--- title: "Survey Finds That Self-Driving Is Actively Chasing Buyers Away From Tesla" description: "In a new survey, consumers not only suggested that Tesla's FSD feature is a huge turn-off, but that they think it should be illegal too." date: "2025-08-31" modified: "2025-08-31" authors: - name: "Noor Al-Sibai" job_title: "Senior Staff Writer" link: "https://futurism.com/authors/nooralsibai" url: "https://futurism.com/survey-consumers-tesla-self-driving-fsd" categories: - "Advanced Transport" - "Tesla" tags: - "elon musk" - "fsd" - "self driving" - "tesla" --- # Survey Finds That Self-Driving Is Actively Chasing Buyers Away From Tesla ![In a new survey, consumers not only suggested that Tesla's FSD feature is a huge turn-off, but that they think it should be illegal too.]() *\Image: Michael Brochstein / SOPA Images / LightRocket via Getty / Futurism\* Tesla's misleadingly-named "[full-self driving]()" (FSD) feature — which still requires drivers pay attention to the road, even if they often [fail horrifically]() at that [simple task]() — is one of the Elon Musk-owned electric carmaker's biggest [self-styled selling points](). Until recently, the boastful multi-hyphenate entrepreneur's [decade-plus of over-promising]() and [under-delivering]() on assisted driving software did little to tarnish [bullish investors]()' slavish devotion to Tesla. But now, as a [new survey]() from the consulting firm Slingshot Strategies found, it looks like the FSD bubble has finally burst, even as [Tesla's abysmal sales]() and its CEO's [ever-toxic politics]() threaten to drive the company [straight into the ground](). In its monthly Electronic Vehicle Intelligence Report (EVIR), Slingshot surveyed more than 8,000 people across US demographics in August, finding that 35 percent of participants said having FSD included in an EV they were considering for purchase would now make them *less* likely to buy it. By contrast, only 14 percent said that Tesla's self-driving suite, which costs either [$8,000 upfront]() or $99 per month, would convince them to purchase a car. (The final 51 percent couldn't care less either way, interestingly, lending credence to Musk's acknowledgement in a [July earnings call]() that the "vast majority of people don’t know \[FSD\] exists.) Another fascinating data point: nearly half of the survey respondents said they think the tech — which along with Tesla's Autopilot feature has been linked to [hundreds of crashes](), some fatal — shouldn't be legal at all. The not-so-self-driving feature has faced ample regulatory scrutiny over safety concerns and its maddeningly [misleading brand name](). As [*The Telegraph* reported]() earlier this year, the United Kingdom decided against letting motorists take their hands off the wheel when self-driving features were engaged. In China, as [*Reuters* reported in March](), a one-month free trial of [FSD was abruptly suspended]() pending regulatory approval — and days after, the feature's name was changed, without fanfare, to "Intelligent Assisted Driving." Though the anti-FSD EVIR respondents didn't provide any reasons why they oppose the feature, some on social offered their own takes. "Frankly, I don't see how FSD is legal in the first place," Philadelphia-based automotive liability attorney [Max Kennerly posted](). "It's not certified or approved by anyone." Author Edward Niedermeyer, whose book "[Ludicrous: The Unvarnished Story of Tesla Motors]()" massively [peeved Musk's rabid fanboys]() when it was released in 2019, took aim at the automaker's financial incentives. "The problem isn't consumers, the problem is investors who think Tesla is on the brink of 'solving self-driving' and bid up the stock to a trillion dollar valuation," [Neidermeyer posted](). Ever-present at any scene of any FSD criticism, professional Musk-hater Dan O'Dowd, the billionaire founder of the nonprofit Dawn Project that seeks to [shut down]() the feature, suggested in his [own post]() that that "consumers are smart, \[and\] they do not trust Tesla." **More on not-so-self-driving:** [*Video Shows Tesla Robotaxi Safety Driver Giving Up, Climbing Into Driver's Seat*]() ## Author At Futurism, I've often been drawn to unpacking the narratives that underlie technological, scientific and medical progress, with a special interest in areas of conflict and ambiguity that end up setting agendas and steering the fates of both elites and the hoi polloi. I'm a committed generalist, but I often find myself returning to work involving NASA and the private space sector, the effects of AI on media and society, and the mechanics of the pharmaceutical industry, with a specific focus on the spread of GLP-1 drugs like Ozempic and Wegovy. Prior to Futurism, I worked for publications ranging from Media Matters and Truthdig to Raw Story and Bustle. I'm also the author of "Myspace Scene Queens," a 2024 title in Instar Books' acclaimed "Remember the Internet" series. My work at Futurism has been cited by outlets including the New Yorker, Slate, Nieman Lab, the Verge, the MIT Technology Review, the Sunday Times, and the Daily Beast. I grew up in North Carolina, attended the University of North Carolina at Asheville, and now live in Brooklyn, New York. In my free time, I'm an avid reader and music fan; you can probably find me at a local poetry reading, concert, underground rave, or DJ set. I'm the proud parent of an ineffable orange cat named Mee-Mow. ### Author social links [Bluesky]()