Most Tesla owners understand how their car's semi-autonomous Autopilot feature works, according to a new study commissioned by the EV maker.

The report was conducted by German market research firm Puls in response to German officials' call for a ban on the use of "Autopilot" in local advertising. Germany's Federal Ministry of Transport and Digital Infrastructure (BMVI) argued that the word "Autopilot" suggests that drivers can zone out and let their car do the driving, which is not the case.

Tesla has pushed back on that assertion. "Autopilot operates in conjunction with the human driver to make driving safer and less stressful," a Tesla spokeswoman told PCMag last month.

And according to this study, most Tesla owners are aware of this. "A significant majority of German Tesla customers understand the meaning and functions of the Autopilot," the survey said.

Of the 675 German Tesla owners surveyed, 99 percent said they have used Autopilot, and 98 percent said they understand "that when using Autopilot, the driver is expected to maintain control of the vehicle at all times." Still, 7 percent of respondents said that the name Autopilot caused them to believe that the car might be fully autonomous.

Upon enabling Autopilot, drivers must agree to an acknowledgement stating that the assist feature "requires you to keep your hands on the steering wheel at all times." A "hands-on-the-wheel" reminder message also appears on the dashboard screen each time Autopilot is activated.

Tesla came under fire this year when Autopilot was blamed for a deadly crash in Florida, among other incidents. A software update, rolled out in September, switches to a radar-based Autopilot system and requires motorists to be more attentive while behind the wheel.

Germany isn't the only one pushing for Tesla to drop the term "Autopilot": California's Department of Motor Vehicles recently drafted rules that would ban car makers from using phrases like "self-driving," "automated," and "auto-pilot," unless their vehicles are truly autonomous.