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NHTSA Opens Engineering Analysis Into Tesla FSD After Visibility-Linked Crashes

The inquiry examines whether Tesla’s camera-only degradation detection warns drivers fast enough in poor conditions, a phase that often precedes recall decisions.

Overview

  • - The investigation covers roughly 3.2 million U.S. Teslas across Model S, X, 3, Y and Cybertruck equipped with Full Self-Driving.
  • - Regulators cite nine crashes tied to reduced-visibility failures, including one fatality and two injuries, with additional incidents under review.
  • - NHTSA says FSD sometimes failed to detect glare, fog or airborne obstructions and issued alerts only moments before impact, leaving too little time to react.
  • - Tesla told NHTSA a software update to its degradation detection may have affected three of the nine crashes, while the agency flagged data and labeling gaps that could have under-reported cases.
  • - The escalation comes alongside separate federal probes and lawsuits, including a disputed Houston Cybertruck crash and a $243 million wrongful-death verdict involving Tesla driver assistance.