A Tesla Model S driving with Autopilot engaged. Photo Credit: Raphael Orlove

The National Highway Traffic and Safety Administration is currently investigating Tesla for a number of high-profile crashes recently, most prominently the fatal crash of Joshua Brown behind the wheel of his Model S on Autopilot. And NHTSA has published everything it wants Tesla to tell it.




It’s a lot. The full document is below, but I’ll just briefly mention that NHTSA wants to know everything from how many cars Tesla has sold here in the U.S. to how many miles those cars covered with Autosteer on. And how many times those cars gave their drivers warnings to put their hands on the wheel when they had Autosteer engaged. And how many times the cars cut power following those warnings.

NHTSA wants every owner complaint, every dealer report, and every arbitration related to a Tesla defect.


NHTSA wants every test, investigation, and survey Tesla has carried out in relation to a car not engaging automatic emergency braking when the owner expected it to.

NHTSA wants every little scrap of information Tesla has on its cars, as far as a ‘defect’ with its semi-autonomous systems is concerned.

NHTSA’s Office of Defects Investigation Opens A Preliminary Evaluation On Tesla


And I’m sure Tesla has all the information NHTSA wants.