On Tuesday, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) of the United States announced the initiation of a special crash investigation into a fatal accident involving a Tesla Model 3. The accident occurred in California in 2018, and there are suspicions that advanced driver assistance systems, such as Autopilot, were being used at the time.
Since 2016, the NHTSA has opened special crash investigations into over three dozen Tesla incidents, with suspicions that accidents involving Autopilot were involved. These investigations have been prompted by a total of 20 reported crash deaths.
This recent investigation is the first new special crash investigation since March. Prior to that, in February, the NHTSA had announced another special investigation into an accident involving a Tesla Model S in California.
The agency is also looking into a crash involving a 2014 Tesla and a fire truck in Contra Costa County, California, where the driver of the Tesla was pronounced dead at the scene.
Additionally, in December, the NHTSA initiated two new special investigations into crashes involving Tesla vehicles, suspecting the use of advanced driver assistance systems.
The NHTSA typically conducts over 100 special crash investigations each year to examine emerging technologies and potential safety issues. These investigations have played a role in developing safety regulations, such as those concerning airbags.
In June, the NHTSA upgraded its defect probe into 830,000 Tesla vehicles equipped with the Autopilot driver assistance system. The investigation focused on crashes involving parked emergency vehicles, including fire trucks. The upgrade to an engineering analysis was a necessary step before the agency could potentially request a recall.
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