NHTSA proposes optional cyan lights for driverless cars like Cybercab

NHTSA has filed a proposed rule that updates lighting standards for driverless cars with no steering wheel or pedals. The headline change is an optional steady cyan marker lamp that would signal a car is driving itself. The rule is a proposal, not a final regulation.

What the proposal says

The cyan ADS marker lamps would be permitted, not required, on passenger cars, MPVs, trucks and buses. Each position could carry one or two cyan lamps, and their mounting height would have to be 15 inches or more above the road surface. Whenever an occupant is expected to supervise the road, the lamps must turn off, so they would not appear on a car running a supervised system.

The proposal also lets the self-driving system handle turn signals, hazards and high beams without physical controls. In these vehicles, the dashboard would lose certain indicators tied to turn signals and high beams. Vertical headlight layout restrictions are dropped, and integrated headlights could be tested at manufacturer-specified voltages instead of the current baseline of 12.8 volts.

An earlier step by the agency already removed the manual brake pedal requirement for fully automated vehicles, and this proposal builds on it.

Timing

Publication of the changes in the Federal Register is due on October 26. A 30-day comment period will follow and close in late November. NHTSA must then finalize the rule.

What it means for owners and shoppers

Nothing changes for a car you own today. Model 3, Model Y and the rest keep their controls, and a supervised FSD car would not show cyan lamps under this proposal.

The rule matters most for Cybercab. More than 300 Cybercabs are operating in Austin, Dallas rides are expected to launch next month, and Tesla's goal is that its first Cybercabs reach customers before the end of the year, about two months away. A clear lighting standard removes one regulatory gap for a car without conventional controls. Tesla could optionally add cyan lights, but the notes do not say it plans to.

Two caveats. NHTSA still has an open probe into the way commercial deployment of the Cybercab was certified, and Tesla received an extension to respond. And on the Q3 earnings call, Tesla said unsupervised FSD could reach first customer vehicles in Q2 2027, so any lighting rule for private cars is some way from daily use.

For context, Mercedes tested similar turquoise lights on its Drive Pilot system from 2023 to 2025, but only with approval in California and Nevada. A federal rule would replace that state-by-state patchwork.

If you are thinking about a Cybercab, watch for the final rule in the new year. If you drive a Tesla with FSD Supervised, there is nothing to do.

Credit: original reporting by Not a Tesla App.