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American vehicle safety authorities have commenced an investigation into Tesla cars featuring the full self-driving technology due to safety regulation breaches following multiple accidents.

Regulatory Body Identifies Safety Regulation Breaches

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration announced that the automaker's autonomous driving feature, which demands motorists to remain attentive and intervene if needed, had “induced vehicle behaviour that violated road safety regulations”.

This preliminary evaluation by the NHTSA marks the initial phase before potentially seeking a withdrawal of the vehicles if the agency concludes they pose a risk to road safety.

Concerning Incident Reports

The regulatory body reported it had received accounts of 2.88 million Tesla cars running red lights and moving in the wrong direction during lane changes while using the technology.

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

The authority noted that four crashes had resulted in one or more injuries.

Further Issues Identified

The NHTSA announced it has found 18 complaints and one news account alleging that Tesla vehicles, driving through an intersection with FSD engaged, “failed to remain stationary for the entire time of a red light, did not come to complete stop, or failed to accurately detect and show the proper traffic signal state in the vehicle interface”.

Some complainants also stated that FSD “did not provide warnings of the technology's intended behaviour as the car was approaching a red traffic signal”.

Ongoing Regulatory Scrutiny

The full self-driving system, which is more sophisticated than its Autopilot system, has been under investigation by NHTSA for twelve months.

In October 2024, the authority started an inquiry into 2.4 million Tesla vehicles using FSD after four documented crashes in conditions of poor visibility, such as sun glare, fog or airborne dust. One of these collisions, in 2023, was deadly.

Manufacturer's Stated Position

Tesla's website states that FSD is “intended for operation by a completely alert motorist, who has their hands on the steering wheel and is prepared to assume control at any moment. While these features are designed to become more capable, the presently active features do not render the car autonomous.”

Self-driving car systems continue to face growing examination from safety agencies as the systems develop and real-world testing reveals possible issues with existing deployments.