The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) has launched an investigation into more than 2.8 million Tesla vehicles equipped with the Full Self-Driving (FSD) system. This investigation will look into traffic violations related to FSD, including cases where vehicles ran red lights and traveled the wrong way on roads.
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NHTSA's Office of Defect Investigation is investigating 58 traffic safety incidents involving FSD, which include 14 crashes and 23 injuries. Some incidents involve Tesla vehicles failing to stop or remain stopped at red lights while Full Self-Driving is enabled. Other incidents involve Teslas entering the oncoming lane of traffic during or after a turn or attempting to turn onto a road in the wrong direction despite the presence of no-entry signs.
Tesla is already under scrutiny by the NHTSA, which has previously investigated accidents with Full Self-Driving in low-visibility conditions and has concluded that the company's driver-assistance features do not adequately keep drivers' attention on the road, leading to fatal accidents.
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NHTSA is also evaluating whether Tesla reports accidents with FSD or Autopilot in a timely manner and is looking into electronic door handles that have been implicated in wrongful death lawsuits due to passengers being trapped inside vehicles.
In this latest investigation, NHTSA will focus on red light and wrong-way violations, as well as incidents at railroad crossings. A report by NBC last month highlighted several cases where Teslas with Full Self-Driving enabled failed to stop at railroad crossings when trains were approaching.
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The investigation comes at a difficult time for Tesla, which is trying to convince local regulators to approve its robo-taxi service. The company currently operates a passenger-carrying service with security guards in San Francisco and Austin, with plans to expand to “50 percent” of the U.S. by the end of the year, according to Elon Musk.
