Tesla is currently under investigation by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) concerning the safety of its “Full Self-Driving” (FSD) systems in conditions of low roadway visibility, such as fog or glaring sunlight. This investigation follows an incident where a Tesla vehicle using FSD was involved in the fatal collision of a pedestrian, along with other similar incidents in reduced visibility conditions.
The NHTSA has released documents indicating that the probe will assess the effectiveness of FSD’s engineering controls in detecting and appropriately responding to poor visibility conditions. The investigation will also explore whether similar crashes have occurred under these circumstances and what factors contributed to these incidents. Tesla’s software updates to FSD, marketed as “Full Self-Driving (Supervised),” will also be examined, focusing on their timing, purpose, capabilities, and safety impact assessments by Tesla.
The NHTSA’s “preliminary evaluation” targets approximately 2.4 million Tesla vehicles operating in the U.S., including Model S and X vehicles from 2016 to 2024, Model 3 vehicles from 2017 to 2024, Model Y vehicles from 2020 to 2024, and Cybertruck vehicles from the last two years. These models offer drivers the option to use Tesla’s FSD system.
Tesla’s FSD, characterized as a “partial driving automation system,” is offered as a premium driver assistance package and has previously been available for a month-long free trial to all U.S. drivers. As of October 1, 2024, the NHTSA has documented 1,399 incidents where Tesla’s driver assistance systems, including Autopilot and FSD, were active within 30 seconds preceding a collision, with 31 of these resulting in fatalities.
Tesla has not provided immediate comments regarding the investigation. Recently, the company hosted a marketing event where CEO Elon Musk announced plans for “unsupervised FSD” to be operational in Texas and California next year, specifically in the Model 3 and Model Y vehicles. Despite Musk’s longstanding promises of driverless vehicles, Tesla has yet to deliver a vehicle that can safely operate on public roads without human intervention readiness.
