The NHTSA said that it is now aware of 62 complaints, four media reports and 14 reports flagged by Tesla itself where Tesla vehicles operating with the company’s full self-driving software malfunctioned.
- The regulator sought information from the EV maker including the number of vehicles equipped with FSD and miles traveled by them.
- The letter is part of the regulator’s probe into complaints of FSD-equipped vehicles engaging in behaviors that constitute traffic violations
- Tesla must now respond to the regulator’s queries by January 19, 2026, failing which it may be subject to penalties.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) has now sought answers from EV maker Tesla Inc (TSLA) on traffic violations involving its vehicles equipped with the company’s full self-driving (FSD) driver assistance technology.
The regulator sought information from the EV maker, including the number of vehicles equipped with FSD and miles traveled by them. It also asked for details on consumer complaints that the company is aware of, in addition to field reports and other incident reports. NHTSA has also demanded for Tesla’s answers on what it considers to be the causal or contributing factor in these incidents.
The letter is part of the regulator’s probe into complaints of FSD-equipped vehicles engaging in behaviors that constitute traffic violations including proceeding or attempting to proceed into intersections against red traffic signals, entering opposing lanes of travel or attempting to enter roads with wrongway signs, and improper lane use within intersections.
Tesla must now respond to the regulator’s queries by January 19, 2026, failing which it may be subject to penalties.
Regulator Says Aware Of More Complaints
The NHTSA said that it is now aware of 62 complaints, four media reports and 14 reports flagged by Tesla, where the EV maker’s vehicles operating with the company’s FSD software malfunctioned. This is higher than the 58 incidents flagged by the company when it opened the probe into about 2.9 million vehicles in October.
NHTSA’s probe seeks to assess the scope, frequency, and potential safety consequences of FSD executing driving maneuvers that constitute traffic safety violations. As Tesla requires a driver to supervise and intervene as needed with FSD use, the probe will also assess whether there was prior warning or adequate time for the driver to respond to the unexpected behavior, or to safely supervise the automated driving task, NHTSA said.
The regulator will additionally assess the capability of FSD to detect and respond to traffic signals, lane markings, and wrong-way signage.
But Musk Thinks Tesla FSD Users Can Text And Drive
Earlier this week, Tesla CEO Elon Musk said in a post on X that the latest iteration of FSD will allow drivers to text and drive depending on the context of surrounding traffic.
Texting and driving is currently illegal in nearly every state in the U.S.
How Did Stocktwits Users React?
On Stocktwits, retail sentiment around TSLA stayed within the ‘bullish’ territory over the past 24 hours while message volume rose from ‘low’ to ‘normal’ levels.
TSLA stock has gained 13% this year and by about 23% over the past 12 months.
For updates and corrections, email newsroom[at]stocktwits[dot]com<
