American Regulators Begin Inquiry into Autonomous Teslas After String of Accidents

American vehicle safety authorities have opened an investigation into Tesla cars equipped with the full self-driving technology due to safety regulation breaches following numerous collisions.

Safety Agency Finds Safety Regulation Breaches

The federal safety agency stated that the electric carmaker's autonomous driving feature, which requires drivers to remain attentive and intervene if needed, had caused car behavior that violated road safety regulations”.

This preliminary evaluation by the NHTSA represents the initial phase before possibly seeking a recall of the cars if the agency determines they pose a risk to road safety.

Alarming Incident Reports

The regulatory body stated it had documented reports of nearly 3 million Tesla vehicles driving through red lights and moving in the wrong way during lane changes while using the technology.

NHTSA confirmed it has six reports in which a Tesla car, using FSD engaged, “approached an intersection with a red light, proceeded to drive into the crossroads despite the red signal and was subsequently involved in a collision with other cars in the intersection”.

The authority reported that four crashes had caused one or more injuries.

Additional Issues Identified

The NHTSA stated it has found 18 reports and one news account claiming that Tesla vehicles, driving through an intersection with FSD engaged, “failed to remain stationary for the entire time of a red traffic signal, failed to stop fully, or failed to accurately detect and display the correct traffic signal state in the car's display”.

Several reporters also claimed that FSD “did not provide alerts of the technology's planned actions as the vehicle was approaching a red traffic signal”.

Ongoing Official Examination

The full self-driving system, which is more advanced than its Autopilot system, has been under investigation by NHTSA for twelve months.

In October 2024, the authority started an inquiry into over two million Tesla cars equipped with FSD after four reported collisions in conditions of reduced visibility, such as sun glare, mist or dust clouds. One of these collisions, in 2023, was fatal.

Manufacturer's Stated Position

The company's official position indicates that FSD is “designed for operation by a fully attentive driver, who has their hands on the steering wheel and is ready to assume control at any moment. While these features are designed to improve over time, the currently enabled features do not render the vehicle self-driving.”

Automated car systems continue to face increased scrutiny from regulatory bodies as the systems develop and practical implementation reveals potential challenges with current implementations.