Buttigieg says Tesla shouldn’t call its drive system an autopilot
Tesla shouldn’t call its partially self-driving system “Autopilot,” says a top U.S. Department of Transportation official because cars can’t drive themselves. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg said he was concerned about Tesla’s marketing of the system and said the department was investigating. He points to a connection to the crash that killed at least 14 people. “I don’t think anything that says in fine print that you have to put your hands on the wheel and keep your eyes on the road should be called autopilot, for example,” Buttigieg said in an interview with The Associated Press. Since 2016, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, an agency within the division, has dispatched investigative teams to more than 30 crashes in which Tesla is suspected of engaging in Autopilot or its higher levels of self-driving. There have been examples of fully autonomous driving systems crashing pedestrians, motorcycles, semi-trailers and parked emergency vehicles. The investigation is part of NHTSA’s larger investigation into multiple instances of Teslas using Autopilot crashing into parked emergency vehicles that have caused other accidents. Over the past year, the NHTSA has become more aggressive in pursuing Tesla safety issues, announcing multiple recalls and investigations. Video below: Police park a sleeping Tesla driver on autopilot Austin, Texas-based Tesla didn’t immediately reply to a message left Thursday. The Associated Press has requested comment. Autopilot can keep the car in its lane and away from vehicles ahead, while fully autonomous driving can take on most driving tasks. But in any case, Buttigieg, who has told owners that Tesla must be ready to intervene at any time, said the Department of Transportation would require Tesla or any other company to comply with federal safety standards. He said he would be held responsible for “We call balls and strikes,” he said. “I think it’s very important to be very objective. We’re going to go there whenever we can.” Self-driving cars have huge potential to reduce the nearly 40,000 road deaths that occur each year in the United States, said Buttigieg. said it was unacceptable. But he said the technology hasn’t been proven yet. “It’s never possible to automatically meet that potential. That’s what we’re trying to shape here at the Department of Transportation,” he said. NHTSA is also eyeing Tesla’s fully self-driving system, which in February recalled about 363,000 vehicles with the software, saying the system could violate road traffic laws. put pressure on Tesla. The problem was supposed to be fixed in an online software update. Tesla CEO Elon Musk said he expects fully self-driving cars to arrive this year, a promise he has made for several years. “The trend is clearly towards fully autonomous driving,” Musk said in April. Stated. The system, which has been tested on public roads by 400,000 Tesla owners, said in a statement that the system could perform dangerous actions, such as going straight through an intersection from a corner. Only lanes, passing yellow lights without proper caution, or failing to respond to speed limit changes. NHTSA has also launched an investigation into Tesla’s sudden braking, suspension problems and other issues over the past three years for no apparent reason. Mr. Buttigieg will.” We do not comment specifically on pending investigations. “Both external agencies on the marketing side, states, other regulatory bodies, and us from a vehicle safety perspective are always on the lookout,” he said, noting that the vehicles currently being sold cannot drive themselves. He stressed that drivers should exercise caution. The Justice Department is also asking Tesla to provide documentation on fully self-driving cars and Autopilot. Buttigieg also touted the Biden administration’s efforts to electrify the country’s automotive fleet. May it happen fast enough for us to meet our climate goals,” he said. “We want it to happen on the mainland so we can get these American jobs and in a fair way that everyone benefits. I hope that happens.” Virginia Democrat Joe Manchin criticized the administration for lax enforcement of rules requiring EV batteries to be produced in North America. Buttigieg acknowledged “some substantial disagreements” on how tax rules should be implemented under inflation. But he said tax credits, which deduct thousands of dollars from the purchase price of an EV, are important, along with a network of charging stations to accommodate millions of new EVs. “The president has set a goal of 500,000 chargers by the end of this decade,” he said. “Yeah,” he said, noting that chargers and other benefits from the Climate Change Act and the 2021 Infrastructure Act are reaching every state. “Both the blue states and the purple states all came back with plans to spend those funds, and now they’re all on track. So we can make this EV revolution a success.” I think,” he said, referring to the former mayor. South Bend, Indiana, home of the Studebaker car company, which closed in the 1960s. “We know how important it is for us to win this time and for America to lead the world in this revolution that is going to happen unilaterally.” he said. ___Mr. Krisher reported from Detroit. Associated Press reporter Matthew Daly, who lives in Washington, contributed to this story.
A top U.S. transportation official says Tesla shouldn’t call its partially self-driving system “Autopilot” because cars can’t drive themselves.
Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg said he was concerned about Tesla’s marketing of the system, which the department is investigating in connection with a crash that killed at least 14 people.
“I don’t think anything that says in fine print that you have to keep your hands on the wheel and your eyes on the road should be called autopilot, for example,” Buttigieg said in an interview with The Associated Press. said. press.
Since 2016, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, an agency within Mr. Buttigieg’s ministry, has said Tesla suspected of operating on Autopilot or its more advanced fully automated driving system has been used by pedestrians, motorcycles, and semis. It has dispatched investigative teams to more than 30 accidents involving trailer collisions. Emergency vehicles also stopped.
The investigation is part of a larger NHTSA investigation into multiple instances of Tesla vehicles using Autopilot crashing into parked emergency vehicles that are causing other crashes. Over the past year, the NHTSA has become more aggressive in pursuing Tesla safety issues, announcing multiple recalls and investigations.
Video below: Police pull over a sleeping Tesla driver on autopilot
Austin, Texas-based Tesla did not immediately respond to a message left by the Associated Press for comment on Thursday.
Autopilot can keep the car in its lane and away from the vehicle in front, while full self-driving can take on most driving tasks. But in either case, Tesla tells owners they must be ready to intervene at any time.
Buttigieg said the Department of Transportation will hold Tesla and other companies accountable for complying with federal safety standards. “We call balls and strikes,” he said. “I think it’s very important to be very objective. We will go there whenever we want.”
Buttigieg said in an interview Wednesday that self-driving cars have great potential to reduce the roughly 40,000 road deaths that occur each year in the United States, a level he said was unacceptable. But he said the technology hasn’t been proven yet. “It’s never possible to automatically meet that potential. That’s what we’re trying to shape here at the Department of Transportation,” he said.
NHTSA is also eyeing Tesla’s fully self-driving system. In February, the agency pressured Tesla to recall about 363,000 vehicles with the software, saying the system could violate road traffic laws. This issue was to be fixed in an online software update.
Tesla CEO Elon Musk has said he expects fully self-driving cars to arrive this year, a promise he has made for years. “The trend is clearly towards fully autonomous driving,” Musk said in April. “I hesitate to say this, but I plan to do so this year.”
The system has been tested on public roads by 400,000 Tesla owners. But NHTSA said in a statement that the system allowed drivers to take dangerous actions, such as driving straight through intersections from right-turn lanes, passing yellow lights without paying due attention, and failing to respond to speed limit changes. said it could be done.
NHTSA has also launched an investigation into Tesla’s sudden braking, suspension problems and other issues over the past three years for no apparent reason.
Buttigieg declined to comment specifically on pending investigations. “From a marketing perspective, external agencies, states and other regulatory bodies, and from a vehicle safety standpoint, we are always on the lookout,” he said.
He emphasized that vehicles currently on sale cannot drive themselves and drivers must be vigilant at all times.
The Justice Department also asked Tesla to provide documentation on full self-driving and Autopilot.
Buttigieg also touted the Biden administration’s efforts to electrify the country’s automotive fleet.
“The bottom line is that the automotive sector is going electric, and we want that to happen quickly enough to meet our climate change goals,” he said. “We want it to happen on the mainland so we can get these American jobs and in a fair way that everyone benefits. I hope that will come true.”
Virginia Democratic Senator Joe Manchin has criticized the administration for lax enforcement of rules requiring EV batteries to be made in North America.
Although Buttigieg acknowledged “some substantial disagreements” about how the Control Inflation Act’s tax provisions should be implemented, a tax credit that deducts thousands of dollars from the purchase price of an EV would amount to a few. It said it was essential, along with a network of charging stations accommodating one million vehicles. New EVs.
“The president has laid out a goal of 500,000 chargers installed by the end of this decade. It will,” he said, noting that chargers and other benefits from the Climate Change Act and the 2021 Infrastructure Act have reached all states. “The red states, the blue states, the purple states all came back with plans to use those dollars and are now moving forward with it. increase.”
He noted that he was the former mayor of South Bend, Indiana, home to the Studebaker car company, which closed in the 1960s.
“I know how important it is for us to win this time and for America to lead the world in this revolution that will happen very positively anyway,” he said.
___
Krisher reported from Detroit. Associated Press reporter Matthew Daly, who lives in Washington, contributed to this article.
https://www.wgal.com/article/buttigieg-says-tesla-shouldnt-call-driving-system-autopilot/43882392 Buttigieg says Tesla shouldn’t call its drive system an autopilot
