Tesla Eases Full Self-Driving Rules, Slashes 'FSD Jail’ Time In Half

Tesla is making its Autopilot and Full Self-Driving (FSD) system a lot more forgiving. Repeat offenders who receive five „strikes” and are booted off the AI driving system for seven days will now only spend 3.5 days in „FSD jail.” This change occurs five weeks before the release of Version 14 software, which Elon Musk has described as „the second biggest update ever,” following Version 12.

Tech blog Not A Tesla App reports:

• Balance of safety & convenience: Tesla’s strike system is meant to keep drivers attentive, but the shorter reset time gives users more flexibility.

• FSD V14 & reduced monitoring: With FSD v14, Tesla plans to relax driver monitoring further, making it less likely that users „strike out.”

• Hardware considerations: The change may apply mainly to newer Hardware 4 (HW4) vehicles, which will soon run FSD v14. Hardware 3 cars remain on older software until late next year.

• Confidence in FSD: The policy shift signals Tesla’s growing confidence in FSD’s ability to handle roads safely, reducing the need for strict punishments.

Why does this matter for Tesla drivers? Well, the days of constant nagging by the vehicle to pay attention are about to ease with the next major over-the-air update that will be pushed out by Tesla sometime this fall. This suggests higher confidence in FSD.

„Once we confirm real-world safety of FSD 14, which we think will be amazing, the car will nag you much less,” Musk recently wrote on X.

The FSD release in about 6 weeks will be a dramatic gain with a 10X higher parameter count and many other improvements. It’s going through training & testing now.

Once we confirm real-world safety of FSD 14, which we think will be amazing, the car will nag you much less.

— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) August 11, 2025

On a recent All-In podcast, Musk stated, „Your car is going to feel like it is sentient by the end of the year.”

„Version 14 will be the biggest upgrade in terms of software since Version 12.” — Elon Musk pic.twitter.com/M1eIehdFrY

— Tesla Owners Silicon Valley (@teslaownersSV) September 18, 2025

„I just want to be able to drink my coffee in the morning without FSD nagging me because my hat blocks its view while I take a slow sip of hot coffee,” one X user emphasized.