the.com/sae levels
a six-step scale for how much a car drives itself, from zero to fully your problem no more.
means the sae's official 0-to-5 classification of vehicle automation, based on who or what is doing the driving, not how fancy the tech sounds.
from published by sae international (originally the society of automotive engineers) in 2014 as j3016, written to end marketing chaos where every carmaker called their cruise control 'autopilot' or 'self-driving.'
level 3 problemdriver must take over instantly, humans hate that
level 5 existsonly on paper, no production car has reached it
nhtsa adopted itus regulators use sae's scale, not their own
tesla's fsdofficially still level 2, despite the name
for instance
tesla autopilot — level 2, hands-on despite the branding
mercedes drive pilot — first legal level 3 system, germany and nevada, 2022
waymo robotaxi — level 4, no driver, phoenix and san francisco since 2020
gm super cruise — level 2, hands-free but eyes-on highway driving