The U.S. Department of Transportation’s National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has opened an investigation into Tesla’s self-certification that its Cybercab complies with all applicable Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards following the commercial deployment of driverless Cybercab vehicles in Austin, Texas.
NHTSA opened an Audit Query, designated AQ26002, to examine the basis for Tesla’s certification of the Cybercab and determine whether the vehicle meets existing federal safety requirements.
Under the U.S. vehicle regulatory framework, automakers are responsible for certifying that their vehicles comply with applicable Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards before those vehicles enter the market.
NHTSA oversees that self-certification process and can investigate when questions arise about whether a vehicle actually complies with the applicable standards.
The Cybercab inquiry is notable because the vehicle is designed without traditional human driving controls, creating questions around how existing federal safety requirements apply to a vehicle built specifically for autonomous operation.
NHTSA said the Audit Query will review the technical data and processes Tesla relied upon when self-certifying the Cybercab.
The agency will also examine whether Tesla’s compliance framework treated certain Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards as inapplicable because the Cybercab lacks traditional controls intended for human drivers.
The investigation follows Tesla’s deployment of the Cybercab for commercial driverless service in Austin, Texas.
NHTSA emphasized that existing federal vehicle safety standards remain in force even as the agency works to modernize regulations for autonomous and next-generation vehicles.
The agency has begun work on eight rulemakings intended to update existing standards, including requirements involving brake pedals, windshield wipers, lighting and rearview mirrors.
Those efforts are intended to remove regulatory barriers that may no longer fit vehicles designed around automated driving systems while maintaining federal safety requirements.
Until those revised standards are finalized, however, manufacturers remain responsible for complying with the current regulatory framework.
The Audit Query does not itself establish that Tesla violated federal safety requirements. Instead, it gives NHTSA a formal process for examining the technical and regulatory basis behind Tesla’s certification.
The investigation could therefore focus on how federal standards written around conventional human-operated vehicles should apply to purpose-built autonomous vehicles with substantially different hardware and control configurations.
NHTSA said it supports the continued development and deployment of automated vehicles while maintaining federal oversight of vehicle safety compliance.
KEY QUOTE:
“NHTSA fully supports the safe development and deployment of automated vehicles. But as the federal regulator, we need to ensure that all of our laws are followed. Our approach of balancing innovation with safety oversight will allow the United States to maintain its global leadership in AV innovation.”
Jonathan Morrison, NHTSA Administrator
