In brief
The US government is looking into Tesla's self-driving cars after reports of traffic violations, including wrong-way driving and failing to stop at red lights. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) has noted 58 incidents under review, affecting around 2.9 million vehicles equipped with Tesla's 'Full Self-Driving' technology. The investigation aims to assess the safety implications of these autonomous driving features and follows Tesla's prior scrutiny regarding vehicle safety.
Tesla is being investigated by the US government after reports that the firm’s self-driving cars had broken traffic laws, including driving on the wrong side of the road and not stopping for red lights. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) reported being aware of 58 cases where Tesla's electric cars committed these violations. An estimated 2.9 million cars equipped with full self-driving tech are part of the investigation. Tesla, whose CEO Elon Musk recently became the world's first half-trillionaire, has been approached for comment.The NHTSA's preliminary evaluation will assess the scope, frequency, and potential safety consequences of the 'Full Self-Driving (Supervised)' mode. In this mode, which costs extra, the cars can execute lane changes and turns, but the driver must remain alert to take over at any time. The NHTSA indicated that six crashes were attributed to cars that began moving while the traffic light was still red, resulting in four injuries. They also noted that Tesla had taken steps to correct cars going through red lights at a specific intersection in Maryland.Additionally, the investigation will look at reports of cars turning into oncoming traffic, with some incidents occurring with little warning to the driver. This inquiry follows another investigation by NHTSA into Tesla's door locking issues after reports of children getting trapped inside Model Y vehicles. Furthermore, Tesla has recently introduced lower-cost models to compete with more affordable electric vehicles produced by other companies.
