U.S. federal highway safety investigators want Tesla to tell them how and why it developed the fix in a recall of more than two million vehicles equipped with the company's Autopilot partially automated driving system.
Investigators with the U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration have concerns about whether the recall remedy worked because Tesla has reported 20 crashes since the remedy was sent out as an online software update in December.
The recall fix also was to address whether Autopilot should be allowed to operate on roads other than limited access highways. The fix for that was increased warnings to the driver on roads with intersections.
But in a letter to Tesla posted on the agency's website Tuesday, investigators wrote that they could not find a difference between warnings to the driver to pay attention before the recall and after the new software was released. The agency said it will evaluate whether driver warnings are adequate, especially when a driver-monitoring camera is covered.
The agency asked for volumes of information about how Tesla developed the fix, and zeroed in on how it used human behaviour to test the recall effectiveness.
Phil Koopman, a professor at Carnegie Mellon University who studies automated driving safety, said the letter shows that the recall did little to solve problems with Autopilot and was an attempt to pacify NHTSA, which demanded the recall after more than two years of investigation.
"It's pretty clear to everyone watching that Tesla tried to do the least possible remedy to see what they could get away with," Koopman said. "And NHTSA has to respond forcefully or other car companies will start pushing out inadequate remedies."
Safety advocates have long expressed concern that Autopilot, which can keep a vehicle in its lane and a distance from objects in front of it, was not designed to operate on roads other than limited access highways.
Missy Cummings, a professor of engineering and computing at George Mason University who studies automated vehicles, said NHTSA is responding to criticism from legislators for a perceived lack of action on automated vehicles.
"As clunky as our government is, the feedback loop is working," Cummings said. "I think the NHTSA leadership is convinced now that this is a problem."
The 18-page NHTSA letter asks how Tesla used human behaviour science in designing Autopilot, and the company's assessment of the importance of evaluating human factors.
It also wants Tesla to identify every job involved in human behaviour evaluation and the qualifications of the workers. And it asks Tesla to say whether the positions still exist.
A message was left by The Associated Press early Tuesday seeking comment from Tesla about the letter.
Tesla is in the process of laying off about 10 per cent of its workforce, about 14,000 people, in an effort to cut costs to deal with falling global sales.
Cummings said she suspects that CEO Elon Musk would have laid off anyone with human behaviour knowledge, a key skill needed to deploy partially automated systems like Autopilot, which can't drive themselves and require humans to be ready to intervene at all times.
"If you're going to have a technology that depends upon human interaction, you better have someone on your team that knows what they are doing in that space," she said.
Cummings said her research has shown that once a driving system takes over steering from humans, there is little left for the human brain to do. Many drivers tend to overly rely on the system and check out.
"You can have your head fixed in one position, you can potentially have your eyes on the road, and you can be a million miles away in your head," she said. "All the driver monitoring technologies in the world are still not going to force you to pay attention."
In its letter, NHTSA also asks Tesla for information about how the recall remedy addresses driver confusion over whether Autopilot has been turned off if force is put on the steering wheel. Previously, if Autopilot was de-activated, drivers might not notice quickly that they have to take over driving.
The recall added a function that gives a "more pronounced slowdown" to alert drivers when Autopilot has been disengaged. But the recall remedy doesn't activate the function automatically -- drivers have to do it. Investigators asked how many drivers have taken that step.
NHTSA is asking Telsa "What do you mean you have a remedy and it doesn't actually get turned on?" Koopman said.
The letter, he said, shows NHTSA is looking at whether Tesla did tests to make sure the fixes actually worked. "Looking at the remedy I struggled to believe that there's a lot of analysis proving that these will improve safety," Koopman said.
The agency also says Tesla made safety updates after the recall fix was sent out, including an attempt to reduce crashes caused by hydroplaning and to reduce collisions in high speed turn lanes. NHTSA said it will look at why Tesla didn't include the updates in the original recall.
NHTSA could seek further recall remedies, make Tesla limit where Autopilot can work, or even force the company to disable the system until it is fixed, safety experts said.
NHTSA began its Autopilot investigation in 2021, after receiving 11 reports that Teslas using Autopilot struck parked emergency vehicles. In documents explaining why the investigation was ended due to the recall, NHTSA said it ultimately found 467 crashes involving Autopilot resulting in 54 injuries and 14 deaths.
Donald Trump has said he wouldn’t be a dictator — 'except for Day 1.' According to his own statements, he's got a lot to do on that first day in the White House.
King Charles III led the nation Sunday in a two-minute silence in remembrance of fallen service personnel in central London as the Princess of Wales looked on, a further sign the royal family is slowly returning to normal at the end of a year in which two of the most popular royals were sidelined by cancer.
The outfield lights at a baseball stadium in Cuba proved to be little match for Hurricane Rafael’s extreme wind.
As the possibility of mass deportations looms following Donald Trump's re-election on Tuesday, border towns like the City of Cornwall are preparing for a potential influx of asylum seekers.
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A 6.8 magnitude earthquake shook eastern Cuba on Sunday, after weeks of hurricanes and blackouts that have left many on the island reeling.
Murray Sinclair’s family members say the late justice and senator has been laid to rest according to his wishes.
Police in Newfoundland say a man was electrocuted Saturday by a downed power wire about 10 kilometres north of St. John's, N.L.
Select Porsche owners in Canada have been told to stop driving their cars immediately and to seek repairs after an issue was identified that could cause wheels to separate from vehicles.
Police in Newfoundland say a man was electrocuted Saturday by a downed power wire about 10 kilometres north of St. John's, N.L.
Nova Scotia's New Democratic Party says a candidate criticized by the Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs for "troubling" and "damaging" social media posts is no longer running for the party in the Nov. 26 general election.
Winnipeg firefighters rescued and reunited a cat with its owners Saturday after a house fire in the city’s Burrows neighbourhood.
Dozens of people gathered in Surrey's Holland Park on Saturday to show their support for the family of missing 18-year-old Joseph Maku.
A woman is dead after a driver crashed a truck through a Boston Pizza in Fort McMurray late Saturday morning.
Brian Avery was three years old when he and his parents packed their belongings into a boat and pulled away from Deer Harbour, N.L., leaving behind their home, their way of life and centuries of family history.
Donald Trump has said he wouldn’t be a dictator — 'except for Day 1.' According to his own statements, he's got a lot to do on that first day in the White House.
Thousands of Spaniards marched in the eastern city of Valencia on Saturday to demand the resignation of the regional president in charge of the emergency response to last week's catastrophic floods that left more than 200 dead and others missing.
Paris police said Sunday that 4,000 officers and 1,600 stadium staff will be deployed for a France-Israel soccer match to ensure security in and around the stadium and on public transportation a week after violence against Israeli fans in Amsterdam.
Gunmen open fired in a bar in central Mexico killing 10 people and injuring seven, a local official said.
Bitcoin on Sunday hit a new record above US$80,000. The world’s largest cryptocurrency surged in the run-up to Tuesday’s US presidential election, rose sharply immediately on election night after it became clear Donald Trump would win and has continued rising in the days since his victory.
The outfield lights at a baseball stadium in Cuba proved to be little match for Hurricane Rafael’s extreme wind.
Murray Sinclair’s family members say the late justice and senator has been laid to rest according to his wishes.
Canada's ambassador to the United States — and co-lead of the federal government's Team Canada war room — says U.S. president-elect Donald Trump has a different understanding of the bilateral relationship than he did during his first term in the White House.
NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh has thrown his weight behind a campaign fighting for better work rights for Kal Tire employees, joining a picket line of workers in Burnaby Saturday morning.
Just five more minutes of exercise doesn’t sound so bad, right? Especially when such a small amount may improve your blood pressure, according to a new study.
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B.C. health officials say they have detected Canada's first-ever case of H5 avian influenza in a human.
Bernadett 'Bett'” Szabó, a 19-year-old Hungarian sex worker, was murdered in the Dutch capital in 2009. Now, more than 15 years after her death, police are hoping to uncover new information about her killing.
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Chu shared on his Instagram Stories that he and his wife Kristin Hodge welcomed their fifth child on Saturday, writing that he “can’t believe this happened while the movie is premiering.”
On Thursday morning, Dave Penny officially ended a suggested hundred-day isolation period that followed his diagnosis and stem cell treatment for non-Hodgkin's Lymphoma. On Thursday night, Penny returned to a stage at a downtown St. John's bar, regaling a small crowd with songs and stories with a distinctive Newfoundland flair.
The first 'Saturday Night Live' since Donald Trump's election victory began with the most somber of tones as a group of plainly dressed cast members, primarily women and minorities, described their new reality.
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Contract negotiations resume today in Vancouver in a labour dispute that has paralyzed container cargo shipping at British Columbia's ports since Monday.
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No. 15 LSU has been criticized for unveiling a live caged tiger in its stadium for the first time in almost a decade before they were routed 42-13 by No. 11 Alabama in their SEC showdown.
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A driver's trip from London, Ont. to Ottawa to visit their girlfriend ended in a traffic stop for speeding on Highway 417, according to police.
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Murray Sinclair’s family members say the late justice and senator has been laid to rest according to his wishes.
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Murray Sinclair’s family members say the late justice and senator has been laid to rest according to his wishes.
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Elections Saskatchewan completed the final step in the vote counting process from the provincial election on Saturday.
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Donald Trump has said he wouldn’t be a dictator — 'except for Day 1.' According to his own statements, he's got a lot to do on that first day in the White House.
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Three people were taken to hospital after a plane crashed in the Municipality of Southwest Middlesex.
London Knights Logan Hawery and Caleb Mitchell are returning from the U17 World Hockey Challenge with gold medals around their necks.
Donald Trump has said he wouldn’t be a dictator — 'except for Day 1.' According to his own statements, he's got a lot to do on that first day in the White House.
Crews responded to an overnight porch fire at a residence in Orillia, where all occupants managed to escape without injury.
OPP are investigating a Saturday evening incident in Caledon that resulted in one death.
The Southeast Asian Association of Simcoe County (SAASC) hosted a special gala for Diwali in Barrie Saturday evening, celebrating the Hindu Festival of Lights with a Diya lighting ceremony at General John Hayter Southshore Community Centre.
One person has been arrested after Chatham-Kent Police Service (CKPS) received multiple complaints about an alleged drunk driver.
An individual is dead following a collision involving a motorcycle in Kingsville.
Donald Trump has said he wouldn’t be a dictator — 'except for Day 1.' According to his own statements, he's got a lot to do on that first day in the White House.
Contract negotiations in a labour dispute that has paralyzed container cargo shipping at British Columbia's ports since Monday have been called off.
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More than two years after Alannah Brown and Douglas Barker were found dead north of Penticton, police are asking for help identifying a vehicle they believe was associated with the crime.
The Southern Alberta Recreation Association is officially announcing the Town of Taber as next year’s host for the Southern Alberta Summer Games.
The Lethbridge Hurricanes broke open a close game with three goals in the first two minutes of the third period as they defeated the Warriors 7-3 in a game played Friday night in Moose Jaw.
There might not a lot snow just yet, but many southern Albertans are still itching to get outdoors.
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Mayors of the five largest cities in northern Ontario met in North Bay the last two days to discuss a range of critical issues impacting their cities and the region.
Residents in the Sault expressed concerns ranging from vandalism to privacy invasions during recent consultations on the city's plan to install automated speed enforcement cameras.
Police in Newfoundland say a man was electrocuted Saturday by a downed power wire about 10 kilometres north of St. John's, N.L.
On Thursday morning, Dave Penny officially ended a suggested hundred-day isolation period that followed his diagnosis and stem cell treatment for non-Hodgkin's Lymphoma. On Thursday night, Penny returned to a stage at a downtown St. John's bar, regaling a small crowd with songs and stories with a distinctive Newfoundland flair.
A Memorial University scientist says the mysterious white blobs washing up on Newfoundland beaches are actually gobs of plastic -- and they need to be cleaned up.
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