The more than $100,000 that Tom LoSavio paid for his Tesla in 2017 included $8,000 that gave him lifetime access to the technology that he believed would eventually allow his car to drive itself. He says it was a future promised by Tesla that never showed up. The Wall Street Journal reports the 80-year-old Californian is now leading a class-action suit claiming Tesla and Elon Musk charged thousands for “Full Self-Driving” (FSD) capabilities that were heavily hyped but never actually delivered.
The complaint, covering roughly 3,000 California buyers from 2016 to 2024 who paid extra for autonomy, argues that Tesla misrepresented what its hardware and software could do and wants the company barred from marketing its vehicles as self-driving, in addition to refunds. Tesla hasn’t commented; it’s appealing the class-action certification. Similar challenges are emerging abroad, including in Australia.
The Journal piece also looks at the headaches that longtime Tesla owners have endured regarding the computer and camera upgrades needed to use the newest FSD software. Electrek reports on a class-action suit filed this month in the Netherlands by a Model 3 owner with HW3—that’s Hardware 3. FSD was approved this month in the Netherlands, but the build that received the thumbs-up only runs on Tesla’s newer AI4 computer, meaning his HW3 car can’t run FSD. Some seven years after he paid for the capability, he says his patience has run out.
