Tesla will call you back 362,758 electric cars were equipped with fully self-driving (FSD) driver assistance systems because the system can cause accidents.
Despite the name, Full Self-Driving does not enable autonomous driving. According to recall documents from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), Tesla’s system, which is still in the “beta” development stage, can behave in certain conditions in ways that would be unacceptable to human drivers.
After analysis and testing, NHTSA determined that the system’s Autosteer on City Streets feature “posed an unreasonable risk to motor vehicle safety due to inadequate compliance with traffic safety laws,” the agency said in a statement.
Tesla initiated the voluntary recall “out of an abundance of caution” following discussions with NHTSA. Affected vehicles include 2016-2023 Model S and Model X, 2017-2023 Model 3, and 2020-2023 Model Y vehicles equipped with FSD or pending installation of the feature.
The testing was conducted as part of an ongoing investigation that was launched on June 8, 2022, in response to multiple collisions between Tesla vehicles operating on Autopilot and emergency vehicles parked along or on the side of the road. Autopilot is Tesla’s basic driver assistance system; FSD builds on that by adding features like automatic overtaking.
Tesla also touts FSD as being able to respond to traffic lights and stop signs, but in a recall notice published on his websiteAccording to NHTSA, the system could allow vehicles to enter intersections controlled by stop signs without coming to a complete stop, proceed through solid yellow lights “without due caution” and go straight through an intersection from a turning-only lane. Note that Tesla previously recalled almost 54,000 vehicles In 2022, because it turned out that the FSD did not obey the stop signs.
While NHTSA’s investigation remains open, Tesla must meet its legal obligations to address these issues, the agency said. The automaker releases an OTA (over-the-air) software update as a fix for free. Although this does not require visiting the service centers, Tesla will send official notification letters by April 15.
According to the New York Times, NHTSA is investigating 41 crashes involving FSD and Autopilot that resulted in 19 deaths. For its part, Tesla made warranty claims regarding the problem.
Tesla started offering FSD as a hardware package in 2016. CEO Elon Musk claimed the software updates would unlock true self-driving capability, saying at the time he expected a Tesla to be able to go from Los Angeles to New York without a single touch. wheel as of 2017.
That never happened, though Tesla continued to offer the system unfinished ‘Beta’ formgradually raising the price from $5,000 in 2016 (when it was only offered to select customers) to $15,000 today.
This practice is now under greater scrutiny from regulators. In 2021, National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) Chair Jennifer Homendy labeled Full Self-Driving “misleading and irresponsible,” while California has since made it illegal. Last month it was Tesla subpoenaed by the Department of Justice for FSD, although the company said it was not aware of any ongoing investigation.
This article was originally published by Motor Vehicle Authority, editorial partner ClassicCars.com.
