Tesla Faces Expanded Probe Over Self-Drive Function

“Federal safety regulators are sharpening their focus on Tesla's automated driving-assistance system, after raising concerns about the technology's ability to handle poor roadway conditions.

 

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said Thursday that it was escalating a probe of the system, known as Full Self-Driving (Supervised), which controls driving and steering functions but requires drivers to continuously monitor the road.

 

NHTSA identified several crashes, including one fatal, in which Full Self-Driving failed to alert drivers appropriately about reduced-visibility conditions, such as glare, fog or airborne dust.

 

The probe began in 2024 to examine whether the system can appropriately respond in those scenarios.

 

NHTSA said Thursday it was escalating the investigation to an "engineering analysis," a more involved examination of a potential safety defect that could result in a recall campaign or other enforcement action. Tesla didn't respond to a request to comment.

 

The probe represents the latest effort by NHTSA to examine Full Self-Driving. It also comes one month before Tesla is expected to launch production of a driverless robotaxi called the Cybercab, without traditional controls like a steering wheel or pedals. The vehicle is designed to be driven autonomously by the Full Self-Driving system.

 

Tesla has said the Cybercab would be used as an autonomous taxi and sold to the general public, and it has described the growth of fully autonomous vehicles as key to its shift beyond being a traditional carmaker into an artificial-intelligence and robotics brand.

 

NHTSA, the top U.S. auto-safety regulator, has spent years examining Tesla's automated-driving technology. The agency is also scrutinizing similar systems from Tesla's competitors.

 

Driver-assistance systems like Full Self-Driving require drivers to remain attentive to the road and resume control of the vehicle when prompted. NHTSA has spent years examining whether drivers are sufficiently warned if the system disengages.

 

For Tesla, NHTSA is particularly focused on the company's unique design of Full Self-Driving, which relies on cameras and a "vision-based" setup. Unlike fully autonomous robotaxis from companies like Alphabet-owned Waymo, or similar driver-assistance systems from burgeoning competitors, Tesla doesn't use radar or lidar, a light-based system that allows cars to "see" a fuller picture of the world around them.” [1]

 

1. Tesla Faces Expanded Probe Over Self-Drive Function. Felton, Ryan.  Wall Street Journal, Eastern edition; New York, N.Y.. 20 Mar 2026: B1.