US probes 2.9M Teslas with full self-driving over traffic violations
What's the story
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) has launched an investigation into 2.88 million Tesla vehicles with Full Self-Driving (FSD) capabilities. The probe comes after a number of accidents and possible traffic safety violations involving the advanced driver assistance system. The NHTSA flagged that the FSD system, which requires drivers to remain alert and intervene if necessary, has "induced vehicle behavior that violated traffic safety laws."
Violations reported
Tesla cars running red lights while using FSD
The NHTSA has flagged cases of Tesla cars running red lights and changing lanes in the wrong direction while using the FSD system. The agency has six reports of a Tesla, with FSD engaged, "approaching an intersection with a red traffic signal, continuing to travel into the intersection against the red light and was subsequently involved in a crash with other motor vehicles in the intersection." Four of these crashes resulted in injuries.
Recall possibility
Preliminary evaluation
The NHTSA's investigation is a preliminary evaluation, which is the first step toward a potential vehicle recall if the agency deems them to pose an unreasonable safety risk. The agency has received 18 complaints and one media report claiming that Tesla cars with FSD engaged "failed to remain stopped for the duration of a red traffic signal, failed to stop fully or failed to accurately detect and display the correct traffic signal state in the vehicle interface."
Warning concerns
FSD under investigation for a year
Some complainants have raised concerns that the FSD system "did not provide warnings of the system's intended behavior as the vehicle was approaching a red traffic signal." Tesla's FSD, which is more advanced than its Autopilot system, has been under NHTSA investigation for a year. In October 2024, an inquiry was launched into 2.4 million Tesla vehicles with FSD after four reported collisions in low visibility conditions such as sun glare, fog or dust storms.