilot’ and ‘Full Self-Driving’ features, including cautionary warnings regarding the restrictions of the features, and for other actions as appropriate given the violations.”
Tesla has now 15 days to answer the inquiries from the DMV, or it’s in danger to lose its licenses to operate as a vehicle manufacturer and auto dealer in California