European Tesla Owners Now Have Full Self-Driving, Assuming They Pass A Competency Test

Tesla's supremely misleadingly-named 'Full Self-Driving' has caused controversy among Tesla drivers and lawmakers alike in regards to its efficacy. The system has been known to blow past school buses that have their red lights flashing and stop signs deployed, struggle with railroad crossings, and it might try to run you off freeway overpasses, as a Texas Cybertruck driver discovered last month. Despite the continued reports of Full Self-Driving's reliance on drivers who tend to over trust the system, it is now available in Europe for the first time ever, but with a catch: European Tesla drivers must pass an on-screen quiz prior to the first time activating the system.

Called the "FSD (Supervised) Activation Tutorial," the quiz is meant to ensure that the driver understands how the system works, and most importantly, that the driver is responsible for safe vehicle operation, even when Full Self-Driving is active. That's right, if you were unaware, Tesla's Full Self Driving is not actually a fully self-driving system. If the system crashes the car, the driver is still liable because they did not take over control of the car to prevent the crash. 

In order for Tesla to start offering FSD in Europe, the system must meet UN-R171 standards, which requires the driver to be educated on the performance of a driver control assistance system to avoid potential "misinterpretation, overestimation, or difficulty." The FSD Activation Tutorial should make sure that European drivers are aware of the system's limitations, and that they are responsible for the car no matter what. As of now, only the Netherlands has approved the technology for road use, but given that it meets UN-R171 standards, it shouldn't be long until it expands to other European countries.

Inside Evs said, "Essentially, the tutorial is meant to explain FSD's controls and interface. It explains what each button does and how to identify when FSD is active. At the end of the tutorial is a short two-question quiz that tests the driver's knowledge of accountability and the UI:

• Question 1: Select the image where FSD (Supervised) is active.

• Question 2: Are you responsible for safe vehicle operation while FSD (Supervised) is active?"

The SAE J3016 Levels of Driving Automation span from Level 0 to Level 5. Levels 0, 1, and 2 are exclusively driver support features. The human behind the wheel is responsible for constant supervision of these systems. Level 3 autonomous systems are unique in that the system is only occasionally active, but when the system requests, the driver must take over and immediately becomes responsible for the vehicle, but when the system is active, the company is liable for the vehicle's actions. Levels 4 and 5 are both full-time autonomous systems, but Level 4 still may have normal driver controls like a steering wheel and pedals, despite not needing a driver. Level 5 systems can drive everywhere in all conditions, and may not have traditional driver controls.

Both Tesla Autopilot and Full Self-Driving are currently, and always have been, Level 2 autonomous systems, despite their misleading names. When it comes to stuff you can buy and drive yourself (we're not including stuff like Waymo here), Mercedes-Benz is the only carmaker that has a U.S.-licensed Level 3 driver assistance technology in its Drive Pilot system, and its operational design domain is very restricted, so it's only in Level 3 in specific road conditions.

Given how difficult of a concept it seems to be for Americans to grasp, I think Tesla's Full Self-Driving system should require users to acknowledge their liability every time they activate the system, but Europe seems to think once is enough. I wonder how the headline "Tesla Crashes With Full Self Driving Active" sounds in Dutch? I have a feeling we'll find out soon.