Tesla recalls 360,000 cars with ‘Full Self-Driving’ to address crash risks

Tesla is recalling 362,758 cars — the 2016-2023 Product S and Model X, 2017-2023 Design 3, and 2020-2023 Model Y — equipped with “Total Self-Driving” to handle various challenges with the software’s actions that can place motorists and bordering targeted traffic at threat for a crash. For each Tesla’s defect report submitted to NHTSA (available in its entirety listed here), cars and trucks outfitted with FSD Beta “could most likely infringe on local site visitors guidelines or customs while executing certain driving maneuvers.”

To which site visitors regulations was Tesla referring, exactly? Points like stopping at halt signs, making use of the appropriate lane to transit an intersection and obeying posted velocity boundaries — infractions that Tesla’s detractors, and even loyal Tesla house owners, have been sounding the alarm about for months. In Tesla’s have text, these behaviors “could raise the possibility of a collision if the driver does not intervene.” Here is what else the corporation experienced to say:

“The FSD Beta technique may perhaps enable the car to act unsafe about intersections, these as touring straight via an intersection while in a convert-only lane, getting into a quit indication-managed intersection without having coming to a entire quit, or proceeding into an intersection during a continuous yellow traffic sign with no because of warning,” Tesla’s recall acknowledgement claimed. “In addition, the program may possibly react insufficiently to improvements in posted speed restrictions or not sufficiently account for the driver’s adjustment of the vehicle’s velocity to exceed posted speed limits.”

“In the unique and scarce situations described higher than when a Tesla automobile is operating with a application variation of FSD Beta as explained under and with FSD Beta engaged, selected driving maneuvers could most likely infringe upon area visitors guidelines or customs. 

“As of February 14, 2023, Tesla has discovered 18 warranty claims, gained amongst May possibly 8, 2019, and September 12, 2022, that may be linked to the conditions described over,” the report mentioned. “Tesla is not conscious of any accidents or deaths that might be related to this kind of conditions.”

The National Highway Traffic Basic safety Administration claims in documents posted Thursday that Tesla will fix the issues with an on the internet software package update in the coming months. The documents say Tesla is accomplishing the recall but does not agree with the agency’s assessment of the system’s flaws.

“FSD beta program that enables a automobile to exceed pace restrictions or travel by intersections in an illegal or unpredictable method improves the danger of a crash,” the company said. 

Tesla did not right away reply to a ask for for comment, but Elon Musk commented on the issue on Twitter.

“The phrase ‘recall’ for an over-the-air program update is anachronistic and just flat mistaken,” Musk tweeted.

Contains material from AP.

Connected video: