California Law Bans OEMs From False Self-Driving Claims

by Tim Healey

Published: December 29th, 2022

california law bans oems from false self driving claims

There are no fully self-driving cars on the market. That's a simple truth. The Society of Automotive Engineers has determined that there are five levels of autonomous driving, with level five being fully autonomous. As of last year, there were no cars that went beyond Level 2 -- a few potential Level 3 systems were awaiting regulatory approval.

Yet Tesla has labeled its system "Full-Self Driving" and kept the moniker despite a drumbeat of criticism. And while other automakers have avoided doing the same so far, there's nothing stopping them from doing so.

Well, there wasn't. But a new California law set to go into effect after the new year will require automakers to provide a "clear description" of the system, including its limitations.

The law, called SB No. 1398, goes into effect on Sunday. Here's a key passage: "A manufacturer or dealer shall not name any partial driving automation feature, or describe any partial driving automation feature in marketing materials, using language that implies or would otherwise lead a reasonable person to believe, that the feature allows the vehicle to function as an autonomous vehicle, as defined in Section 38750, or otherwise has functionality not actually included in the feature. A violation of this subdivision shall be considered a misleading advertisement for the purposes of Section 11713."

It's unclear what the punishment would be. It's also unclear how it applies based on an OEM's location -- Tesla has moved its HQ to Texas, but still builds some cars in California. Nor is it clear how it would apply to other OEMs that have headquarters elsewhere and have no factories in California.

It does seem to be an obvious shot at Tesla, though, since the company has been using "full-self driving" terminology even when its cars are not full self-driving.

[Image: Tesla]

Become a TTAC insider. Get the latest news, features, TTAC takes, and everything else that gets to the truth about cars first by subscribing to our newsletter.

#Tesla #FSD #fullselfdriving #AutonomousVehicles #Laws #Regulations

Tim Healey

Tim Healey grew up around the auto-parts business and has always had a love for cars — his parents joke his first word was “‘Vette”. Despite this, he wanted to pursue a career in sports writing but he ended up falling semi-accidentally into the automotive-journalism industry, first at Consumer Guide Automotive and later at Web2Carz.com. He also worked as an industry analyst at Mintel Group and freelanced for About.com, CarFax, Vehix.com, High Gear Media, Torque News, FutureCar.com, Cars.com, among others, and of course Vertical Scope sites such as AutoGuide.com, Off-Road.com, and HybridCars.com. He’s an urbanite and as such, doesn’t need a daily driver, but if he had one, it would be compact, sporty, and have a manual transmission.

More by Tim Healey

Comments

Join the conversation

4 comments

FreedMike on Dec 29, 2022

If Tesla faces an existential threat, this is it. The whole FSD thing is a potential regulatory disaster, and if the people who were talked into buying this ever hire a class action attorney, the company could face a HUGE payout.

Like Reply
- 285exp on Jan 01, 2023
  
  A fool and his money are soon parted.
  
  Like
Kcflyer on Dec 30, 2022

California laws always achieve their stated intent so no doubt this will work just as well

1 Reply
- Pig_Iron on Jan 01, 2023
  
  "A dying society collects laws like a dying man collects remedies."
  
  1

Recent Comments

Amy I owned this exact car from 16 until 19 (1990 to 1993) I miss this car immensely and am on the search to own it again, although it looks like my search may be in vane. It was affectionatly dubbed, " The Dragon Wagon," and hauled many a teenager around the city of Charlotte, NC. For me, it was dependable and trustworthy. I was able to do much of the maintenance myself until I was struck by lightning and a month later the battery exploded. My parents did have the entire electrical system redone and he was back to new. I hope to find one in the near future and make it my every day driver. I'm a dreamer.
Jeff Overall I prefer the 59 GM cars to the 58s because of less chrome but I have a new appreciation of the 58 Cadillac Eldorados after reading this series. I use to not like the 58 Eldorados but I now don't mind them. Overall I prefer the 55-57s GMs over most of the 58-60s GMs. For the most part I like the 61 GMs. Chryslers I like the 57 and 58s. Fords I liked the 55 thru 57s but the 58s and 59s not as much with the exception of Mercury which I for the most part like all those. As the 60s progressed the tail fins started to go away and the amount of chrome was reduced. More understated.
Theflyersfan Nissan could have the best auto lineup of any carmaker (they don't), but until they improve one major issue, the best cars out there won't matter. That is the dealership experience. Year after year in multiple customer service surveys from groups like JD Power and CR, Nissan frequency scrapes the bottom. Personally, I really like the never seen new Z, but after having several truly awful Nissan dealer experiences, my shadow will never darken a Nissan showroom. I'm painting with broad strokes here, but maybe it is so ingrained in their culture to try to take advantage of people who might not be savvy enough in the buying experience that they by default treat everyone like idiots and saps. All of this has to be frustrating to Nissan HQ as they are improving their lineup but their dealers drag them down.
SPPPP I am actually a pretty big Alfa fan ... and that is why I hate this car.
SCE to AUX They're spending billions on this venture, so I hope so.Investing during a lull in the EV market seems like a smart move - "buy low, sell high" and all that.Key for Honda will be achieving high efficiency in its EVs, something not everybody can do.