The California Department of Motor Vehicles will suspend Tesla sales in the state if the electric vehicle company continues to mislead consumers about its driving assistance features, the DMV said Tuesday.
Elon Musks Tesla has 90 days to comply before facing a 30-day suspension of its manufacturing and dealer license. The use of the terms autopilot and full self-driving capability to describe Teslas Advanced Driving Assistance Features (ADAS) is false advertising and violates state law, an administrative judge ruled last month.
According to Teslas marketing materials for autopilot and Full Self-Drive mode, the system is designed to be able to conduct short and long-distance trips with no action required by the person in the drivers seat.
However, Tesla vehicles cannot operate autonomously and are only safe when used with an alert human driver, the DMV said. Tesla did not respond to a request for comment.
The DMVs decision today confirms that the department will hold every vehicle manufacturer to the highest safety standards to keep Californias drivers, passengers and pedestrians protected, said DMV Director Steve Gordon in a statement.
Earlier this year, a Miami jury ruled that Tesla was partly responsible for a fatal crash involving its autopilot system and must pay the victims $240 million.
Though Tesla has previously faced similar suits , this was the first to reach a jury verdict and not be settled out of court.
Tesla can take simple steps to pause this decision and permanently resolve this issue steps autonomous vehicle companies and other automakers have been able to achieve in Californias nation-leading and supportive innovation marketplace, Gordon said.
The administrative judge issued a proposed decision after a five-day hearing in July to suspend Tesla sales for one month. The DMV decided to give Tesla three months to correct its false advertising before facing consequences.
The scrutiny over Teslas autopilot and Full Self-Drive features comes as Musk tries to prove that his self-driving robotaxis are safe and effective.
The robotaxis rolled out in Austin, Texas, over the summer, where witnesses said the vehicles glitched and made dangerous driving decisions.
A shareholder lawsuit filed in August accused Musk of inflating the companys stock by exaggerating the readiness of its robotaxi program.
As demand for electric vehicles wanes under the Trump administration, Tesla is increasingly betting its future on self-driving technology and other artificial intelligence ventures such as the companys humanoid robot Optimus.
Musk is competing against the autonomous ride-hailing company Waymo, which operates driverless service in several cities including San Francisco and Los Angeles. Owned by Googles parent company Alphabet, Waymo also faced criticism recently after one of its vehicles struck and killed a beloved neighborhood cat in the Bay Area.
Amazons autonomous driving effort known as Zoox has also begun testing and serving the public in San Francisco and Las Vegas.
加州机动车辆管理局（DMV）周二表示，如果特斯拉公司继续在驾驶辅助功能方面误导消费者，将暂停该电动汽车制造商在加州的销售。
埃隆·马斯克（Elon Musk）旗下的特斯拉公司有90天时间进行整改，否则将面临为期30天的制造和经销商执照暂停处罚。上个月，一名行政法官裁定，特斯拉使用“自动驾驶（autopilot）”和“完全自动驾驶能力（full self-driving capability）”等术语描述其高级驾驶辅助功能（ADAS）属于虚假广告，违反了州法律。
根据特斯拉对自动驾驶和全自动驾驶模式的宣传资料所述，“该系统设计用于实现短途和长途出行，且无需驾驶员采取任何操作。”
美国车管局（DMV）表示，特斯拉汽车无法实现完全自动驾驶，只有在人类驾驶员保持警觉的情况下使用才是安全的。特斯拉方面未就置评请求作出回应。
加州车管局（DMV）局长史蒂夫·戈登在声明中表示：“今日的决定表明，本部门将要求所有汽车制造商遵守最高安全标准，以保障加州驾驶员、乘客及行人的安全。”
今年早些时候，迈阿密一家陪审团裁定，特斯拉对其自动驾驶系统导致的一起致命事故负有部分责任，需向受害者支付2.4亿美元赔偿金。
尽管特斯拉此前曾面临类似诉讼，但这是首例由陪审团作出裁决而非庭外和解的案件。
戈登表示："特斯拉只需采取简单措施即可暂缓这一决定，并永久解决该问题——这些措施在加州这个全国领先且支持创新的市场中，自动驾驶汽车公司和其他汽车制造商早已实现。"
行政法官在7月举行为期五天的听证会后，提出了一项暂停特斯拉销售一个月的初步裁决。加州机动车辆管理局（DMV）决定给予特斯拉三个月期限整改其虚假广告行为，逾期将面临处罚。
在埃隆·马斯克试图证明其自动驾驶出租车安全有效之际，特斯拉的自动辅助驾驶和全自动驾驶功能正受到严格审查。
今年夏天，得克萨斯州奥斯汀市推出了自动驾驶出租车。据目击者称，这些车辆曾出现故障并做出危险的驾驶决策。
8月提起的一起股东诉讼指控马斯克通过夸大其机器人出租车项目的成熟度，人为抬高公司股价。
随着特朗普政府执政期间电动汽车需求减弱，特斯拉正将未来日益押注于自动驾驶技术和其他人工智能项目，例如该公司的人形机器人Optimus。
马斯克正与自动驾驶打车公司Waymo展开竞争。Waymo在旧金山、洛杉矶等多个城市运营无人驾驶服务，其母公司为谷歌的控股公司Alphabet。近期Waymo因一辆自动驾驶车辆在湾区撞死一只深受社区居民喜爱的猫而受到批评。
亚马逊旗下自动驾驶项目Zoox已开始在旧金山和拉斯维加斯进行测试，并向公众提供服务。
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