A driver drives a Tesla Motors Inc. hands-free. Model S vehicle equipped with New York Autopilot hardware and software.
Christopher Goodney | Bloomberg | Getty images
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) is investigating a “violent” crash in Detroit late last week involving a Tesla sedan and tractor trailer. Investigators have not yet said whether Tesla’s Autopilot, FSD or FSD beta may have contributed to the crash.
The NHTSA said in a statement Monday, “NHTSA is aware of the violent crash that occurred on March 11 in Detroit involving a Tesla and tractor trailer. We have launched a Special Crash Investigation team to investigate the crash.” Reuters previously reported the probe.
Detroit police said in an email that the crash occurred when a Tesla driven by “an unknown male driver” hit a semi-truck and “got stuck under the trailer.” A passenger in the car is in a critical condition and the circumstances of the accident are still under investigation.
The NHTSA has previously started probing more than a dozen crashes that involved Tesla’s advanced driver assistance systems.
These systems include Tesla’s standard Autopilot package and a more advanced option marketed as Full Self-Driving, sold today for $ 10,000. The company’s Autopilot and Full Self-Driving (or FSD) technology prevents Tesla vehicles from being used safely without a driver at the wheel. Some customers who purchase the FSD option also get access to a “beta version” to try out the latest features added to the system before all bugs are fixed.
Investigators have not yet said whether any of these systems were in use during or just before the March 11 crash in Detroit. However, Tesla vehicles with Autopilot have collided multiple times with stationary objects and large vehicles, including tractors and fire trucks.
A 50-year-old, Jeremy Beren Banner of Lake Worth, Florida, died when his Model 3 on Autopilot hit the side of a Florida trailer on March 1, 2019, ripping the roof off his car when it went under it.
Tesla’s Autopilot system, although it has changed significantly over the years, has been the subject of regulatory scrutiny since 2016 when an owner named Joshua Brown died driving his Tesla Model S with Autopilot around Gainsville, Florida. The vehicle also collided with a tractor trailer.
Another federal vehicle safety watchdog that makes recommendations to the NHTSA, the National Transportation Safety Board recently called for clear and strict rules for automated driving systems at the federal level. The council has pointed to Tesla’s approach to automated driving systems as the reason why stricter safety requirements and clear regulations are needed.