Musk’s Tesla recalling 2 million cars in US to prevent ‘misuse’ of Autopilot driver-assist system
- The recall is to fix a defective system that’s supposed to ensure drivers are paying attention when they use the vehicle’s Autopilot mode
- Advocates have been calling for stronger regulation of the driver monitoring system, which mainly detects whether a driver’s hands are on the steering wheel
Tesla is recalling nearly all the vehicles it sold in the US, more than 2 million across its model line-up, to fix a defective system that’s supposed to ensure drivers are paying attention when they use Autopilot.
Documents posted on Wednesday by US safety regulators say the company will send out a software update to fix the problems.
The recall comes after a two-year investigation by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration into a series of crashes that happened while the Autopilot partially automated driving system was in use. Some were deadly.
The agency says its investigation found Autopilot’s method of ensuring that drivers are paying attention can be inadequate and can lead to foreseeable misuse of the system.
The recall covers models Y, S, 3 and X produced between October 5, 2012, and December 7 of this year.
The software update includes additional controls and alerts “to further encourage the driver to adhere to their continuous driving responsibility,” the documents said.