The U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) has initiated a new investigation into Tesla Inc.'s recent Autopilot recall to determine if measures taken last December adequately address the system's safety concerns. This probe, involving over 2 million Tesla vehicles, follows ongoing issues highlighted by subsequent crashes and preliminary NHTSA tests which suggest that the recall may not have fully mitigated the risks associated with the driver-assistance system.
Tesla's Autopilot has been under scrutiny for allegedly allowing a "critical safety gap" due to its permissive operating capabilities. The system, designed to enable cars to steer, accelerate, and brake automatically within lanes, has been implicated in at least 13 fatal crashes since its introduction, with driver misuse frequently playing a key role, according to NHTSA findings.
In December, Tesla responded to NHTSA's concerns by issuing a recall affecting 2.03 million vehicles, which was intended to enhance driver engagement through additional controls and alerts. Despite these updates, Ann Carlson, a former NHTSA official, noted that "drivers are not always paying attention when that system is on," underscoring the ongoing challenge of ensuring driver attentiveness.
The recall allowed drivers to opt-in to the updates and provided the ability to reverse the changes, a flexibility that NHTSA is now questioning in its latest investigation. The agency is particularly concerned about why subsequent Autopilot updates, which addressed related safety issues, were not incorporated into the original recall.
Elon Musk, Tesla's CEO, has continued to express optimism about the future of the company's automated driving technology. In a recent earnings call, Musk anticipated minimal regulatory hurdles for launching a driverless robotaxi, a project he claims will be safer than human-operated vehicles. This comes as Tesla faces increased regulatory scrutiny, with the U.S. Justice Department issuing subpoenas related to its Full Self-Driving and Autopilot systems, and a criminal investigation reported by Reuters.
Consumer Reports has also weighed in, suggesting that Tesla's recall did not sufficiently tackle the major safety issues flagged by NHTSA. The consumer advocacy group called for more robust actions to rectify what it described as "minor inconveniences" rather than significant safety shortcomings.
Adding to the complexity, NHTSA's ongoing investigations into Tesla include more than 40 special crash investigations where Autopilot was suspected to be in use, highlighting the controversial nature of the technology and its implications for road safety.
Tesla's approach to resolving Autopilot's issues primarily through software updates without formal recalls has been a point of contention. The company argues that these updates are sufficient for addressing safety concerns, a stance that has occasionally put it at odds with regulatory perspectives.
As the investigation progresses, Tesla will need to demonstrate that its corrective actions via the recall and subsequent updates are effective in reducing the risks of Autopilot. The outcome of this probe could have significant implications for Tesla's Autopilot deployment and its broader ambitions in automated driving technologies.
