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US automobile safety regulators have started an examination into Tesla cars featuring the full self-driving technology due to traffic-safety violations following several crashes.

Safety Agency Finds Safety Regulation Breaches

The NHTSA declared that the automaker's autonomous driving feature, which demands drivers to remain attentive and take control when necessary, had “induced vehicle behaviour that breached road safety regulations”.

This initial assessment by the NHTSA represents the initial phase before possibly requesting a recall of the vehicles if the authority concludes they pose a risk to public safety.

Concerning Incident Reports

The regulatory body stated it had documented reports of 2.88 million Tesla cars driving through red lights and traveling against the wrong way during lane switching while using the technology.

NHTSA confirmed it has six documented cases in which a Tesla vehicle, operating with full self-driving engaged, “came to an junction with a red light, proceeded to drive into the crossroads despite the red light and was subsequently part of a crash with other cars in the intersection”.

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

Additional Safety Concerns

The NHTSA stated it has found 18 complaints and one news account claiming that Tesla cars, driving through an junction with FSD active, did not stay stopped for the duration of a red light, did not come to complete stop, or did not properly recognize and display the proper light status in the car's display”.

Some complainants also stated that FSD “did not provide alerts of the system's intended actions as the vehicle was approaching a red light”.

Ongoing Official Examination

The full self-driving system, which is more advanced than its Autopilot system, has been under investigation by NHTSA for a year.

In October 2024, the authority began an inquiry into 2.4 million Tesla cars using FSD after four documented crashes in situations of reduced visibility, such as bright sunlight, fog or airborne dust. One of these collisions, in last year, was fatal.

Company's Official Stance

The company's official position indicates that FSD is “intended for operation by a fully attentive motorist, who has their hands on the wheel and is ready to take over at any time. While these features are engineered to become more capable, the currently enabled functions do not render the vehicle self-driving.”

Self-driving vehicle technology continue to face growing examination from safety agencies as the technology advances and practical implementation reveals possible issues with current implementations.