Drunk driver who tried to trick Level 2 system to behave like unsupervised FSD gets prison sentence

The owner of an electric car with a Level 2 autonomous driving system similar to Tesla's FSD (Supervised) decided to use an aftermarket gear aimed at circumventing the constant warnings to pay attention.

The person had a previous drunk driving conviction and wanted to bypass the constant nagging that FSD-like features use to remind drivers that they are still Level 2 systems and can't take over completely.

According to the court filing, he placed a device that mimics touching the wheel every couple of minutes, as the driver-assist system requires before it starts issuing audio and visual alerts to grab the wheel and pay attention:

At approximately 00:30 on September 13, 2025, the defendant, Wang Mouqun, drove his car after consuming alcohol from near a restaurant in Tangqi Town, Linping District, Hangzhou City, Zhejiang Province, back to his residential community. At approximately 01:15 on the same day, Wang Mouqun drove the car away from the community again, then activated the car's assisted driving function, set a destination, and used a privately installed "smart driving device" accessory that could evade the assisted driving system's monitoring, allowing the vehicle to continue driving without actual supervision. He then sat in the passenger seat and fell asleep.

While the convicted driver was sleeping, leaning back in the passenger seat, the car continued to drive itself, tricked by the aftermarket device that was constantly touching the steering wheel. At one point, the driver-assist system disengaged and stopped on a local road. The view of a car that pulled over on its own when nearing its destination, with a person sleeping in the passenger seat, attracted the attention of the locals, and people alerted the police.

A subsequent test showed that the driver had blood alcohol levels over the legal limits, and it was his second such offense in the span of less than two years. That's not the first case involving a drunk person and an FSD-like feature in China, but in previous ones the drivers tried to place the blame for an accident they caused on the self-driving system.

The courts then convicted the EV owner for both driving under the influence and for tampering with the Level 2 self-driving system despite being acquainted with its limitations when purchasing the vehicle. The person received a fine, as well as a month and a half prison sentence that he is currently serving in one of the first cases featuring someone who tried to trick a Level 2 driver-assist system into behaving like unsupervised FSD.

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