German court rules Tesla's Autopilot claims are misleading and bans the company from using them in ads

• A German court on Tuesday banned Tesla from repeating more of its Autopilot claims in advertising, which it said are misleading.
• An industry group tasked with policing anti-competition laws originally brought the suit.
• Tesla can appeal the decision.
• For years, CEO Elon Musk has made bold predictions — most of which haven't been met — about when Tesla vehicles will be truly self-driving.

FRANKFURT (Reuters) - Tesla Germany is banned from repeating misleading claims in advertising about the capabilities of its driver assistance systems, including that its vehicles were capable of autonomous driving, a judge in Munich said on Tuesday.

Tesla can appeal the ruling.

The court heard a case brought by Germany's Wettbewerbszentrale, an industry sponsored body tasked with policing anticompetitive practices.

The Munich court agreed with the industry body's assessment and banned Tesla Germany from including "full potential for autonomous driving" and "Autopilot inclusive" in its advertising materials.

It said such claims amounted to misleading business practices, adding that the average buyer might be given the impression that the car could drive without human intervention and might suggest such a system was now legal on German roads.

Tesla's autopilot system has drawn criticism from regulators, including from the National Transportation Safety Board in the United States, saying it lacks safeguards.

Concerns have grown about assistance systems that can perform driving tasks for extended stretches with little or no human intervention, tempting drivers to neglect their obligation to be in control of their vehicles at all times.

Tesla has said it has informed customers that its automated driver assistance technology did not amount to a fully autonomous driving system.

For years, CEO Elon Musk has made bold claims about when Tesla vehicles would become fully "self-driving." Most of those, like an autonomous road trip across the United States, have yet to happen. In July, he said Tesla was close to making its cars capable of automated driving without any need for driver input, so-called Level 5 autonomy.

The company's Autopilot software has been blamed in a handful of wrecks where inattentive drivers lost control of their vehicles. The company also sells an $8,000 "full self-driving" package that it says will eventually allow for full autonomy.

In 2019, Musk said Tesla would work with local regulators in the European Union.

—Elon Musk (@elonmusk) September 4, 2019

Tesla did not immediately respond to a request for comment.