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Tesla vehicle after a crash on the highway (archive image)
Photo: imago images
After a series of accidents with injuries and deaths, the US traffic authority NHTSA has again initiated a comprehensive investigation of Tesla's "Autopilot" driver assistance system.
The investigation affects 765,000 vehicles in the United States.
The new procedure deals with eleven rear-end collisions in which the cars crashed into ambulances and fire vehicles standing on the roadside.
According to the NHTSA, there were 17 injuries and one death.
The NHTSA pointed out on Monday that the fire and ambulance vehicles were clearly recognizable with the flashing lights switched on in the rear-end collisions.
The "autopilot" system was switched on in all affected Tesla vehicles.
In March, there was a serious accident in Texas with two fatalities when a Model S took a bend off the road and crashed into a tree.
According to the police, the two occupants sat in the passenger seat and the back seat - neither at the wheel.
Sleeping Tesla drivers in traffic
Tesla has been criticized for years because of the "autopilot". The US traffic authority initiated the first investigations after a fatal accident in 2016. Back in the day, a driver died after his car crashed under the trailer of an articulated lorry that had crossed the street. The NHTSA concluded that the system was functioning correctly within its capabilities, but that the person behind the wheel relied too much on it.
Tesla advises customers themselves that the person in the driver's seat must keep their hands on the steering wheel at all times.
He should also always be ready to take control.
Nevertheless, it happens again and again that drivers completely rely on the “autopilot” system.
On the Internet, for example, there are videos and testimonials from drivers who sleep in traffic or leave their seat and make themselves comfortable in the rear seats.
Therefore, among other things, it is required that Tesla use the camera in the interior to monitor the driver's attention.
A few years ago, Tesla already tightened safety measures: the software detects when the driver is not hands on the wheel and emits warning tones after a short time.
Investigations by consumer advocates showed, however, that the system can be tricked.
Critics find that the name "autopilot" is an exaggeration that invites negligent use.
Tesla even calls the next level of software "full self-driving", although according to the criteria common in the industry it remains just an assistance system.
In Germany, the Munich Regional Court banned Tesla advertising in some cases last year because the capabilities of the program do not meet promises such as "autonomous driving in urban areas" and are misleading.
fww / dpa / rtr