The plaintiffs argue Tesla’s FSD system has not received regulatory approval in China, cannot perform the functions promoted in its marketing, and that the company concealed hardware limitations in order to sell vehicles.
Under China’s Consumer Rights Protection Law, the owners are seeking full refunds plus triple damages — the standard penalty for consumer fraud in the country.
Tesla disputed the allegations during the hearing, claiming some FSD functions are “fully operational” while others are “partially functional” or still under development.
The hearing comes at a particularly awkward moment for Tesla’s China autonomy strategy. Just nine days ago, Tesla confirmed that FSD (Supervised) is now available in China. And just a week ago, the company renamed its system “Tesla Assisted Driving” in the Chinese market — a tacit admission that the “Full Self-Driving” branding was misleading.
The renaming is unlikely to help Tesla’s legal defense, since the plaintiffs purchased FSD under the original branding and were specifically told the system would achieve autonomous driving.
The lawsuit also adds to Tesla’s growing global legal exposure over its self-driving claims. Tesla is facing up to $14.5 billion in lawsuits worldwide, many of them related to Autopilot and FSD.