Tesla's 2 million vehicle recall under U.S. scrutiny for Autopilot issues

U.S. auto safety regulators announced on Friday that they are investigating the adequacy of a Tesla recall involving over 2 million vehicles.

The recall, initially announced in December, was intended to install new Autopilot safeguards.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) raised concerns following crash events involving vehicles that had received the updated software and from initial test results of the remedied vehicles.

Concerns over the nature of Tesla's software update

The NHTSA has highlighted issues with how the recall remedy was implemented.

According to the agency, Tesla's approach allows vehicle owners to opt into part of the software update and enables drivers to easily revert the changes.

This opt-in requirement and reversibility may undermine the effectiveness of the safety measures meant to be enforced through the recall.

Tesla's response and ongoing safety assessments

Tesla has reportedly issued additional software updates to address the issues noted by the NHTSA.

However, these updates have not been formally included in the recall strategy nor recognized as a fix to defects posing unreasonable safety risks.

The investigation continues as the NHTSA works to ensure that the recall effectively mitigates any significant safety concerns associated with Tesla's Autopilot feature.