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American vehicle safety authorities have commenced an probe into Tesla cars equipped with the autonomous driving system due to traffic-safety violations after numerous crashes.

Safety Agency Finds Traffic Law Breaches

The NHTSA announced that the electric carmaker's autonomous driving feature, which requires motorists to remain attentive and intervene if needed, had caused vehicle behaviour that breached traffic safety laws”.

This preliminary evaluation by the NHTSA marks the first step before potentially requesting a withdrawal of the cars if the agency concludes they present a danger to public safety.

Alarming Incident Reports

The agency reported it had received accounts of 2.88 million Tesla vehicles driving through red traffic lights and traveling against the wrong way during lane switching while using the technology.

NHTSA confirmed it has six documented cases in which a Tesla car, operating with full self-driving activated, “approached an intersection with a red traffic signal, continued to travel into the crossroads despite the red light and was later part of a crash with other cars in the intersection”.

The agency reported that four accidents had resulted in one or more injuries.

Additional Issues Identified

The NHTSA announced it has found 18 complaints and one media report alleging that Tesla vehicles, operating at an intersection with FSD engaged, “failed to remain stationary for the duration of a red light, did not come to complete stop, or failed to accurately detect and show the proper traffic signal state in the vehicle interface”.

Some complainants also stated that FSD “did not provide warnings of the system's planned actions as the vehicle was approaching a red traffic signal”.

Continuing Official Examination

Tesla's FSD, which is more sophisticated than its basic autopilot feature, has been being examined by NHTSA for a year.

In October 2024, the authority started an inquiry into 2.4 million Tesla cars using FSD after four documented crashes in conditions of reduced visibility, such as bright sunlight, mist or dust clouds. One of these collisions, in last year, was fatal.

Manufacturer's Stated Position

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

Automated car systems continue to face growing examination from regulatory bodies as the systems develop and real-world testing reveals possible issues with current implementations.