The US National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) has stepped up its review of Tesla vehicles equipped with Full Self-Driving (FSD) driver-assistance software.
The agency first opened a preliminary evaluation into Tesla’s FSD software in October 2024, covering 2.4 million vehicles.
Go deeper with GlobalData
Discover B2B Marketing That Performs
Combine business intelligence and editorial excellence to reach engaged professionals across 36 leading media platforms.
According to a Reuters report, NHTSA has now expanded the probe and moved it to an engineering analysis covering 3.2 million Tesla vehicles. An engineering analysis is a required step before the agency can pursue a potential recall.
NHTSA said its review raises concerns that Tesla’s camera-based FSD system may not detect certain roadway conditions that can affect visibility, including glare, dust and other airborne obstructions.
The agency also raised questions about whether the system provides adequate alerts when camera performance declines.
The regulator said it has reports of nine incidents that may be tied to the issue, including one fatal crash and two injury crashes. It is also examining whether six additional crashes may be related.
Tesla began transitioning in mid-2021 from using cameras and radar to an exclusively camera-based approach known as Tesla Vision. The automative company implemented a degradation detection system as part of that transition.
NHTSA said its data raises concerns that the system may not identify reduced visibility conditions or warn drivers appropriately.
In several of the crashes reviewed, NHTSA was quoted by the news agency as saying: “FSD also lost track of or never detected a lead vehicle in its path.”
NHTSA added Tesla’s analysis indicated that a software update linked to the degradation detection system might have affected three of the incidents if it had been installed at the time of the crashes.
In the review, the agency plans to assess the updated system, including when it was deployed, how widely it has been rolled out, and whether it improves visibility detection and driver alerts.
In January, Tesla reported lower automotive revenue and earnings for the fourth quarter and full year of 2025.
For the three months ended 31 December, total revenue slipped 3% to $24.90bn, while net income attributable to common stockholders fell 61% to $840m.
For the full year, revenue edged down 3% to $94.82bn, and net income attributable to common stockholders decreased 46% to $3.79bn.
