Tesla accused of misleading claims about autopilot features

(KYMA, KECY/ CNN) - California's Department of Motor Vehicles says Tesla is making misleading claims about its autopilot features.

In a formal complaint, the DMV is alleging the company made false statements in website ads about the electric vehicles' self-driving capabilities.

Data released in June by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration found a number of Tesla accidents that could be related.

In the past nine months, there have been 273 crashes in which Tesla driver-assist technologies may be at fault.

Tesla now has 15 days to respond to the complaint, and failure to respond could cause the company to lose its special plates number in California or even its manufacturer license.