Tesla has been under fire lately because of the unique way it has named its advanced cruise control system. The system is called Autopilot and has been criticized for sounding too much like a fully autonomous system, which, of course, it is not. Consumer Reports has already advised Tesla to stop misleading consumers with the name, the state of California has told Tesla to change the name and the German government is up in arms about the feature, but Tesla is out to prove that its customers have not been mislead about Autopilot's functionality.

Tesla conducted a survey of its owners (which you can read in full here) to prove that its German customers know exactly what Autopilot does. The results of the survey show that 99 percent of owners have used Autopilot and that 98 percent understand that they still need to be in control at all times. Only 7 percent of respondents say that the name "Autopilot" has caused them to believe that the car is "fully autonomous, meaning that it does not require the driver to be supervising the car." Tesla concluded that "A significant majority of German Tesla customers understand the meaning and functions of Autopilot. That they have to keep control over their car." We will have to see if the German government excepts this proof.

We still don't know how to feel about Tesla's autopilot system. We understand that it is just a very advanced cruise control system, but it is easy to see how someone could be misled to think that Autopilot is fully autonomous. On the other hand, people have been confused by normal cruise control in the past so maybe Tesla shouldn't be in trouble.