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US automobile safety regulators have started an investigation into Tesla vehicles equipped with the autonomous driving system due to safety regulation breaches following numerous accidents.

Safety Agency Finds Safety Regulation Breaches

The NHTSA declared that the electric carmaker's autonomous driving feature, which requires drivers to remain attentive and take control when necessary, had caused vehicle behaviour that breached road safety regulations”.

This preliminary evaluation by the NHTSA represents the first step before potentially seeking a recall of the cars if the authority determines they present a danger to road safety.

Concerning Case Findings

The agency reported it had received accounts of 2.88 million Tesla cars running red lights and traveling against the incorrect way during lane switching while operating the technology.

NHTSA confirmed it has six documented cases in which a Tesla car, using full self-driving activated, “approached an intersection with a red light, continued to drive into the crossroads against the red signal and was later part of a crash with other motor vehicles in the junction”.

The authority reported that four accidents had resulted in one or more injuries.

Additional Issues Identified

The NHTSA stated it has identified 18 reports and one media report claiming that Tesla cars, driving through an junction with FSD active, did not stay stopped for the entire time of a red light, did not come to complete stop, or failed to accurately detect and show the correct light status in the car's display”.

Some complainants also claimed that FSD “did not provide alerts of the technology's planned behaviour as the car was coming to a red light”.

Ongoing Regulatory Scrutiny

The full self-driving system, which is more sophisticated than its Autopilot system, has been being examined by NHTSA for a year.

In October 2024, the agency started an inquiry into 2.4 million Tesla cars equipped with FSD after four documented crashes in conditions of reduced visibility, such as bright sunlight, fog or airborne dust. One of these collisions, in last year, was fatal.

Manufacturer's Stated Position

Tesla's website states that FSD is “intended for use with a fully attentive motorist, who has their hands on the wheel and is ready to assume control at any time. While these features are engineered to improve over time, the currently enabled features do not render the car autonomous.”

Automated vehicle technology continue to face increased scrutiny from regulatory bodies as the technology advances and practical implementation reveals potential challenges with existing deployments.