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American vehicle safety authorities have opened an probe into Tesla cars equipped with the autonomous driving system due to traffic-safety violations following multiple collisions.

Safety Agency Identifies Traffic Law Violations

The federal safety agency declared that the automaker's self-driving assistance system, which demands drivers to stay alert and intervene if needed, had “induced vehicle behaviour that violated traffic safety laws”.

This preliminary evaluation by the NHTSA represents the initial phase before potentially requesting a withdrawal of the vehicles if the authority concludes 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 moving against the wrong way during lane changes while operating the technology.

NHTSA confirmed it has six reports in which a Tesla vehicle, using full self-driving engaged, “approached an intersection with a red light, proceeded to travel into the crossroads despite the red light and was subsequently part of a crash with other cars in the junction”.

The agency noted that four crashes had caused one or more injuries.

Further Issues Identified

The NHTSA stated it has found 18 complaints and one media report claiming that Tesla vehicles, operating at 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 display the proper traffic signal state in the car's display”.

Several reporters also claimed that FSD “failed to give warnings of the technology's intended behaviour as the vehicle was coming to a red traffic signal”.

Ongoing Official Examination

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 agency started an inquiry into over two million Tesla vehicles equipped with FSD after four documented crashes in conditions of poor visibility, such as bright sunlight, fog or dust clouds. One of these collisions, in last year, was deadly.

Company's Official Stance

Tesla's website states that FSD is “intended for use with a completely alert motorist, who has their hands on the steering wheel and is ready to take over at any moment. While these capabilities are designed to become more capable, the presently active functions do not render the car autonomous.”

Self-driving vehicle technology continue to face growing examination from regulatory bodies as the technology advances and practical implementation reveals potential challenges with current implementations.