Tesla Renames Driver-Assistance Feature ‘Assisted Driving’

Jakarta (ANTARA) — US carmaker Tesla has decided to rename its advanced driver-assistance feature in Europe from Full Self-Driving (Supervised) to Tesla Assisted Driving.

TechCrunch reported on Saturday (10 October, local time) that the move followed regulators’ assessment that the former name could mislead consumers, as the vehicle still requires driver supervision.

The change has appeared on Tesla’s official websites in several European countries, including Germany, Spain, Slovakia and the Netherlands. Tesla’s US website, meanwhile, still uses the name Full Self-Driving (Supervised).

Germany’s Transport Ministry had previously said that the term Full Self-Driving did not fully describe the technology’s capabilities, as the system had not taken over all driving tasks.

German Transport Minister Steffen Bilger said the name could lead to misunderstandings. After discussions with Tesla, the company proposed using a new name.

Despite the name change, the technology remains a driver-assistance system that requires human supervision.

The feature can help control steering, acceleration, braking and parking, but drivers must continue to monitor road conditions and be ready to take control of the vehicle.

Several regulators have previously warned that the term Full Self-Driving could lead consumers to believe that the vehicle can operate autonomously without supervision.

For Tesla, the renaming is a strategic step to ease regulators’ concerns while creating opportunities to expand adoption of driver-assistance technology in the European market.

However, the use of a new name does not mean the vehicle has achieved fully autonomous driving capability.