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

Safety Agency Identifies Traffic Law Violations

The federal safety agency stated that the electric carmaker's autonomous driving feature, which requires drivers to stay alert and take control when necessary, had “induced vehicle behaviour that violated road safety regulations”.

This preliminary evaluation by the NHTSA marks the initial phase before possibly requesting a recall of the vehicles if the authority determines they present a danger to public safety.

Alarming Case Findings

The regulatory body stated it had documented reports of 2.88 million Tesla cars driving through red traffic lights and moving in the incorrect direction during lane switching while operating the system.

NHTSA confirmed it has six documented cases in which a Tesla vehicle, using FSD activated, “came to an junction with a red light, continued to travel into the intersection despite the red signal and was subsequently part of a collision with other motor vehicles in the intersection”.

The authority reported that four crashes had caused one or more injuries.

Additional Issues Identified

The NHTSA stated it has found 18 complaints and one media report alleging that Tesla vehicles, driving through an intersection with FSD engaged, “failed to remain stationary for the entire time of a red traffic signal, did not come to complete stop, or failed to accurately detect and show the correct traffic signal state in the car's display”.

Several reporters also claimed that FSD “did not provide alerts of the technology's planned actions as the car was coming to a red traffic signal”.

Ongoing Official Examination

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 agency began an inquiry into over two million Tesla vehicles equipped with FSD after four reported collisions in situations of reduced visibility, such as sun glare, fog or dust clouds. One such accident, in last year, was fatal.

Company's Official Stance

Tesla's website states that FSD is “designed for use with a completely alert driver, who has their hands on the wheel and is ready to assume control at any moment. While these features are designed to improve over time, the presently active features do not render the vehicle autonomous.”

Self-driving car systems continue to face growing examination from regulatory bodies as the technology advances and practical implementation reveals possible issues with existing deployments.