Feds launch safe probe for 2.6 million Tesla remote recall feature

In 2016, Elon Musk promised that Tesla owners would be able to “summon” their car from anywhere, including their presence. A car in New York comes to its driver in Los Angeles. In 2025, Tesla’s recall technology is under investigation because it keeps crashing into poles and parked cars. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration Announce On Tuesday, it will begin an investigation into 2.6 million Tesla vehicles over safety concerns related to its “Actually Smart Summon” feature.

The initial evaluation of Tesla’s Remote Driving feature follows multiple reports of incidents involving Smart Summon and Actual Smart Summon. According to NHTSA’s Office of Defect Investigation (ODI), the probe will look at the maximum speed the car can travel while being controlled remotely, communication delays that occur when the car is recalled, and whether Tesla’s self-driving software can adequately navigate In the car. The environments in which it is used.

A brief history of Summon, which has had a checkered history for Tesla: A version of the feature has been available in Tesla cars equipped with the company’s “Full Self-Driving Capability” (FSD) since 2016. In theory, this technology is designed to allow a driver to summon their car to come To it, allowing it to move independently without a person inside the car. At first, it was just a matter of calling the car from the driveway or parking lot.

I finally got it Upgraded to Smart Summon in 2019, enabling the vehicle to navigate more complex situations and summon the vehicle from up to 200 feet away. After missing several self-imposed deadlines by Musk, Tesla finally came forward with its own Indeed a clever call (abbreviation for sigh ASS) late last year. In order to use ASS, car owners must press and hold a button in the Tesla app while the car is running autonomously — in an attempt to have the owner monitor the car to make sure it doesn’t malfunction. The feature has been criticized as… Slow and ineffective.

Now he is being investigated for causing accidents. According to NHTSA, there is only one official report of an accident involving a version of the Summon software, but there have been at least three media reports of similar incidents and 12 reports of software-related accidents that have occurred to vehicle owners. Questionnaires. Of the 16 total reports on NHTSA’s radar, Tesla has shared exactly none with the agency despite requirements for reporting incidents involving automated driving systems.

Musk may not be sweating much — it’s been part of his entire effort to befriend President-elect Donald Trump himself Lobbying to roll back incident reporting requirements For self-driving vehicles. It seems likely that he will get his wish, and there is a non-zero chance that this investigation will be closed before it actually begins.

Even if this investigation is closed by the next administration, it would not have served as a two-year banner for Tesla’s self-driving technology. NHTSA I opened an investigation In the company’s full self-driving system last year after a series of high-profile incidents allegedly related to the technology. The company has recalled its Autopilot technology in more than 2 million vehicles in 2023, and the NHTSA It is still examining whether its reforms are actually enough To address risks associated with the program. Meanwhile, the Ministry of Justice is still in the process of processing Determine whether Tesla misled consumers and investors With how self-driving features are announced.