The U.S. auto safety regulator investigating Tesla's Autopilot driver assistance system is demanding an explanation for a software change that allows drivers to keep their hands off the wheel for longer, risking collisions, documents released on Tuesday showed.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) ordered Tesla to answer questions about the Autopilot change and produce documents in a so-called special order dated July 26. The NHTSA order did not compel Tesla to recall vehicles.
"The resulting relaxation of controls...could lead to greater driver inattention and failure of the driver to properly supervise Autopilot," NHTSA said in its letter to Tesla.
The NHTSA order underscores the challenges regulators face keeping up with safety-critical vehicle technology that can be changed overnight with a software upgrade delivered over the air.
NHTSA asked when the software update was introduced, the number of vehicles affected, Tesla's reason for installing, and collisions or near-misses involving vehicles with the software.
"NHTSA is concerned that this feature was introduced to consumer vehicles and, now that the existence of this feature is known to the public, more drivers may attempt to activate it," the agency wrote.
In April, Chief Executive Elon Musk tweeted that Tesla is gradually reducing the steering wheel nag - alerts aimed at making sure drivers using Tesla's "Full Self-Driving" (FSD) system keep their hands on the wheel. He also this week said "Yeah" in response to an X message that "No steering wheel nag will be a *game changer* for FSD user satisfaction."
Musk will soon face a major test of his assertions about the technology's safety when Tesla defends itself later this year in a trial over allegations that failure of its Autopilot driver assistant feature led to death.
Tesla shares were up 7% in late trading Tuesday, outpacing the broader market.
The agency's acting head Ann Carlson told Reuters last week that a resolution of the Autopilot investigation will come soon.
Speaking broadly about the problem of driver attention, Carlson said it is "really important that driver monitoring systems take into account that humans over-trust technology."
Major automakers are racing each other to deploy technology that allows motorists to take their hands off the wheel under certain conditions.
General Motors GM.N, Mercedes-Benz MBGn.DE and other automakers are challenging Tesla's Autopilot technology. But those automakers use more robust monitoring systems than Tesla's to assure drivers keep their eyes on the road and are ready to re-take control.
The agency is investigating the performance of Autopilot after identifying more than a dozen crashes in which Tesla vehicles hit stationary emergency vehicles. It is also investigating whether Tesla vehicles adequately ensure drivers are paying attention when using the driver assistance system.
In June 2022, NHTSA upgraded an earlier probe of 830,000 Tesla vehicles into an engineering analysis - a required step before it could potentially demand a recall.
Autopilot is intended to enable cars to steer, accelerate and brake automatically within their lane, while "Enhanced Autopilot" and “Full Self-Driving” allow vehicles to do more sophisticated driving tasks. Tesla says those technologies “require active driver supervision and do not make the vehicle autonomous.”
The special order requests documents and explanations by Aug. 25 to help with NHTSA's inquiry. Late responses can incur a penalty of $26,315 per day.
Reuters
Wed Aug 30 2023
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) ordered Tesla to answer questions about the Autopilot change and produce documents in a so-called special order dated July 26. - REUTERS/Filepic
Wanita Palestin mengamuk di WTKL mohon maaf, tertekan fikir anak di Gaza
Aminah berkata, perbuatan di luar kawalan itu berlaku disebabkan rasa tertekan memikirkan keadaaan anaknya yang masih berada di Gaza.
Mangsa banjir di Perak terus meningkat, Selangor menurun
Jumlah mangsa banjir yang ditempatkan di PPS di Perak terus meningkat pagi ini manakala jumlah mangsa di Selangor menunjukkan penurunan.
Letupan baharu menggegarkan Beirut
Memetik laporan Associated Press, rejim Zionis turut menyerang kem pelarian Palestin jauh di utara buat kali pertama ketika ia menyasarkan kedua-dua pejuang Hezbollah dan Hamas.
Pelabur makin yakin, Malaysia disaran tingkatkan keperluan RE
Keperluan tenaga boleh baharu (RE) di negara ini semakin meningkat seiring keyakinan pelabur asing khususnya untuk mewujudkan pusat data, kata Timbalan Perdana Menteri, Datuk Seri Fadillah Yusof.
Dua minggu hilang, nasib Orang Asli Zuzina masih misteri
Pelbagai pihak masih mencari wanita orang Asli Zuzina Abine yang hilang selepas keluar rumah sejak 20 September lalu.
Ringgit dijangka berbanding dolar AS minggu depan
Ringgit dijangka kekal pada paras 4.21 hingga 4.22 berbanding dolar AS minggu depan, tetapi dengan kecenderungan meningkat terhadap dolar AS selepas data senarai gaji bukan ladang (NFP) Amerika Syarikat (AS) bagi September meningkat mendadak kepada 254,000 pekerjaan.
[TERKINI] Enam rakyat Malaysia selamat tiba dari Lubnan pagi ini
Kementerian Luar Negeri mengesahkan seramai enam orang rakyat Malaysia daripada sebuah keluarga selamat tiba di Lapangan Terbang Antarabangsa Kuala Lumpur (KLIA) dari Lubnan pada pagi ini (6 Oktober 2024).
Konvoi motosikal Seru For Gaza, cerminan sokongan sesama saudara
Liputan Wartawan Astro AWANI, Faida Rahim di acara konvoi motosikal Seru For Gaza di Cafe Rosco sebagai cerminan sokongan kepada saudara sesama Islam di Gaza, yang sudah setahun diperangi keganasan Israel.
Kenanga jangka OPR stabil 3.0 peratus pada 2025
Kenanga Investment Bank Bhd menjangka Kadar Dasar Semalaman (OPR) kekal stabil pada 3.0 peratus sepanjang 2025.
88 badan pensijilan halal luar negara dapat pengiktirafan JAKIM
Jabatan Kemajuan Islam Malaysia (JAKIM) telah memberikan pengiktirafan kepada 88 badan pensijilan halal luar negara setakat Mei tahun ini.
Tesla buka pusat servis di Pulau Pinang
Ini akan menjadi pusat servis kedua Tesla di Malaysia selepas yang pertama di premis sama dengan ibu pejabat Tesla di Cyberjaya.
Kerjasama bersama Tesla bakal pacu Malaysia sebagai hab utama teknologi hijau - Tengku Zafrul
Kerjasama bersama pengeluar kenderaan elektrik (EV), Tesla dijangka dapat memacu Malaysia sebagai hab utama teknologi hijau di rantau ini.
Wakil Tesla temui MITI 22 Ogos, bincang rancangan pelaburan di Malaysia - Tengku Zafrul
Persetujuan dengan Tesla sebelum ini adalah untuk melabur dalam ekosistem pengecasan, penyelidikan dan pembangunan serta sektor lain yang berkaitan.
Pembangunan ekosistem EV di Malaysia perlukan pemain EV global seperti Tesla - Tengku Zafrul
Pembangunan ekosistem kenderaan elektrik (EV) di Malaysia memerlukan penyertaan pemain EV global seperti Tesla.
Tesla sedang rugi, Malaysia tidak begitu terjejas - PM
Perdana Menteri Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim, perkara itu adalah disebabkan syarikat Elon Musk itu sedang mengalami kerugian yang besar, dan tidak mampu bersaing dengan industri EV China.
Tesla tidak pernah buat komitmen buka kilang di Malaysia - Tengku Zafrul
Tesla tidak pernah membuat komitmen untuk membuka kilang di Malaysia, kata Menteri Pelaburan, Perdagangan dan Industri Tengku Datuk Seri Zafrul Tengku Abdul Aziz.
Berita antarabangsa pilihan sepanjang hari ini
Antara pelbagai berita luar negara yang disiarkan di Astro AWANI, berikut adalah yang paling menjadi tumpuan sepanjang hari ini.
Laporan Tesla batal pengeluaran di Asia Tenggara mungkin keputusan komersial - MITI
Laporan mengenai hasrat Tesla membatalkan rancangan pengeluarannya di Asia Tenggara mungkin satu keputusan komersial operasinya.
Tesla batal rancangan bina kilang EV di Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia - Laporan
Keputusan itu susulan pemberhentian pasukan eksekutif Tesla yang melawat Thailand pada November-Disember.
Berita antarabangsa pilihan sepanjang hari ini
Antara pelbagai berita luar negara yang disiarkan di Astro AWANI, berikut adalah yang paling menjadi tumpuan sepanjang hari ini.