Since the introduction of Autopilot in 2015 and the testing of Full Self-Driving (FSD) technology, American electric tech giant, Tesla has been facing a series of investigations from the concerned authority. Reports revealed that the California Department of Motor Vehicles has been looking into Tesla’s Autopilot for years and has formally accused the firm of misleading promotion of its Autopilot and FSD technology.
However, in a new development, the EV giant has been reported to be facing a fresh investigation from the California Attorney General’s Office over its autopilot regeneration accident. As reported by CNMO, officials from the office have been contacting Tesla customers and former employees to collect information about Autopilot (self-driving) safety and false advertising complaints.
Genesis of Tesla’s Autopilot Accident
The cause of the incident was that in August 2022, a 2018 Tesla Model 3 owner filed a complaint with the Federal Trade Commission because of a “ghost brake” problem with the vehicle. He claimed that despite spending thousands of dollars to purchase FSD (Full Self-Driving, completely automatic driving technology), he felt misled by Tesla during the real-use procedure.
The automatic driving feature of the car will cause it to misread speed limit or stop signals when driving normally, slamming on the brakes, endangering the driver’s safety, and increasing the likelihood of rear-end collisions.
In reality, numerous Tesla owners have criticized and voiced complaints about the “ghost brakes” issue. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) published a regulatory document in June 2022 that revealed a dramatic rise in consumer complaints regarding Tesla’s ghost brakes from 354 in February to 758 in a single month.
And the reason for this might be connected to Tesla’s decision to use an all-visual autopilot system. Simply put, all data collection in Tesla automobiles is done by cameras. The data gathered is still insufficient when compared to domestic automakers’ hybrid vision technologies, particularly when there are occluders.
