Regulators demand answers from Tesla over autopilot recallThe National Highway Traffic Safety Administration wrote a letter to electric vehicle maker Tesla, seeking answers about the company’s massive recall of its autopilot program.
The agency said it sent the letter after receiving over 20 reports of crashes where Tesla’s autopilot was engaged after the December update. The NHTSA asked for Tesla’s comparative data on the performance of its vehicles after receiving the recall update, including crash reports and “hands on wheel” warnings.The NHTSA wants an answer from Tesla by July 1.
The letter comes after the agency released findings last month from its yearslong investigation into Tesla’s self-driving technology. The NHTSA found that Tesla’s driver engagement system, used to keep drivers attentive while autopilot is engaged, was ineffective and resulted in a “critical safety gap.”Safety regulators have criticized Tesla’s handling of its autopilot program, saying the company’s advertising has misled customers.
As Tesla rolled out the recall in December, the company said it was to keep drivers better aware and safe while using the technology. The update affected all of the company’s over 2 million vehicles on U.S. roads.