Last month, Democratic Senators Richard Blumenthal and Ed Markey shared their “significant concerns” with Tesla’s Autopilot and Full Self-Driving (FSD) systems, writing a letter to the automaker’s CEO Elon Musk.
Tesla responded to the U.S. senators last week, detailing Autopilot and FSD features that allow owners to “drive safer than the average driver in the U.S.,” reports Reuters.
The automaker’s letter response was written by Rohan Patel, Tesla’s senior director, public policy and business development. He noted both Autopilot and FSD “require the constant monitoring and attention of the driver.” The systems can perform “some but not all of the Dynamic Driving Tasks” that a human driver would normally do.
Both senators told Reuters in a statement the Tesla letter was not good enough, saying it was “just more evasion and deflection from Tesla. Despite its troubling safety track record and deadly crashes, the company seemingly wants to carry on with business as usual.”
The senators stated in their letter to Musk, “complaints and investigations paint a troubling picture: Tesla repeatedly releases software without fully considering its risks and implications, creating grave dangers for all on the roads.”
Tesla “understands the importance of educating owners on the capabilities of Autopilot and FSD Capability,” wrote Patel in the letter.
When Tesla owners engage Autopilot and FSD, in-car warning messages state drivers need to be prepared to take control at all times and with hands on the steering wheel.
Tesla Autopilot will seek torque feedback in its steering wheel from owners to keep operating, and if there is no response, the system will disengage. If there is still no feedback, Autopilot will slow the vehicle down to a complete stop, and turn on hazard lights.
In Tesla’s latest Vehicle Safety Report for Q4 2021, the automaker explained, “we recorded one crash for every 4.31 million miles driven in which drivers were using Autopilot technology (Autosteer and active safety features). For drivers who were not using Autopilot technology (no Autosteer and active safety features), we recorded one crash for every 1.59 million miles driven.”
“By comparison, NHTSA’s most recent data shows that in the United States there is an automobile crash every 484,000 miles,” emphasized Tesla in January.
“Autopilot enables your car to steer, accelerate and brake automatically within its lane. Current Autopilot features require active driver supervision and do not make the vehicle autonomous,” explains Tesla’s website.
