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The auto giant announced the recall of more than two million vehicles following a two-year investigation by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) into several crashes - some fatal - that happened while drivers were not paying attention.
It comes on the heels of the news that Fauquier County businessman Pablo Teodoro III was killed while his Tesla was on autopilot and he crashed into the back of a tractor-trailer.
Investigators found that the Tesla's Autopilot system can lure drivers into a false sense of security that has led to hundreds of crashes, prompting the recall of nearly all models sold in the US, according to reports.
"In certain circumstances when Autosteer is engaged, the prominence and scope of the feature's controls may not be sufficient to prevent driver misuse of the SAE Level 2 advanced driver-assistance feature," the safety administration posted in their letter to the company.
The recall includes:
- Tesla Model 3 produced between 2017 and 2023;
- Tesla Model S produced between 2012 and 2023;
- Tesla Model X produced between 2016 and 2023;
- Tesla Model Y produced between 2020 and 2023.
"In certain circumstances when Autosteer is engaged, and the driver does not maintain responsibility for vehicle operation and is unprepared to intervene as necessary or fails to recognize when Autosteer is canceled or not engaged, there may be an increased risk of a crash," the notice to Tesla stated.
Following the recall, Tesla will be releasing an over-the-air software update beginning in February, with vehicles receiving “additional controls and alerts” that will prompt drivers to pay attention when using Autopilot by keeping both hands on the steering wheel.
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