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

Regulatory Body Finds Traffic Law Violations

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration announced that the electric carmaker's autonomous driving feature, which demands motorists to remain attentive and take control when necessary, had “induced vehicle behaviour that breached traffic safety laws”.

This preliminary evaluation by the NHTSA represents the first step before potentially seeking a recall of the cars if the agency determines they pose a risk to road safety.

Alarming Case Findings

The regulatory body reported it had documented accounts of 2.88 million Tesla vehicles running red lights and moving against the wrong way during lane changes while using the system.

NHTSA stated it has six reports in which a Tesla car, operating with full self-driving engaged, “approached an junction with a red light, proceeded to drive into the intersection against the red light and was later involved in a collision with other motor vehicles in the intersection”.

The agency reported that four crashes had caused injuries to occupants.

Further Safety Concerns

The NHTSA stated it has identified 18 reports and one media report alleging that Tesla cars, driving through an intersection with FSD engaged, “failed to remain stationary for the duration of a red traffic signal, did not come to complete stop, or did not properly recognize and show the proper traffic signal state in the vehicle interface”.

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

Continuing Official Examination

Tesla's FSD, which is more sophisticated than its Autopilot system, has been under investigation by NHTSA for a year.

In late 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 bright sunlight, mist or airborne dust. One such accident, in last year, was fatal.

Manufacturer's Stated Position

The company's official position indicates that FSD is “intended for operation by a fully attentive driver, who has their hands on the steering wheel and is ready to assume control at any time. While these features are engineered to improve over time, the currently enabled features do not render the car self-driving.”

Self-driving vehicle technology continue to face growing examination from safety agencies as the technology advances and real-world testing reveals possible issues with current implementations.