The NHTSA has raised another concern against Tesla's renowned autonomous driving feature, particularly on a version of the Autopilot that is hands-free, citing safety concerns for drivers. In Tesla's Autopilot, the settings on the system are set on default to have the driver have their hands on the steering wheel at all times when enabling the feature, or it would revert to manual driving.
Concerns about the Tesla Autopilot now follow the massive investigation on the system which is still facing the probe on its safety following the various crash incidents involving the vehicle.
NHTSA Raises Safety Concern on Tesla's Hands-Free Autopilot
The NHTSA sent a new letter to Tesla which aims to address its latest discovery on its autonomous driving technology, particularly with the Autopilot's new version which allows users to drive it hands-free.
"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," as detailed in the regulatory body's letter.
The cause of concern stems from the many crashes or accidents involving Tesla EVs, mainly claiming that they are using the said Autopilot feature.
"The resulting relaxation of controls designed to ensure that the driver remain engaged in the dynamic driving task could lead to greater driver inattention and failure of the driver to properly supervise Autopilot," they added.
Tesla's response is awaited by the NHTSA, with the company subject to civil penalties of up to $26,315 per day.
Read Also: Tesla Power Loss Incidents Leave Owners Trapped Inside: Safety Precautions Urged
Tesla Autopilot: It is Hands-On by Default
According to Tesla's support website, the Autopilot is hands-on by default, and this would require users to keep their hands on the steering wheel despite using the autonomous, assistive driving technology.
Here, Tesla addressed that other features may be activated upon turning on the Autopilot like Autosteer, Navigate, and more.
This a new feature on Tesla's Autopilot, with the hands-free version raising various concerns from the NHTSA, with Tesla yet to respond.
Tesla's Crash Investigations
The controversy over Tesla's Autopilot is not yet over, and it is continuing to be one of the most significant complaints against the company, with many crashes already recorded that claim it uses the system. According to Tesla engineers, the company did not provide a fix for the Autopilot, and it has been like this since 2016 after it addressed the fatal crash seven years ago.
Alongside the long-term Autopilot crash investigations that have plagued the Tesla name for a long time, there are other investigations from governing bodies that look into its other issues, as reported by the EV owners. One problem was with the Tesla EVs' steering issue, and it is not confined to only one model, as different variants of the brand have been the center of NHTSA's recent investigation.
For the longest time, Tesla has claimed that its vehicles are the safest in the world, with its autonomous driving features like the Autopilot and the Full-Self Driving also protecting as it takes over the wheel. Now, another version of the Autopilot is the main cause of concern for the NHTSA, with Tesla getting a letter for its latest findings of the hands-free version of the tech.
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