Ten Chinese vehicle owners have taken Tesla to court in Beijing, alleging consumer fraud linked to the company’s full self-driving (FSD) feature.
The lawsuit comes after Tesla expanded FSD availability to China last month, following chief executive Elon Musk’s visit to Beijing, which coincided with a state trip by US President Donald Trump.
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According to the Beijing News report, the first-instance hearing at the Daxing District People’s Court centred on whether Tesla’s FSD feature delivered the capabilities the company promoted.
The plaintiffs contend that Tesla marketed the feature despite it lacking regulatory approval in China and falling short of the core functions described in promotional materials.
They further allege that the company concealed hardware and technical shortcomings, and that this conduct meets the legal threshold for fraud.
Nine of the ten plaintiffs are seeking a refund along with triple compensation specifically for the FSD feature.
The tenth is pursuing a refund and triple compensation for the entire vehicle, arguing that autonomous driving capability was the sole and decisive factor in the purchase decision.
The combined claims exceed 3.95m yuan ($583,771).
Wang Youyin, founding partner of Beijing Shengyun Law Firm and counsel for the plaintiffs, told Beijing News that Tesla argued during the hearing that the FSD function “has now been achieved” or “partially achieved”, while maintaining that additional functions remain under development.
Tesla, also responding to Beijing News, said: “There is currently no official information.”
Last month, the US carmaker also extended the FSD footprint in Europe, with Lithuania becoming the second country on the continent to receive it.
The company confirmed via X that “FSD Supervised” is now active across ten territories, including the US, Canada, Mexico, Australia, New Zealand, South Korea and the Netherlands.
