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

Safety Agency Finds Safety Regulation Breaches

The federal safety agency stated that the electric carmaker's autonomous driving feature, which demands motorists to stay alert and intervene if needed, had “induced car behavior that violated road safety regulations”.

This preliminary evaluation by the NHTSA represents the first step before possibly seeking a withdrawal of the cars if the agency determines they present a danger to road safety.

Alarming Incident Reports

The agency stated it had documented reports of 2.88 million Tesla vehicles running red traffic lights and moving against the incorrect way during lane changes while using the technology.

NHTSA stated it has six documented cases in which a Tesla vehicle, operating with FSD activated, “approached an intersection with a red traffic signal, proceeded to travel into the crossroads against the red light and was subsequently involved in a crash with other cars in the intersection”.

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

Further Issues Identified

The NHTSA announced it has found 18 reports and one news account alleging that Tesla cars, operating at an junction with FSD active, did not stay stopped for the duration of a red traffic signal, did not come to complete stop, or did not properly recognize and display the correct traffic signal state in the vehicle interface”.

Several reporters also stated that FSD “failed to give alerts of the system's intended behaviour as the car was approaching a red traffic signal”.

Ongoing Official Examination

The full self-driving system, which is more sophisticated than its basic autopilot feature, has been being examined by NHTSA for a year.

In October 2024, the authority began an investigation into over two million Tesla cars equipped with FSD after four reported collisions in conditions of reduced visibility, such as sun glare, fog or airborne dust. One such accident, in 2023, was deadly.

Company's Stated Position

Tesla's website states that FSD is “intended for operation by a fully attentive driver, who has their hands on the wheel and is ready to assume control at any moment. While these capabilities are engineered to improve over time, the presently active functions do not render the vehicle self-driving.”

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