Like Europeans, Australian Tesla owners have been eagerly awaiting the arrival of FSD for years, but it looks like there’s finally some good news coming. Thom Drew, Head of Tesla Australia, has confirmed that the company is actively working to bring FSD to Australian roads and, most importantly, sees no regulatory challenges blocking its path.
This update from Thom follows a video that was shared by Tesla’s AI account on X, where they showed off FSD successfully navigating the streets of Melbourne.
Speaking to Australia’s News.com, Thom Drew provided some context behind Tesla’s Australian FSD efforts. He noted that Elon’s push and focus is the deployment of FSD globally. The engineering team is working across a lot of markets to actively push out FSD wherever possible.
Notably, Drew emphasized the favorable regulatory environment in Australia. He specifically noted that “There’s currently no blockers in Australia to releasing FSD, as we have in North America.” While he didn’t provide a specific timeline for launch, it was clear he was enthusiastic.
The lack of a regulatory blocker is great news for Australians, as Tesla’s FSD efforts in Europe have been plagued with regulatory issues. While the Australian market poses some new challenges as a right-hand drive market, at least Tesla is in control there.
Hook Turn
At the end of the video above, FSD tackles something unique to Australia - the Hook Turn. This is a relatively unique maneuver that’s specific to Melbourne’s Central Business, where vehicles turn right from the far-left lane.
For those familiar with Melbourne, that maneuver is notoriously tricky—and at times even unsettling—since even experienced human drivers can struggle with the unusual complexity of that turn. Having FSD successfully demonstrate its skill in navigating these local complexities and laws is an indication that Tesla’s data-gathering methods work well and are scalable to unique location-based rules and regulations.
What This Means for Australian Owners
Given that Australian FSD is in active development and that there’s a clear regulatory path for Supervised FSD in Australia, that’s a good sign of things to come. It seems fairly likely that Tesla will be able to release FSD in Australia by the end of 2025, if not sooner.
Last year, Tesla initially said that RHD markets would receive FSD in Q1/Q2. With Q2 coming to an end in about a month, Tesla may not be too far off the mark here.
It's important to remember that this refers to FSD (Supervised), meaning the driver must remain vigilant and ready to take control at all times, consistent with its behavior in North America and China. However, Australia's lack of regulatory blockers is a huge advantage for Tesla compared to other regions like Europe and even China, where Tesla needed to jump through hoops to get FSD approved.
If you’re in Australia, keep an eye out; FSD may be coming sooner than you think.
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The road to bringing FSD to Europe has been a long and complex one and filled with regulatory and bureaucratic hurdles. Elon Musk, as well as other members of Tesla’s AI team, have previously voiced their grievances with the regulatory approval process on X.
However, it appears that there is finally some progress in getting things moving with recent changes to upcoming autonomy regulations, but the process still seems slow.
Waiting on the Dutch
Elon commented on X recently, stating that Tesla is waiting for approval from Dutch authorities and then the EU to start rolling out FSD in Europe. Tesla is focusing on acquiring approvals from the Dutch transportation authority, which will provide them with the platform they need to gain broader acceptance in Europe. Outside of the Netherlands, Tesla is also conducting testing in Norway, which provides a couple of avenues for them to obtain national-level approval.
The frustration has been ongoing, with multiple committee meetings bringing up autonomy regulation but always pulling back at the last second before approving anything. The last meeting on Regulation 157, which governs Automated Lane Keeping Systems, concluded with authorities from the UK and Spain requesting additional time to analyze the data before reaching a conclusion.
Tesla, as well as Elon, have motioned several times for owners to reach out to their elected representatives to move the process forward, as it seems that Tesla’s own efforts are being stymied.
This can seem odd, especially since Tesla has previously demoed FSD working exceptionally smoothly on European roads - and just did it again in Rome when they shared the video below on X.
— Tesla Europe & Middle East (@teslaeurope) June 12, 2025
DCAS Phase 3
While the approval process has been slow, Kees Roelandschap pointed out that there may be a different regulatory step that could allow FSD to gain a foothold in Europe.
According to Kees, the European Commission is now taking a new approach to approving ADAS systems under the new DCAS Phase 3 regulations. The Commission is now seeking data from systems currently operational in the United States that can perform System-Initiated Maneuvers and don’t require hands-on intervention for every request.
This is key because those are two of the core functionalities that make FSD so usable, and it also means that there may not be a need to wait years for proper regulations to be written from scratch. Now, the Commission will be looking at real-world data based on existing, deployed technology, which could speed up the process immensely.
What This Means
This new, data-driven regulatory approach could be the path for Tesla to reach its previous target of September for European FSD. While the cogs of bureaucracy are ever slow, sometimes all it takes is a little data to have them turn a bit faster in this case.
Alongside specific countries granting approval for limited field testing with employees, there is some light at the end of the tunnel for FSD in Europe, and hopes are that a release will occur by the end of 2025. With Europe now looking to North America for how FSD is performing, Tesla’s Robotaxi results could also play a role.
Tesla’s marketing has always been relatively unconventional, relying on word-of-mouth rather than traditional advertising. The passion of the owner’s community is always massive, but it is especially high now with the launch of the Robotaxi network just around the corner.
Tesla is now tapping into that spring of fan creativity and announced the TeslaVision video contest, with some seriously impressive prizes up for grabs.
Announcing the TeslaVision fan video showcase
Tesla owners & supporters have always been able to see our products & mission for what they truly are.
Your word of mouth has made Tesla what it is today.
The OGs will remember that in 2017, we held our first video contest. 8 years… pic.twitter.com/6pPpkqmqOH
The core of the contest is simple. Create a video that shows how your Tesla gives you more in life. Tesla is looking for submissions that highlight themes of freedom, safety, fun, and convenience.
Prizes
The prizes definitely make this contest worth entering if you’re good with a camera and have some basic video editing abilities.
For North America, the prizes include a brand new Model Y AWD Long Range, alongside an all-expenses-paid trip to Austin for a tour of Giga Texas. The grand prize winner will also be able to custom order their Model Y, allowing them to select their preferred wheels and color.
The two runners-up won’t get a Model Y, but they’ll also enjoy an all-expenses-paid trip to Giga Texas for a tour of the factory.
The travel and tour include lodging in Austin for 2 nights, as well as economy-class round-trip tickets from anywhere in North America. Tesla will also provide a vehicle for use during the trip.
For long-time followers of Tesla, this contest may feel familiar. The contest is a direct throwback to the 2017 Project Loveday contest, which was inspired by a letter to Tesla from a 10-year-old aspiring marketer. That contest was won by MKBHD, with his submission below:
How to Enter
If you’re ready to start filming, here are the key pieces of information you’ll need to know:
Video must be 90 seconds or less
Video must be uploaded to YouTube with a public URL
Make a post on X and Instagram tagging “@Tesla” and include the words “TeslaVision contest” in the post.
Provide links to both social media posts in your submission to Tesla’s form
Provide your personal details in the form
You have until July 17th, 2025, or until Tesla receives 10,000 entries, whichever comes first.
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