Tesla removes the option in Spain to buy FSD and switches to offering a monthly subscription

If you visit the Tesla website right now intending to configure a new vehicle for purchase, you may be in for a surprise if you are not up to date with the latest changes. The American manufacturer has removed the option to buy the Full Self-Driving package — popularly known as FSD — and now its capabilities can only be enjoyed by paying a monthly subscription of 99 euros.

This decision marks a significant change in the company’s strategy in the Spanish market and in Europe as a whole, where until now it was possible to acquire these capabilities for use throughout the vehicle’s useful life with a one-time payment.

This one-time payment, however, was really high, since the price of this package amounted to 7,500 euros. Tesla also offered an intermediate alternative with some limitations, called Enhanced Autopilot, for 3,800 euros. This option, which has also been eliminated, included hands-free navigation on motorways, automatic lane changes, overtaking, and the ability to summon the vehicle from a mobile device.

For now, Supervised FSD is not available in Spain, even if you pay the subscription

This decision by Tesla comes after two European countries, the Netherlands and Lithuania, approved the use of Supervised FSD on their roads, where it is possible to enjoy all the capabilities of this automated driving system. In the rest of the countries of the European Union, however, paying these 99 euros a month currently only grants access to much more limited capabilities, with less advanced driver-assistance software versions.

Tesla already implemented this change in the United States at the beginning of the year, where Supervised FSD has been a reality for months. In that market, the option of a one-time payment of 8 thousand dollars to enjoy this system throughout the vehicle’s useful life was removed, and a monthly subscription at a price of 99 dollars was offered instead.

Honestly, from an economic point of view, for anyone thinking of buying a Tesla, the new subscription system offers some advantages. First, it should be noted that the subscription can be cancelled during periods when it will not be used. Customers who want to limit spending can activate this new subscription, for example, only during the holiday month when they make many more trips.

On the other hand, doing the maths, 99 euros a month amounts to nearly 1,200 euros a year, so it takes a little over six years for the total cost to equal the 7,500 euros that enjoying this system with a one-time payment used to cost. A driver who changes their vehicle before those six-plus years will come out ahead.