Tesla ordered to rebrand Autopilot amid false advertising claims

Tesla Model S.

Tesla has hit plenty of branding and design roadblocks over the year – particularly when it comes to the much-maligned Cybertruck. But its latest controversy has nothing to do with the design of its cars – it's all about the branding of its so-called 'Autopilot' feature.

A judge has ruled that the company's 'Autopilot' and 'Full Self-Driving' branding are misleading, implying that the cars can drive themselves. And now, Tesla is facing a ban from selling cars in California if it does not rename the feature.

(Image credit: Tesla)

The Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) has found Tesla "in violation of state law for misleadingly using the terms “autopilot” and “Full Self-Driving Capability” in the marketing of their electric vehicles and provides an opportunity for Tesla to address issues prior to an imposition of a penalty."

"Beginning in May 2021, Tesla advertised advanced driver assistance system (ADAS) features in written marketing materials primarily on Tesla’s website using the product label and descriptions “Autopilot” and “Full Self-Driving Capability,” and the phrase “The system is designed to be able to conduct short and long-distance trips with no action required by the person in the driver’s seat.” However, vehicles equipped with those ADAS features could not at the time of those advertisements, and cannot now, operate as autonomous vehicles."

Tesla has already changed the name of Full Self-Driving Capability, going for Full Self-Driving (Supervised) instead. As for Autopilot, the company's support web page does describe the feature thus: "Autopilot refers to a suite of advanced driver assistance features that are intended to make driving more convenient and less stressful. None of these features make Model Y fully autonomous or replace you as the driver."

But it seems these caveats aren't enough for the DMV, and Tesla is likely to be forced to change the name, lest it face a sales ban in its biggest state. Time will tell what name it will adopt instead, but one thing's for sure – 'Autopilot (Supervised)' doesn't have quite the same ring to it.