The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has been inundated by complaints from consumers alleging that their Teslas are stopping or slowing for no apparent reason while using their vehicles’ advanced driver assistance systems.
The regulator revealed in a letter to Tesla dated May 4 and obtained by the Associated Press that it had received 758 reports of unexpected braking activation in 2021-2022 Model 3 and Model Y vehicles.
That’s a stark increase from just a few months ago. In February, NHTSA’s Office of Defects Investigation reported having received 354 customer complaints about Autopilot and FSD over the previous nine months.
Read More: Tesla’s Phantom-Braking Complaints Lead To NHTSA Investigation That Could Affect Over 400,000 Cars
As a result of the large number of complaints, the regulator is looking for more information from Tesla. NHTSA, in the letter, asked Tesla for all consumer and field reports it has received about phantom braking events, as well as reports of crashes, injuries, deaths, and property damage claims.
In addition, NHTSA is looking for information on warranty claims for phantom braking events, including owners’ names and what repairs were made. It also wants to see Tesla’s sensor data and information from any testing or investigations into the braking problems, as well as what modifications were made as a result of those findings.
The investigation will focus on how Tesla’s advanced driver assistance systems deal with things like metal bridges, S-shaped curves, oncoming and cross traffic, as well as vehicles of different sizes, all of which have reportedly caused the systems trouble in the past.
Many complainants report experiencing hair-raising incidents as a result of phantom braking, with some reporting fearing of being rear-ended as their car slows down inexplicably on the highway.
Just the latest look that NHTSA is taking into the company and its advanced driver assistance systems, Tesla has been given until June 20 to respond to the regulator’s request for information. Following the revelation, the automaker’s shares fell nine percent on Friday.
