March 7 (Reuters) - Tesla owners who accused it

of falsely advertising estimated driving ranges for its electric

vehicles must pursue their claims in individual arbitrations

rather than banding together in proposed class action lawsuits,

a federal judge ruled.

U.S. District Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers in Oakland,

California said on Thursday the drivers had agreed to an

arbitration provision for resolving disputes with the automaker

when they bought their vehicles.

The plaintiffs accused Tesla of fraudulently inducing

consumers to buy its cars by overstating how far they can travel

on a single charge. The pair of lawsuits also alleged that

Tesla, led by billionaire CEO Elon Musk, misrepresented the

driving range on vehicle dashboards.

A Reuters special report in July revealed that Tesla had

created a secret team to suppress drivers' complaints about

driving range. Both lawsuits cited the special report.

Tesla and lawyers for the company did not immediately

respond to requests for comment. Tesla has called the claims in

the lawsuits "unmeritorious."

Attorneys for the plaintiffs in the two cases either

declined to comment or did not immediately respond to a request

for one.

Rogers' order did not address the merits of the drivers'

claims. She did not dismiss the lawsuits and said she could

eventually issue an injunction against Tesla if the drivers

successfully arbitrated their claims under California's unfair

competition law and other provisions.

The drivers' attorneys had called Tesla's effort to compel

individual arbitration an "effort to avoid classwide liability

for its deceptive conduct."

Tesla lowered driving-range estimates across its EVs in

January, as a new U.S. government vehicle-testing regulation was

implemented to ensure automakers accurately reflect real-world

performance.