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American vehicle safety authorities have opened an examination into Tesla vehicles equipped with the full self-driving technology due to traffic-safety violations after several collisions.

Regulatory Body Finds Traffic Law Breaches

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration declared that the electric carmaker's self-driving assistance system, which demands drivers to stay alert and intervene if needed, had caused car behavior that violated road safety regulations”.

This early investigation by the NHTSA marks the first step before potentially requesting a withdrawal of the vehicles if the agency determines they present a danger to road safety.

Alarming Case Findings

The agency stated it had documented accounts of nearly 3 million Tesla cars driving through red lights and traveling in the incorrect way during lane switching while operating the technology.

NHTSA stated it has six reports in which a Tesla vehicle, using full self-driving engaged, “came to an intersection with a red traffic signal, proceeded to travel into the intersection against the red light and was later involved in a crash with other cars in the intersection”.

The agency noted that four crashes had caused one or more injuries.

Further Safety Concerns

The NHTSA announced it has found 18 reports and one media report alleging that Tesla vehicles, operating at an intersection with FSD engaged, 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 proper light status in the car's display”.

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

Ongoing Official Examination

Tesla's FSD, which is more advanced than its basic autopilot feature, has been under investigation by NHTSA for twelve months.

In October 2024, the agency began an inquiry into 2.4 million Tesla cars using FSD after four documented crashes in situations of poor visibility, such as sun glare, mist or dust clouds. One such accident, in last year, was fatal.

Company's Official Stance

Tesla's website states that FSD is “designed for use with a fully attentive driver, who has their hands on the wheel and is prepared to assume control at any moment. While these capabilities are designed to improve over time, the currently enabled functions do not make the car autonomous.”

Self-driving car systems continue to face growing examination from regulatory bodies as the technology advances and real-world testing reveals possible issues with existing deployments.