Embed from Getty Images
Another day, another controversy surrounds one of Elon Musk’s companies. This time, the issue involves Elno’s S3XY cars. Tesla has had to recall nearly all of the cars that they’ve sold in the US in order to update its autopilot software system to make sure that drivers are paying adequate attention whenever they are using it. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) has been investigating accidents that have occurred while being driven in autopilot. The report said that its investigation found that the system’s inadequate method of making sure the drivers are paying attention could lead to “foreseeable misuse of the system.” Tesla will be updating all of the recalled cars to routinely check to make sure drivers are paying attention. If they don’t respond properly, the feature may disengage. It could also limit the areas where basic versions of autopilot can operate.
Tesla is recalling more than 2 million cars sold in the U.S. due to issues with its autopilot software system, according to multiple reports. The electric car company will update the system to make sure that drivers are paying adequate attention when their vehicles are engaged in the autopilot function, according to the Associated Press, CNN and The New York Times.
The recall was disclosed in a letter by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) to the car company regarding its ongoing probe related to accidents in which drivers were using autopilot. Among the models recalled according to the letter are Model 3/2017-2023, Model S/2012-2023, Model X/2016-2023 and Model Y/2020-2023.
Tesla did not immediately respond to PEOPLE’s request for comment on the recall.
NHTSA found that many drivers are not taking adequate action to avoid crashes when the autopilot system is engaged and warning lights are triggered, the AP reported. After the software update, Teslas with Autosteer will routinely check on the driver’s attention level and may disengage the feature should driving conditions warrant, per CNN.
One such accident occurred last July in Virginia when a 57-year-old man was killed when the Tesla he was driving on autopilot crashed into the side of a tractor-trailer. The Fauquier County Sheriff’s Office tells PEOPLE that its investigation found no indication that the autopilot feature directly led to the crash but noted that the car had been on autopilot.
“The Tesla was in ‘autopilot’ mode, which is a lower level of automobile driving assist that requires active driver supervision,” the sheriff’s office told PEOPLE in a statement. “The vehicle’s electronic data recorder further indicates that the Tesla safety system was aware of something in the roadway.”
The sheriff’s office initially charged the truck driver with reckless driving, but the charge was later dropped when it was determined that the Tesla driver was traveling at about 70 miles per hour — 25 mph over the posted speed limit.
Earlier this year, Tesla announced a voluntary recall of 362,758 vehicles equipped with Full Self-Driving Beta (FSD) software. NHTSA announced in the recall that the FSD “increases the risk of a crash” due to several alleged bugs in the software, which Tesla was set to remedy with a free over-the-air update.
On one hand, Tesla was marketing safe cars with the autopilot feature to its customers. I guess I can see how someone could have a sense of complacency with their $100k car, in which they assume that just because it was expensive, it *must* mean it’s safe. But the problem with relying on the warning systems is that people tend to tune that stuff out, like the lane assist feature that beeps when you cross over a line without using a turning signal. And, as experts point out, the recall doesn’t fix the problem Teslas have with spotting and stopping for obstacles in their path.
On the other hand, I cannot understand why, even with autopilot, the driver of a moving vehicle would not pay attention to what is going on! When I’m driving on the highway, I use the cruise control on my car all of the time. It’s adaptive, so it adjusts its speed whenever it senses a car in front of me, but I am always on alert to shut it off or do a hard break just in case it fails or the cars in front of me suddenly stop short. It feels like the autopilot system should have been thought out better rather than just rely on human beings to always do the right thing. As for what Tesla’s fearless leader has to say, he’s too busy being big mad about that Tesla scene in Leave the World Behind.
Teslas in line for the recall pic.twitter.com/q3OtUNsW2O
— celebitchy (@celebitchy) December 14, 2023
photos credit: Backgrid, Getty and via Instagram
