Tesla pores over 8,313 potential ‘self-driving’ traffic violations
By Craig Trudell, Bloomberg
US regulators granted Tesla Inc. a five-week extension to start addressing a defect investigation into its cars violating traffic laws while its Full Self-Driving system is engaged.
Tesla sought the deferment this week from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, which is probing the suite of features the company also refers to as FSD. The agency opened the investigation in October, citing dozens of instances where Teslas ran red lights, drove in the wrong direction or committed other failures.
NHTSA sent Tesla an information request last month asking the carmaker to state the number of consumer complaints, field reports, property damage claims, arbitration proceedings or lawsuits that may relate to the alleged defect. Tesla told the regulator on Jan. 12 that it needed more time to identify traffic violation reports that are potentially relevant to the probe.
“As of today, there are 8,313 records remaining that require manual review,” Tesla told NHTSA, according to a filing posted to the agency’s website. The company estimated it was able to process around 300 records per day and now has until Feb. 23 to respond.
The proficiency of FSD is increasingly pivotal to Tesla, with Chief Executive Officer Elon Musk counting on the system to drive demand after consecutive declines in annual vehicle deliveries. While Musk routinely touts the effectiveness of Tesla’s automated-driving features, California has accused the company of overstating the capabilities of its cars. The state has threatened a 30-day sales suspension that could take effect early this year.
In addition to investigating Teslas violating traffic-safety laws while FSD is engaged, NHTSA is scrutinizing the ability of the company’s cars to detect and appropriately respond to sun glare, fog and other reduced visibility conditions. The regulator opened that probe in October 2024 after multiple crashes, one of which resulted in a fatality.
In the extension request Tesla sent to NHTSA this week, the carmaker complained it was dealing with a pileup of queries from the regulator. On top of the agency’s questions about FSD and traffic violations, the company simultaneously has been preparing responses to NHTSA’s probes into delayed crash reports and inoperative door handles.
Having to reply to three large information requests in short order “is unduly burdensome and affects the quality of responses,” Tesla said.
After Tesla is done calculating the number of traffic violation reports and providing summaries of the alleged problems, as well as its assessment of causal and contributing factors, the carmaker said it will ask NHTSA for another extension.
The company intends to seek more time to provide further information about each complaint or claim, including what FSD software version the vehicle was equipped with, whether drivers were alerted before a traffic violation, and whether a crash, injuries or fatalities were alleged.
NHTSA also is seeking the timelines for each incident, starting 30 seconds prior to initial traffic violations and ending either with a final violation, a driver disengaging FSD, or any crash.
–With assistance from Bill Haubert.
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