Did Tesla executives, including Elon Musk, provide misleading information about the systems
Autopilot and Full Self-Driving of electric vehicles from the famous brand? This is, among other things, what the American Department of Justice is trying to find out.
We hate to love him, we love to hate him, no matter what we think of Elon Musk, when he gets talked about, it’s not for nothing. This time, it is under his hat as boss of Tesla that he is the subject of an investigation by the American Department of Justice (DoJ).
In line of sight, the systems
Autopilot and Full Self-Driving had already been implicated in 2022 in a “class action” by several Tesla owners who had been misled about the autonomous aspect of this driving mode. In 2023, Autopilot then caused 2 million vehicles to be recalled because of the safety problems it caused. Suffice to say that the autonomy promised in particular to the Chinese market by Elon Musk in April 2024 has some dirt in the carburetor.
Tesla’s promise of an autonomous vehicle far from being kept
This is the American press agency Reuters which reveals this investigation, carried out in 2022 following numerous accidents involving these driver assistance systems, which led to vehicle recalls for safety violations.
According to Reuters, Elon Musk promises that fully autonomous vehicles are a near reality. While the Autopilot and Full Self-Driving driving assistance systems equip some of the Tesla brand’s models, confusion for drivers is entirely possible, particularly with the notion of autonomy evoked by the names of the two technologies. .
We know today that despite the promise of autonomy, these assistance tools force drivers to remain in control of their vehicles by keeping their hands on the wheel and their eyes on the road, even when they engage Autopilot mode. or the FSD. Furthermore, the deception that federal prosecutors in Washington and San Francisco are looking into would also relate to the real autonomy of these electric vehicles. This overestimation notably resulted in a fine of $2.2 million for Tesla in South Korea in 2023.
Why the US Department of Justice is acting cautiously in its Tesla investigation
But it’s not that simple to accuse Tesla and Elon Musk of business fraud. Because even if Tesla is not in its first legal proceedings, proof that there was indeed deception on the merchandise is complex for the American authorities to establish.
Indeed, the judges in charge of the investigation will have to determine whether Tesla sold its driving assistance systems legally, given that the manufacturer had warned its users about the limits of Autopilot and FSD , or if Elon Musk knowingly inflated their capabilities, making people believe in the complete driving autonomy of his vehicles. An appeals court also declared in 2007 that a company could perfectly well declare optimistic results without being accused of misleading its customers or investors.
Thus, when in 2022, on the occasion of the FSD update, Elon Musk affirmed that a Tesla owner could “ go to [son] work, at [son] friend, at the grocery store without [toucher] the wheel “, he potentially showed optimism, or, on the contrary, knowingly lied. It will be up to the judges to determine in this investigation which could lead to criminal charges, civil actions or… nothing. Elon Musk can therefore rub his hands for the moment.
Sources: Reuters, The Verge
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