Tesla’s marketing approach has once again drawn criticism—this time from one of Europe’s most respected vehicle safety agencies. In its latest evaluation of assisted driving systems, the European New Car Assessment Programme (Euro NCAP) has downgraded the Tesla Model S to a "Moderate" safety rating, citing concerns over the misleading branding of its "Autopilot" feature.
Euro NCAP’s findings acknowledge that Tesla's driver assistance technology performs well in areas like collision avoidance. In fact, the Model S was praised for its ability to react effectively to potential crashes.
However, the real issue lies not with the technology itself, but with how it's presented to drivers. According to Euro NCAP, the term "Autopilot" gives drivers a false sense of security—suggesting a level of automation that the system simply doesn’t provide.
Unlike the sophisticated autopilot systems used in aviation, Tesla's Autopilot only offers adaptive cruise control and lane-keeping assistance. It doesn’t change lanes on its own, navigate intersections, or replace human judgment. Despite that, the branding could easily lead drivers to believe the car is fully capable of handling driving tasks autonomously. This mismatch between perception and reality, Euro NCAP argues, poses a serious safety risk. This is more like driving assistance, and definitely not self-driving.
In Euro NCAP’s words, the use of “Autopilot” as a product name is “inappropriate.” The organization has previously voiced concerns about this issue, but this latest report marks its most direct criticism to date. Tesla now shares the lowest rating in Euro NCAP’s 2024 assisted driving safety rankings with the Volvo EX30.
Tesla’s Autopilot system has long been a subject of controversy. In the United States, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) has linked the system to over 200 crashes and 29 deaths as of 2024. These incidents include drivers reportedly watching movies or engaging in other distractions while the system was enabled. In one case, a driver collided with a parked police car while watching a film—highlighting the risks of overreliance on a system that still requires full driver attention.
Even U.S. Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg has voiced concerns, warning that Tesla’s use of the name “Autopilot” may lead drivers to dangerously overestimate the system’s capabilities. Germany took a more aggressive stance, legally requiring Tesla to stop using the term “Autopilot” in marketing. The company now uses “Autodrive” in that country—a change that arguably doesn’t resolve the underlying issue.
Euro NCAP’s downgrade is a clear message that even strong technological performance can’t compensate for poor communication. When it comes to semi-autonomous driving systems, the name isn’t just a branding detail—it directly shapes user behavior and safety outcomes. As regulators and safety bodies continue to scrutinize how these systems are marketed, Tesla and other automakers may face increasing pressure to choose terminology that reflects function, not fiction.
In the end, Euro NCAP’s verdict is simple: a name like "Autopilot" might sound futuristic, but it could be leading drivers into danger. And that, in the world of road safety, is a risk too great to ignore
