Tesla is forced to change Autopilot in Germany over regulatory pressure

Tesla is forced to change Autopilot features in Germany by the Federal Motor Transport Authority (KBA).

Many don’t know that Tesla’s Autopilot features are not the same everywhere.

That’s partly due to Tesla’s own approach that relies on data from its fleet to improve Autopilot features and a lot of that data is coming from North America, and especially California.

This results in the system performing better in some places than it does other places.

But regulations are also preventing Tesla from deploying some of its Autopilot features in certain markets, including in Europe.

Now Tesla’s Autopilot is again being affected by regulations. According to Wirtschaftswoche, the Federal Motor Transport Authority (KBA) has found “abnormalities”.

The automaker reportedly “partly” fixed the issues with a software update, but there are still issues (translated from German):

In a Tesla investigation by the Federal Motor Transport Authority (KBA), which has been running since the beginning of the year, the electric car manufacturer can book a partial success. According to a KBA spokesman, the KBA carried out tests on Tesla vehicles as part of market surveillance and found “abnormalities”. They have now been “already partially remedied by the manufacturer”. For the remaining problems, “further remedial measures are still being tested and validated”. The focus of the investigation is on the driver assistance system (“Tesla Autopilot”).

KBA President Richard Damm commented on the situation. He said that the agency is waiting for information from Tesla and might intervene if it doesn’t receive it:

“If we do not receive any information, we cannot rule out that systems do not comply with the rules,” 

Earlier this year, KBA had expressed concerns that Tesla Autopilot’s auto lane change feature may be considered illegal in Europe.

This is only the latest example of Tesla’s Autopilot and Full Self-Driving package being under pressure from regulators.

The system is currently under a significant investigation by NHTSA.

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