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American vehicle safety authorities have opened an investigation into Tesla vehicles equipped with the full self-driving technology due to safety regulation breaches after several crashes.

Safety Agency Finds Traffic Law Violations

The NHTSA declared that the electric carmaker's self-driving assistance system, which demands motorists to stay alert and intervene if needed, had “induced car behavior that violated traffic safety laws”.

This preliminary evaluation by the NHTSA marks the first step before potentially requesting a recall of the cars if the authority determines they pose a risk to public safety.

Alarming Case Findings

The regulatory body reported it had documented reports of nearly 3 million Tesla vehicles driving through red traffic lights and moving in the incorrect way during lane switching while using the technology.

NHTSA confirmed it has six reports in which a Tesla vehicle, operating with FSD activated, “approached an intersection with a red light, continued to travel into the crossroads against the red signal and was later involved in a collision with other motor vehicles in the intersection”.

The agency noted that four crashes had caused injuries to occupants.

Additional Issues Identified

The NHTSA announced it has found 18 reports and one media report claiming that Tesla cars, operating at an junction with FSD engaged, “failed to remain stationary for the entire time of a red traffic signal, failed to stop fully, or failed to accurately detect and display the proper traffic signal state in the car's display”.

Several reporters also claimed that FSD “did not provide alerts of the system's intended behaviour as the vehicle was coming to a red light”.

Ongoing Regulatory Scrutiny

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

In late 2024, the authority began an investigation into 2.4 million Tesla cars using FSD after four reported collisions in situations of reduced visibility, such as sun glare, fog or dust clouds. One such accident, in last year, was deadly.

Company's Stated Position

The company's official position indicates that FSD is “designed for operation by a fully attentive motorist, who has their hands on the wheel and is ready to assume control at any time. While these capabilities are designed to improve over time, the presently active features do not render the car self-driving.”

Automated vehicle technology continue to face growing examination from safety agencies as the technology advances and real-world testing reveals potential challenges with current implementations.