Tesla and autonomous driving: between broken promises and fatal accidents, where is Europe?

These spectacular sequences give the impression that Tesla’s autonomous driving is already ready to land in Europe. The reality is more nuanced: if the technique is there, the law imposes a slower calendar. Between controlled communication and complex procedures, Tesla still has to cross several steps before obtaining the green light.

Images thought to convince

These sequences are not shot by chance. Tesla films them in symbolic places, where traffic puts the nerves to the test, and where the Full Self-Driving software can be measured with European complexity. We see a model making its decisions alone, negotiating a continuous flow of vehicles, absorbing the spontaneity of Roman scooters or Parisian confusion, while keeping the driver with his hands raised. In encrustation, a discreet Pending Regulatory Approval recalls that it is not yet an official launch.

The staging is clear: show that the technique is ready and that the expectation is only due to the will of the regulators. A speech in line with that of Elon Musk, who recently said that The next evolution of the FSD would be “Ten times more efficient” that currentE – A figure intended as much to impress as to hammering the idea that the software is now ripe for Europe?

The law imposes its rhythm

In Europe, the road to automated driving is marked by two major legal frameworks. The first, the Driver Control Assistance Systems (DCAS), referenced in international regulations an R171, will authorize from September 2025 free hand assistance on the highway, classified in level 2+. The second, the Automated Lane Keeping System (Alks), standard an R157 already in force, opens the door at level 3 up to 130 km/h, but in limited and supervised situations.

These rules do not give a blank check: they set the conditions under which a manufacturer can request its approval, and each country retains its say. For Tesla, this implies submitting a complete technical file, undergoing tests in real conditions and convincing the national authorities, often passing through the Dutch approval authority RDW (Rijksdienst Voor Het Wegverkeer), which issues the type of type for the whole of the European Union.

Cascade problems

But the confidence displayed also comes up against the reality of the courts. At the beginning of August, in Florida, A jury recognized Tesla responsible for a fatal accident in 2019 Implying a model equipped with the autopilot. The vehicle, circulating at high speed, had struck another machine, causing the death of the driver. This decision, a first of this magnitude, recalls that each extension of the FSD capacities is accompanied by a legal risk – and that European regulators will carefully observe this type of previous one before giving their green light.

In another file, mentioned in early July by us, An American referee ordered Tesla to reimburse $ 10,000 (more taxes) to a customer For an FSD pack sold … but never functional. The buyer, a lawyer specializing in arbitration, demonstrated that the functionality had not been delivered as promised, and that Tesla had imposed a posteriori of access conditions not mentioned in the purchase. The case could inspire other collective appeals, in a context where some customers have paid up to $ 15,000 for a promise that remains incomplete to date.

Compulsory patience

Even if the legal framework will be ready next fall, market access will not be instantaneous. The most open countries could authorize the FSD at the end of 2025 or early 2026, but others will have more time, invoking security imperatives or political considerations. Caution remains in order, because autonomous conduct raises debates on responsibility in the event of an accident, reliability in a dense urban environment and the protection of the data generated by the vehicle.

In the meantime, Tesla occupies the media terrain. Demonstrations follow one another and commercial offers are multiplying, such as the extension to Europe of the free transfer of the FSD license to a new vehicle or temporary discount periods on the option … The company thus maintains the idea that the transition to autonomous driving is only a formality. But for the moment, the FSD remains reserved for well -supervised tests, far from the free use promised to European drivers.

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