Korean group says Tesla sold 'Full Self-Driving' most buyers can't use
A consumer group wants regulators to stop Tesla marketing FSD in South Korea, saying 99% of cars sold there last year legally can't run it.
What happened: Citizens United for Consumer Sovereignty, a South Korean consumer group, plans to file a complaint with the Korea Fair Trade Commission accusing Tesla of marketing 'Full Self-Driving' to buyers whose cars can't legally run it. Reuters reports the group's numbers show that covers 99% of Teslas Tesla sold in Korea last year. It follows a Seoul court's dismissal last month of a separate lawsuit from owners seeking FSD refunds, and comes as the KFTC already has an open probe into Tesla's FSD advertising, with written responses from the company on file.
Why it matters: Tesla Korea's own country manager told lawmakers FSD works on only about 20% of registered Teslas in the country. Yet Tesla charged a one-time fee of roughly 9 million won (about $6,726) for years, later switching to a $112 monthly subscription in August, while continuing to pitch the package broadly. The complaint says a 2024 'coming soon' promotion and a demo video filmed on Korean roads never disclosed that most buyers' cars couldn't use it. Tesla has sold over 170,000 of the ineligible cars since 2023, with sales growing more than fivefold through 2025.
How it works, plainly: Eligibility hinges on where the car is built. Tesla's US-made Model S, Model X, and Cybertruck enter Korea under the KORUS trade agreement, which recognizes American safety standards, so they got FSD when Tesla switched it on last year. The Model 3 and Model Y sold in Korea come from Tesla's Shanghai factory, which has no equivalent deal, so those cars need separate Korean government approval. That approval doesn't exist yet, and the transport ministry says current FSD doesn't meet Korea's rule that drivers keep hands on the wheel, since Tesla's system allows hands-free driving as long as a cabin camera sees eyes on the road.
The rollout: Despite collecting FSD payments from Shanghai-car buyers for more than three years, Tesla didn't formally apply to Korea's transport ministry for FSD testing until late October, just after its country manager admitted under questioning that no application had ever been filed. Approval is far from guaranteed given the hands-on-wheel conflict. Meanwhile Tesla overtook BMW this year to become Korea's top imported car brand, and police separately booked 80 Tesla drivers last month for using illegal devices to unlock FSD features.