Japan Prepares Safety Rules for Steering-Wheel-Free Electric Vehicles

Japan is reportedly preparing new safety standards for autonomous vehicles without steering wheels or pedals, a move that could support the introduction of vehicles like Tesla's Cybercab as the automaker pushes for FSD approval in Japan, according to reporting by Nikkei.

Related: NHTSA Opens Audit Into Tesla Cybercab Certification · What the Cybercab's No-Onboard-Charger Design Means for Owners

What the new rules would change

Japan's Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism (MLIT) plans to revise vehicle safety standards so that vehicles produced from December onward are certified under a uniform set of requirements, Nikkei reports. The proposed changes would cover:

• Level 4 vehicles: operate without drivers under specific conditions
• Level 5 vehicles: capable of operating autonomously everywhere

Today, vehicles without traditional driving controls are certified individually under case-by-case exemptions. Under the proposed framework, manufacturers could obtain certification once using a common set of safety requirements.

What certified vehicles wouldn't need

Certified vehicles would no longer require steering wheels, brake pedals, rearview mirrors, or driver monitoring systems — potentially reducing manufacturing costs and allowing more flexible interior seating arrangements. That is a direct unlock for purpose-built robotaxis like the Cybercab, whose design omits all of those components.

What still stays

• Passenger vehicles, including autonomous taxis and buses, would still require crash testing with dummies
• Unmanned cargo vehicles would be exempt from dummy crash testing, though both categories must include safeguards against system failures
• Separate permits would still be required to operate driverless passenger services on public roads

Why it matters

The proposed regulations follow a June agreement by the United Nations World Forum for Harmonization of Vehicle Regulations (WP29), with international standards expected in December. MLIT has scheduled a vehicle safety meeting for Wednesday to discuss measures supporting autonomous vehicle adoption.

The standards are being prepared as Japan's government targets 10,000 Level 4-capable buses, taxis and other vehicles by fiscal year 2030. For Tesla, a uniform certification pathway would remove one of the key regulatory obstacles to selling the Cybercab in Japan — a market where the company has been actively pushing FSD approval.

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