Tesla Faces Another Investigation Because Of Unexpected Braking Issue
DETROIT (CBSDFW.COM/AP) — U.S. auto safety regulators have launched another investigation of Tesla Motors, this time tied to complaints that while in motion its cars can stop for no apparent reason.
The government says it has 354 complaints from owners during the past nine months about "phantom braking" in Tesla Models 3 and Y. The probe covers an estimated 416,000 vehicles from the 2021 and 2022 model years.
No crashes or injuries were reported.
The vehicles are equipped with partially automated driver-assist features such as adaptive cruise control and "Autopilot," which allows them to automatically brake and steer within their lanes.
Documents posted Thursday by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration say the vehicles can unexpectedly brake at highway speeds.
"Complainants report that the rapid deceleration can occur without warning, and often repeatedly during a single drive cycle," the agency says.
Many owners in the complaints say they feared a rear-end crash on a freeway.
The probe is another in a string of enforcement efforts by the agency that include Autopilot and "Full Self-Driving" software. Despite their names, neither feature can drive the vehicles without people supervising.
A message was left early Thursday seeking comment from Tesla.
It's the fourth formal investigation of Texas automaker in the past three years, and NHTSA is supervising 15 Tesla recalls since January of 2021. In addition, the agency has sent investigators to at least 33 crashes involving Teslas using driver-assist systems since 2016 in which 11 people were killed.
In one of the complaints, a Tesla owner from Austin, Texas, reported that a Model Y on Autopilot brakes repeatedly for no reason on two-lane roads and freeways.
"The phantom braking varies from a minor throttle response to decrease speed to full emergency braking that drastically reduces the speed at a rapid pace, resulting in unsafe driving conditions for occupants of my vehicle as well as those who might be following behind me," the owner wrote in a complaint filed Feb. 2. People who file complaints are not identified in NHTSA's public database.
Michael Brooks, acting executive director of the nonprofit Center for Auto Safety, said it's encouraging to see NHTSA's enforcement actions "after years of turning the other way," with Tesla. But he said the company keeps releasing software onto U.S. roads that isn't tested to make sure it's safe. "A piecemeal investigative approach to each problem that raises its head does not address the larger issue in Tesla's safety culture — the company's continued willingness to beta test its technology on the American public while misrepresenting the capabilities of its vehicles," Brooks wrote in an email Thursday.
The Washington Post reported about a surge in phantom braking complaints from Tesla owners on Feb. 2.
Thursday's investigation comes after Tesla recalled nearly 12,000 vehicles back in October for a similar phantom braking problem.
(© Copyright 2022 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)
