A Los Angeles man has filed suit against Tesla, claiming they defrauded him by allegedly convincing him to buy a Tesla by falsely promising that his car would soon be upgraded to include Tesla's still experimental Full Self Driving technology.
In the lawsuit, originally filed in Los Angeles County Superior Court and later transferred to federal court, Benjamin Schine states that in 2021, he paid $70,601 for a 2018 Tesla Model X after Tesla made "repeated representations" that it would "release Level 5 Full Self-Driving (FSD) capability for the car he purchased before the end of 2021."
Tesla also said that his car was equipped with the hardware needed to access FSD, Schine claims in the lawsuit.
"Tesla knew those promises were not true when it made them," the suit said. "Since the beginning of this year, information from disgruntled employees or ex-employees and various leaks have revealed that for years Tesla has knowingly exaggerated both the capability of its FSD technology and the
time frame within which it would be able to reach the promised Level 5 FSD," the lawsuit states. "Moreover, such information has also established that Tesla took elaborate steps to conceal its lies about FSD to Schine and other consumers."
Schine seeks unspecified monetary damages, plus legal fees.
He represents himself in the lawsuit.
Schine v.Tesla Inc. et al, U.S. District Court for Central District of California, 2:23-cv-09075.