NHTSA Probes Tesla's Autopilot Recall

The US National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) has initiated a recall query on an estimated 2 million Tesla vehicles, including Model Y, X, S, 3, and Cybertruck, equipped with Autopilot. The recall, announced in December, was due to insufficient controls to prevent misuse of the Autosteer feature. Tesla stated it would address the issue through a software update. However, post-remedy crash events and preliminary tests conducted by the NHTSA’s Office of Defects Investigation have raised concerns, leading to the recall query investigation.

The NHTSA is investigating the adequacy of Tesla's recall and the installation of new Autopilot safeguards. The recall impacted vehicles made since 2012. The agency has identified concerns from post-recall remedy crash events and results from preliminary tests, questioning Tesla's statements about the recall remedy and the deployment of non-remedy updates to address issues related to the initial Autopilot investigation.

The regulator is also probing why updates made to the controls were not a part of the recall or otherwise determined to remedy a defect that poses an unreasonable safety risk. The investigation includes all Tesla models with Autopilot, spanning from the 2012 to 2024 model years. The NHTSA is looking into Tesla's issuance of software updates to address the issues related to its concerns and why these updates were not a part of the recall.

The NHTSA report highlights a significant disconnect between user expectations of Autopilot's capabilities and its actual functionality, leading to misuse by drivers and avoidable accidents. The agency has raised concerns regarding the completeness of Tesla’s crash data reporting. It points out that Tesla's data collection primarily captures incidents where airbags are deployed, representing a fraction of all Autopilot-related crashes. This creates a substantial gap in understanding the full extent of issues associated with Autopilot use.