NHTSA Opens New Investigation Into Tesla Full Self-Driving

Tesla is facing renewed regulatory scrutiny, and it couldn't come at a worse time. On the heels of Tesla's critical robotaxi event, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) has opened a new investigation of the company's Full Self-Driving (FSD) feature. The probe will focus on FSD's ability to navigate roads with reduced visibility, spurred by a recent incident in which an autonomous Tesla struck and killed a pedestrian.

NHTSA monitors the safety of all US vehicles, but it's spent a lot of time on Tesla in recent years. Tesla attracted early attention with Autopilot, which is essentially glorified cruise control. It began offering Full Self Driving in 2020, several years after it started selling the package as an upgrade at the time of purchase. Almost immediately, Tesla vehicles began encountering trouble on the road, including colliding with emergency vehicles, blowing through stop signs, and ...