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American vehicle safety authorities have opened an probe into Tesla cars featuring the full self-driving technology due to traffic-safety violations after several collisions.

Regulatory Body Finds Safety Regulation Violations

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration stated that the automaker's self-driving assistance system, which demands drivers to remain attentive and take control when necessary, had caused vehicle behaviour that violated road safety regulations”.

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

Alarming Incident Reports

The regulatory body reported it had received accounts of nearly 3 million Tesla vehicles driving through red lights and traveling in the wrong way during lane changes while operating the system.

NHTSA confirmed it has six documented cases in which a Tesla car, operating with full self-driving engaged, “approached an intersection with a red light, proceeded to travel into the crossroads against the red signal and was later part of a collision with other motor vehicles in the junction”.

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

Further Issues Identified

The NHTSA stated it has found 18 reports and one media report alleging that Tesla cars, driving through an intersection with FSD engaged, “failed to remain stationary for the entire time of a red light, failed to stop fully, or did not properly recognize and display the correct traffic signal state in the car's display”.

Several reporters also stated that FSD “did not provide warnings of the system's planned behaviour as the car was coming to a red light”.

Continuing Official Examination

The full self-driving system, which is more sophisticated than its Autopilot system, has been being examined by NHTSA for twelve months.

In late 2024, the agency began an inquiry into 2.4 million Tesla cars using FSD after four documented crashes in situations of reduced visibility, such as sun glare, fog or dust clouds. One such accident, in 2023, was fatal.

Company's Official Stance

Tesla's website states that FSD is “designed for operation by a fully attentive driver, who has their hands on the steering wheel and is prepared to assume control at any time. While these capabilities are designed to become more capable, the currently enabled features do not make the vehicle self-driving.”

Self-driving vehicle technology continue to face growing examination from safety agencies as the technology advances and practical implementation reveals possible issues with existing deployments.