Tesla misled customers about self-driving features and governance rules

Tesla could be temporarily shut out of its largest U.S. market if it doesn’t change deceptive marketing that exaggerates the self-driving capabilities of its cars, according to the California Department of Motor Vehicles. to caution The administrative law judge’s ruling was approved Tuesday.

The DMV said Tesla’s use of terms like “Autopilot” and “full self-driving” to describe its advanced driver assistance systems is “misleading and violates state law.” The agency ordered Tesla’s license to sell cars in the state to be suspended for 30 days if Tesla does not fix marketing concerns surrounding the term “Autopilot” within a 60-day period.

However, the DMV decided not to impose a suspension on Tesla’s manufacturing license that the judge had recommended, to avoid a costly shutdown during a difficult time for the electric vehicle industry as it faces declining demand in the wake of the coronavirus. The death of EV tax credits.

Compliance may require renaming Tesla’s driver assistance program; The company currently uses the names Autopilot and Full Self-Driving for the products, which, unlike technology from robotaxi companies like Waymo, are not fully autonomous and require the driver’s full attention at all times.

The decision comes after the DMV asked an administrative judge to look into Tesla’s marketing practices and consider whether suspending its licenses was justified. The agency said Tesla has made false and misleading statements about its self-driving systems for years, implying that they can operate autonomously when they never were capable of doing so. Tesla has unacceptable A proposition that misleads customers and insists that it has always been made clear that drivers cannot completely rely on cars to drive themselves.