Tesla Scrutinized for Misleading Robotaxi, Full Self-Driving Claims

Tesla is under scrutiny from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration again.

This time the NHTSA has expressed its dissatisfaction with social media posts from the company, citing concerns that they gave the impression that its Full Self Driving (FSD) tech cars allows cars to operate fully autonomously.

In an email that was sent in May but has only just been made public, Gregory E Magno of the NHTSA’s Office of Defects Investigation department wrote: “Tesla’s X (Twitter) account has re-posted or endorsed postings that exhibit disengaged driver behavior,” adding that the postings “conflict with its stated messaging that the driver is to maintain continued control over the dynamic driving task.. 

The NHTSA specified a number of posts that it was unhappy about

It continued: “We… observe that these postings may encourage viewers to see FSD-Supervised as a Chauffer [sic] or “Robotaxi” rather than a partial automation/driver assist system that requires persistent attention and intermittent intervention by the driver.”

Among the items of concern was a repost on April 10, that according to the NHTSA detailed how an individual (@MAXPAULFRANKLIN) “opted to use the “Full Self-Driving capability” to drive him 13 miles from his home to the emergency room during a heart attack shortly after the April 1 free trial became available.”

Related:NHTSA Investigates Tesla Crashes in Low Visibility Conditions

In the repost, which has now had 1.6 million views, Tesla added: “FSD V12 helped owner get to the hospital when he needed immediate medical attention”.

Another repost that sparked concern was one from @ChansooByeon who said that “Tesla FSD drove the entire way from underground garage to home after a Toronto FC game last night… (~50 minute drive).” To this Tesla added “$99/month”.

The NHTSA highlighted third party comments on the original post including one that said that the poster “can foresee more drinkers getting home safely”, which according to the agency suggested “advantages to using FSD while inebriated”. Again, the reach was vast, with 4.8 million views.

Other posts highlighted included those which implied FSD could help old drivers with diminished confidence to continue driving, and one which claimed that the tech meant drivers did not get fatigued.

Magno concluded: “Social media platforms furnish a valuable means of timely communication with the public – certainly to a greater extent than owner’s manuals – and, while Tesla has the discretion to communicate with the public as it sees fit, we note that these posts show lost opportunities to temper enthusiasm for a new product with cautions on its proper use with the points that Tesla has made to us.

Related:Tesla Tests Self-Driving Taxi Service in San Francisco

“We request that Tesla revisit its communications to assure that its messaging is consistent with the statements made in its user instructions and appropriate to the level of capability deployed to the public roads.”

Publication of the email was accompanied by a letter informing Tesla of the opening of a probe into cars fitted with FSD that have crashed in low-visibility conditions. The NHTSA has requested information related to the investigation from Tesla, which it has until Dec. 18 to provide. Failure to do so could result in financial penalties stretching to a potential maximum of $135,828,178.