Feds are investigating the safety of Tesla’s ‘Full Self-Driving’ feature

New York
CNN
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The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration says it has launched an investigation into the safety of Tesla’s Full Self-Driving (FSD) feature after at least one fatal crash involving a pedestrian.

The investigation examines four accidents involving vehicles using the FSD function. In one case, a pedestrian was killed, according to the agency. In another case there was an injury.

In both accidents, the Tesla car using FSD “experienced a crash after entering an area of ​​reduced road visibility… due to conditions such as sun glare, fog or airborne dust,” according to the agency’s statement on the start of the investigation.

FSD is central to Tesla’s plans for future growth and profitability. This feature, sold as an $8,000 option, requires drivers to remain in the driver’s seat and be ready to take control of the vehicle to avoid accidents. But Tesla and CEO Elon Musk insist the feature is already safer than human-driven driving, and the company has announced plans for truly self-driving cars that would come without steering wheels, accelerator or brake pedals.

Musk last week unveiled plans for a fleet of self-driving “robotaxis” and a service that would allow Tesla owners to rent out their cars for a ride-hailing service to make money when they’re not using their cars. But while Musk has insisted such offers would allow Tesla to become the most valuable company in the world, investors were largely unimpressed by the presentation, sending Tesla shares down nearly 9%. the day after the evening presentation.

This isn’t the first time the NHTSA has announced it is investigating Tesla’s self-driving features. In February 2023, the agency ordered a recall to change the FSD software on all more than 360,000 Teslas then on U.S. roads with this feature. It found that FSD “created an unreasonable risk to motor vehicle safety based on inadequate compliance with road safety laws.” And it warned that FSD could break traffic laws at some intersections “before some drivers can intervene.”

“The FSD Beta system can cause the vehicle to behave unsafely around intersections, such as driving straight through an intersection while in a turning lane, entering a stop sign controlled intersection without coming to a complete stop, or entering an intersection entering during a solid yellow traffic light without due care,” according to the recall notice on the NHTSA website.

In December, the company ordered another recall of all 2 million Teslas on U.S. roads to implement software changes to limit the use of a less robust set of driver-assistance features known as Autopilot, following a two-year investigation by the agency to approximately 1,000 crashes in the United States. when the feature was enabled.