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American vehicle safety authorities have opened an investigation into Tesla cars featuring the full self-driving technology due to safety regulation breaches after several collisions.

Regulatory Body Identifies Traffic Law Breaches

The NHTSA announced that the electric carmaker's autonomous driving feature, which demands drivers to stay alert and intervene if needed, had “induced vehicle behaviour that breached traffic safety laws”.

This initial assessment by the NHTSA represents the first step before possibly requesting a recall of the cars if the authority determines they pose a risk to public safety.

Alarming Case Findings

The agency reported it had received accounts of 2.88 million Tesla vehicles running red traffic lights and moving against the wrong direction during lane changes while using the technology.

NHTSA confirmed it has six reports in which a Tesla vehicle, operating with full self-driving activated, “approached an intersection with a red light, continued to drive into the crossroads despite the red light and was later involved in a collision with other motor vehicles in the junction”.

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

Additional Safety Concerns

The NHTSA announced it has found 18 reports and one news account claiming that Tesla cars, driving through an intersection with FSD engaged, did not stay stopped for the entire time of a red traffic signal, did not come to complete stop, or did not properly recognize and display the proper traffic signal state in the vehicle interface”.

Some complainants also claimed that FSD “did not provide warnings of the technology's intended behaviour as the vehicle was coming to a red light”.

Ongoing Official Examination

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

In October 2024, the agency began an inquiry into over two million Tesla vehicles equipped with FSD after four reported collisions in situations of reduced visibility, such as sun glare, mist or airborne dust. One such accident, in last year, was fatal.

Manufacturer's Official Stance

Tesla's website states that FSD is “intended for use with a completely alert driver, who has their hands on the wheel and is prepared to assume control at any moment. While these features are designed to become more capable, the presently active functions do not make the car self-driving.”

Self-driving car systems continue to face growing examination from regulatory bodies as the systems develop and practical implementation reveals possible issues with current implementations.