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American vehicle safety authorities have opened an investigation into Tesla vehicles featuring the autonomous driving system due to safety regulation breaches after several crashes.

Regulatory Body Identifies Safety Regulation Breaches

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration declared that the electric carmaker's self-driving assistance system, which requires drivers to remain attentive and take control when necessary, had caused car behavior that violated road safety regulations”.

This preliminary evaluation by the NHTSA marks the first step before potentially seeking a recall of the cars if the agency concludes they present a danger to road safety.

Concerning Case Findings

The agency stated it had documented reports of nearly 3 million Tesla vehicles driving through red traffic lights and moving against the incorrect direction during lane changes while using the system.

NHTSA stated it has six documented cases in which a Tesla vehicle, operating with full self-driving activated, “approached an junction with a red light, continued to travel into the crossroads against the red light and was later part of a collision with other motor vehicles in the intersection”.

The authority noted that four accidents had caused one or more injuries.

Additional Safety Concerns

The NHTSA announced it has identified 18 complaints and one news account claiming that Tesla cars, operating at an intersection with FSD engaged, did not stay stopped for the entire time of a red light, failed to stop fully, or failed to accurately detect and display the correct traffic signal state in the car's display”.

Some complainants also claimed that FSD “failed to give alerts of the system's intended behaviour as the vehicle was approaching a red light”.

Ongoing Regulatory Scrutiny

The full self-driving system, which is more advanced than its basic autopilot feature, has been being examined by NHTSA for twelve months.

In October 2024, the authority began an inquiry into 2.4 million Tesla vehicles using FSD after four reported collisions in situations of reduced visibility, such as sun glare, mist or airborne dust. One such accident, in last year, was deadly.

Manufacturer's Stated Position

The company's official position indicates that FSD is “intended for use with a fully attentive motorist, who has their hands on the steering wheel and is ready to assume control at any moment. While these capabilities are engineered to become more capable, the currently enabled functions do not render the vehicle self-driving.”

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