BMW sells hands-free driving in Switzerland, but ASTRA says a hand must stay on the wheel. Who decides on Tesla Assisted Driving in Romania
Swiss road authority ASTRA confirmed in writing that, even though BMW's Highway Assistant is UN R171 approved, traffic rules still require constant contact between hand and wheel. Romania has the same problem. Who approves Tesla Assisted Driving here and where to write.
BMW sells its Highway Assistant option in several European countries. It allows hands-free motorway driving at up to 130 km/h. In the German configurator, the Highway & City Assistant package costs €1,450, and the country list includes Switzerland, Austria and Luxembourg. The system is approved under UN R171 (DCAS), the same family of rules that the future Tesla Assisted Driving in Europe depends on.
The Danish account FSD in Denmark (@FSDEurope) asked Swiss road authority ASTRA whether drivers are actually allowed to take their hands off the wheel. On October 8 it posted on X the written reply it received on October 7.
What ASTRA said
ASTRA says a car with a UN R171-approved "Autobahnassistent" can be registered and driven in Switzerland. But traffic rules apply separately from type approval. Art. 3(3) of the Swiss Traffic Rules Ordinance (VRV) says drivers must not let go of the steering, so there must always be contact between hand and wheel while driving. ASTRA offers a comparison: a car EU-approved for 300 km/h is legal in Switzerland, even though you can't drive at 300 km/h.
FSDEurope's conclusion: anyone using the hands-free feature in Switzerland risks a fine, despite having paid for it. ASTRA also notes that BMW warns on its website that country-specific rules must be respected. The account asks BMW whether customers are warned before they pay, and what happens in Austria and Luxembourg.
Why it matters for Tesla
It's exactly the problem Tesla Assisted Driving (formerly FSD Supervised) will face: an EU or UN approval says the car complies, but it doesn't change each country's traffic code. Germany has already asked for its own conditions, such as a 10% cap above the speed limit, while Slovakia is recognizing the Dutch approval through a ministry decision.
Who decides in Romania
There are two separate issues, handled by different institutions:
- Type approval: Registrul Auto Român (RAR). RAR is the type-approval authority notified to the European Commission and the UN, through its General Directorate for Type Approval and Product Certification. RAR would also decide whether Romania recognizes the Dutch RDW approval for Tesla Assisted Driving, as Czechia and Slovakia have done. RAR operates under the Ministry of Transport and Infrastructure (MTI).
- Traffic rules: the Road Code. Art. 99(1) point 13 of Emergency Ordinance 195/2002 fines "letting go of the steering wheel while driving". Just like in Switzerland, that rule stays even if the system is approved. A change would have to come from the Government, usually through the Ministry of Internal Affairs (MAI), which is responsible for traffic rules, or from Parliament.
A common mix-up: the Romanian Road Authority (ARR, arr.ro) handles road transport licences, not vehicle approval. For Tesla Assisted Driving, the right institution is RAR (rarom.ro).
Where to write
All addresses below are published on the institutions' official websites:
| Institution | For | Contact |
|---|---|---|
| RAR | questions and complaints from citizens | form at prog.rarom.ro/petitii; general e-mail: [email protected] |
| RAR | press and institutions | [email protected] |
| MTI | petitions (GO 27/2002) | [email protected] or the E-petiție form |
| MTI | public information requests (Law 544/2001) | [email protected] |
| MTI | proposals on draft legislation | [email protected] |
| MTI | press | [email protected] |
| MAI | petitions (Road Code) | the online MAI petition form; toll-free 0800 800 624 |
RAR's press office page says citizens' complaints are registered only through the petitions platform, and [email protected] is for journalists and institutions. For MAI we found no public e-mail address for petitions, only the online form.
The most useful question, citing Art. 39(5) of Regulation (EU) 2018/858: will RAR recognize the Dutch approval for Tesla Assisted Driving, and are MAI and MTI preparing an exception to Art. 99 of the Road Code for UN R171-approved systems? Both obstacles are covered in our guide to FSD in Europe and Romania. For the system's new name, read our Tesla Assisted Driving article.
