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American vehicle safety authorities have opened an investigation into Tesla vehicles featuring the autonomous driving system due to traffic-safety violations following multiple crashes.

Regulatory Body Finds Traffic Law Violations

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

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

Concerning Incident Reports

The agency reported it had received reports of nearly 3 million Tesla cars running red traffic lights and moving against the wrong direction during lane switching while operating the system.

NHTSA stated it has six documented cases in which a Tesla car, operating with FSD activated, “approached an junction with a red traffic signal, continued to travel into the crossroads against the red signal and was subsequently part of a collision with other motor vehicles in the junction”.

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

Further Safety Concerns

The NHTSA stated it has found 18 complaints and one news account alleging that Tesla cars, driving through an junction with FSD active, did not stay stationary for the entire time of a red traffic signal, failed to stop fully, or failed to accurately detect and display the correct traffic signal state in the car's display”.

Several reporters also stated that FSD “did not provide alerts of the technology's intended actions as the car was approaching a red light”.

Continuing Regulatory Scrutiny

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

In October 2024, the agency started an inquiry into 2.4 million Tesla cars using FSD after four reported collisions in conditions of reduced visibility, such as bright sunlight, mist or dust clouds. One of these collisions, in 2023, was fatal.

Manufacturer's Stated Position

Tesla's website states that FSD is “intended for operation by a fully attentive motorist, who has their hands on the wheel and is prepared to take over at any time. While these features are engineered to become more capable, the currently enabled features do not render the vehicle 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.