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

Safety Agency Identifies Safety Regulation Violations

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration announced that the electric carmaker's autonomous driving feature, which requires motorists to stay alert and intervene if needed, had “induced car behavior that violated traffic safety laws”.

This preliminary evaluation by the NHTSA represents the first step before potentially requesting a withdrawal of the cars if the authority determines they present a danger to road safety.

Concerning Incident Reports

The regulatory body stated it had documented reports of 2.88 million Tesla cars running red traffic lights and moving in the wrong direction during lane changes while using the technology.

NHTSA confirmed it has six documented cases in which a Tesla car, using FSD activated, “approached an junction with a red traffic signal, proceeded to travel into the crossroads against the red signal and was subsequently part of a collision with other cars in the junction”.

The agency reported that four accidents had resulted in one or more injuries.

Additional Issues Identified

The NHTSA stated it has found 18 reports and one news account claiming that Tesla cars, driving through an junction with FSD engaged, did not stay stationary for the entire time of a red light, did not come to complete stop, or failed to accurately detect and display the correct light status in the vehicle interface”.

Several reporters also claimed that FSD “failed to give warnings of the technology's intended actions as the car was approaching a red light”.

Continuing Official Examination

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

In late 2024, the agency started an investigation into over two million Tesla vehicles using FSD after four reported collisions in conditions of reduced visibility, such as bright sunlight, mist or dust clouds. One such accident, in last year, was fatal.

Manufacturer's Official Stance

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 engineered to improve over time, the presently active features do not render the car autonomous.”

Self-driving car systems continue to face increased scrutiny from safety agencies as the technology advances and real-world testing reveals potential challenges with existing deployments.