Korea Expressway Corporation's Tesla FSD Test: A 'Veteran' in Complex City Driving... 'Traffic Violations' on Highways Remain a Challenge

Expressway Corporation Test Results Receive Favorable Reviews "City Driving Exceeds Regular Drivers"... Traffic Violations During Highway 'Mad Max' Mode Remain a Challenge

Tesla's 'Supervised Full Self-Driving (FSD)' received a starkly contrasting report card in a road driving test conducted just one month after its domestic launch. In complex urban areas, it earned passing marks by showing off driving skills superior to those of ordinary drivers, but on highways, its aggressive driving tendencies led to a series of current law violations, such as encroaching on bus-only lanes and speeding.

The Mobility Department of the Korea Expressway Corporation conducted an FSD demonstration test on the 15th of last month using Tesla Model S and Model X vehicles in downtown sections such as Dongtan New Town, Sejong City, and Daejeon City, as well as on major highways including the Gyeongbu Expressway. This test was focused on verifying how well the approximately 900 FSD-capable vehicles distributed in the country have adapted to the actual domestic road environment.

◇ City Driving: "Better than a human"... Skillfully Navigating Construction Sites The most outstanding achievement was its city driving ability. The report evaluated that, except for sections requiring highly difficult judgments such as unprotected left turns, the Tesla FSD performed autonomous driving at a "level above that of regular drivers" across all sections.

In particular, its response in the 'work zone alternating traffic sections (construction sites)', which have many unexpected variables, was impressive. The FSD system smoothly passed between complex construction structures and naturally blended into the surrounding traffic flow. However, it was assessed that rather than correctly responding by recognizing signs according to the book, it achieved this by reading and following the flow of surrounding vehicles; thus, analysis suggests that additional safety verification during solitary driving is needed.

◇ Highways: The Two Faces of 'Mad Max' Mode... Ignoring Laws to Overtake On highways, the issue of law-abiding driving became a topic of debate, distinct from its excellent driving convenience. Tesla FSD's driving modes are divided into 5 stages: 'Sloth - Comfort - Standard - Assertive - Mad Max'. When set to the upper modes of 'Assertive' or higher, an aggressive tendency stood out.

As a result of the test, cases frequently occurred where the vehicle illegally encroached on the bus-only lane (first lane) or exceeded the road's maximum speed limit to speed in order to overtake the vehicle in front. While it could be considered 'sensible driving' that rides the flow, it is a clear target for a crackdown under the domestic Road Traffic Act. This suggests the possibility that the autonomous driving AI has been trained to prioritize 'mobility efficiency' over 'safety' and 'legal compliance'.

◇ What about overseas cases?... "Similar problems such as 'crossing double solid lines' pointed out in the US as well" What about the case of the United States, an advanced country in autonomous driving? Looking at local evaluations of the recently distributed Tesla FSD v13 and v14 versions (as of the second half of 2025), patterns similar to the domestic results are found.

According to major reviews and foreign media reports in the US, the latest FSD is receiving favorable reviews that highway entry and exit and lane changes are "much smoother and more human-like than before." However, just like in South Korea, issues with legal compliance remain a challenge to be solved, such as failing to recognize HOV (High-Occupancy Vehicle) lanes and attempting to deviate by crossing double solid lines, or being investigated by the US National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) for traffic signal violations and sudden braking problems.