Tesla Lawsuit Investigation: Range Not Accurate?

Attorneys working with ClassAction.org are gathering Tesla drivers to take action against the automaker amid concerns the cars are not meeting their advertised range estimates.

On July 27, 2023, Reuters reported that Tesla has consistently overstated the driving ranges of its electric vehicles – not only in advertisements but even through the range estimates on the cars’ dashboards. When customers began complaining about reduced range, Tesla went so far as to form a special “Diversion Team” tasked with canceling any range-related service appointments, Reuters reported.

Report: Tesla Consistently Exaggerated Cars’ Range, Ignored Complaints

The July 27 Reuters article states that around a decade ago, Tesla began exaggerating how far its vehicles could travel on a full battery by manipulating the cars’ range-estimating software. According to the article, the algorithms used for Teslas’ in-dash range meters were purposely written to display “rosy” projections of the mileage left before the battery needed to be charged, with the ranges becoming more accurate after the battery fell below 50 percent.

Though Reuters could not confirm whether Tesla still uses these range-boosting algorithms, its investigation found that the company has faced pushback from regulators and automotive testers for exaggerating how far its vehicles can travel on a full battery.

As recently as this year, South Korean regulators reportedly fined Tesla about $2.1 million for falsely advertising its cars’ driving ranges on its local website between August 2019 and December 2022, with the Korea Fair Trade Commission finding that Tesla failed to disclose to customers that the vehicles’ range could be cut by over 50 percent in cold weather. Tesla was required to publicly admit that it had misled consumers, and CEO Elon Musk and two local executives acknowledged “false/exaggerated advertising” in a June 19 statement, the article says.

Reuters also reported that Tesla was required by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to reduce the driving range estimates it was planning to advertise by an average of 3 percent since the 2020 model year.

Auto experts have also reported that Tesla vehicles consistently underperform the ranges advertised by the automaker, with one study finding that three Tesla models fell short of their advertised ranges by an average of 26 percent, according to the Reuters article. One analytics company noted that the Tesla dashboard range meters were not accurate and “ignored” many conditions that could affect range. For instance, the projections would not adjust based on hot or cold temperatures, which can drastically change the mileage a car can travel on a full battery, the report stated.

Even further, Reuters reported that Tesla has attempted to cool customers who complain about range loss by simply canceling their service appointments and providing battery-saving tips. Per the article, in response to a deluge of service appointment requests, the automaker formed a special “Diversion Team” last year to handle only range-related complaints. Employees were instructed to cancel as many service appointments as possible and often did so without running any diagnostics on customers’ cars, the article states.

Is This a Lawsuit? What Am I Signing Up For, Exactly?

You are not signing up for a lawsuit, but rather a process known as mass arbitration. This is a relatively new legal technique that, like a class action lawsuit, allows a large group of people to take action and seek compensation from a company over an alleged wrongdoing. Here is a quick explanation of mass arbitration from our blog:

“[M]ass arbitration occurs when hundreds or thousands of consumers file individual arbitration claims against the same company over the same issue at the same time. The aim of a mass arbitration proceeding is to grant relief on a large scale (similar to a class action lawsuit) for those who sign up.”

Tesla has previously argued that its customers are contractually required to resolve their disputes through arbitration, a form of alternative dispute resolution that takes place outside of court before a neutral arbitrator, as opposed to a judge or jury.  

It’s for this reason that attorneys working with ClassAction.org have decided to handle this matter as a mass arbitration rather than a class action lawsuit.

How Much Does This Cost?

It costs nothing to sign up, and you’ll only need to pay if the attorneys win money on your behalf. Their payment will come as a percentage of your award.

If they don’t win your claim, you don’t pay.

Sign Up and Take Action

Before commenting, please review our comment policy.