When will Tesla launch its Full Self-Driving (FSD) system in Europe? Well, that depends on regulators of course.
According to a response by Tesla CEO Elon Musk, he said on Monday morning, “Tesla is waiting for EU approval (sigh),” in response to a post talking about the “beta” label leaving Autopilot’s Autosteer feature in Europe.
Autosteer is essentially cruise control in a Tesla, but also maintaining lane control. The feature “assists in steering within a clearly marked lane, and uses traffic-aware cruise control,” according to the company.
The feature is activated by pulling the cruise control or gear selector stalk twice, depending on the model. A grey steering wheel icon shows it’s available, and it turns blue when active. The system checks that the driver keeps their hands on the wheel and eyes on the road, using torque sensors and an in-car camera (data stays on the car). If warnings are ignored, Autopilot gets disabled for the trip. Autosteer is meant for divided highways with clear lane markings and shouldn’t be used on sharp turns or poorly marked roads.
With FSD Supervised in Europe, a Tesla will be able to drive itself on city streets, responding to lights at intersections and more. Tesla shared a video last month that said FSD Supervised in Europe was “pending regulatory approval”, so it seems there hasn’t been significant progress on that front just yet.
We’ve already seen a limited version of FSD handle roads in China, so it will be interesting if and when FSD Supervised gets approved to tackle European roads. The company previously outlined its goal of launching FSD in China and Europe in Q1 pending government approvals, but that hasn’t happened yet.
Tesla plans to launch its Robotaxi service next month, starting in Austin, Texas.
