Finland has allowed Tesla’s driver-assistance software to be used on public roads, with the approval taking effect immediately.
Transport regulator Traficom said on Wednesday that Tesla owners can now use the system. However, an EU-wide vote in a few weeks could overturn this approval and others granted by individual countries.
What Traficom recognized
Finland’s transport regulator, Traficom, accepted the temporary approval given by the Dutch vehicle authority RDW in April. This means Tesla’s system, now called Tesla Assisted Driving, can be used on Finnish roads as a driver-assistance feature. The agency said dealers can start offering it to customers right away. The decision was made on November 10 and announced on Wednesday morning, EVwire reported.
Finland is now the eleventh EU country to approve the assisted driving system. The Netherlands was the first, followed by Lithuania, Estonia, Denmark, Belgium, Slovenia, Czechia, Croatia, Slovakia and Latvia, according to EVwire. Latvia gave its approval about two weeks ago.
The system allows a Tesla to steer, brake and speed up on its own. However, the driver must still watch the road and be ready to take control. Traficom has also made it clear that drivers are still responsible for what happens on the road, including speeding fines.
What Tesla changed before approval
Finland approved the system after Tesla made a few changes. The key change was the name of the feature. Tesla replaced “Full Self-Driving” with Tesla Assisted Driving (“Tesla Avustettu ajo” in Finnish). It also stopped using the term self-driving in its advertising in Finland and Sweden.
Senior Specialist Jukka Juhola said the new name “helps users and the market understand the true nature of the system,” according to Reuters.
Tesla also made changes to prevent speeding. Drivers can no longer set the system to go much faster than the speed limit. Any setting that allows the car to go above the limit resets each time the car is turned on.
The changes are similar to those approved by the Dutch vehicle authority RDW on November 3. That update cut the maximum speed allowed above the limit from 50% to 10%. Tesla also agreed to the same rule with Germany’s transport ministry in early October.
Traficom said drivers do not need a new vehicle inspection to use the system. However, they may need one if they have changed their cars in ways that could affect how it works. This includes using unusual tire sizes or lowering the car’s suspension.
Why Finland moved early, and the winter catch
Traficom said it approved the system before the EU’s decision for two reasons. Tesla had already made the needed changes, and the agency wanted Finnish drivers to get used to the software before the worst of winter.
However, winter weather could still affect how well the system works. Juhola said cold weather was considered when Tesla designed the software and when officials tested it. He warned that the system “may be subject to various limitations if the cameras become covered in snow, slush or other dirt, or if traffic conditions become more challenging than usual.”
The small number of Teslas in Finland also made officials more comfortable with the decision. About 8,000 to 9,000 Teslas in the country can use the system. This represents only 0.3% of all cars on Finnish roads, according to Reuters.
“It represents around 0.3 per cent of the entire car fleet on roads in Finland, so that’s actually one of the reasons why we feel we can move forward,” Juhola stated.
EU vote could overturn the approvals
Traficom said Finland’s approval does not mean it will vote in Tesla’s favor at the EU level. The European Commission’s Technical Committee on Motor Vehicles will hold the vote, but no date has been set. Traficom expects a decision this winter, possibly at the next meeting in December.
Tesla needs support from at least 15 of the EU’s 27 countries to get approval across the bloc. Those countries must also make up at least 65% of the EU’s population, according to EVwire. If the vote fails, the approvals already given by individual countries will be canceled.
Tesla has also yet to get approval in four major European markets. France, Germany, Italy and Spain have not approved the assisted driving system, Tesla Mag reported.
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