Feds Probe Tesla Cybercab Hours After Launch
Feds Probe Tesla Cybercab Hours After Launch
The News
Federal safety regulators have opened an investigation into how Tesla certified its Cybercab robotaxi, hours after the first production vehicles hit public streets in Austin, Texas.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said Friday morning it was opening an audit query, numbered AQ26002, "to examine the process and technical data on which Tesla relied when certifying the Cybercab and related issues."
At issue is what the car does not have: a steering wheel, pedals or sideview mirrors — all required under the Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards.
Tesla stock fell more than 4.5% by 9:56 a.m. ET after the announcement, according to IBTimes.
The Numbers
NHTSA's investigation covers an estimated 1,000 Cybercabs, The Verge reported, though Tesla has just 45 registered with the Texas Department of Motor Vehicles. Tesla has said it eventually plans to sell the Cybercab to individual buyers for an estimated $30,000.
Timeline
The Department of Transportation proposes stripping the manual-control requirements, including the brake pedal, for vehicles designed to drive themselves, TechCrunch reported. The proposal is not final.
NHTSA grants Amazon's Zoox permission to charge passengers for rides in its steering-wheel-free shuttle, roughly two years after the agency opened its own investigation into Zoox's self-certification. During that probe Zoox could run its vehicles for demonstration purposes only, according to The Verge.
Tesla holds a private event in Austin to mark the Cybercab's public launch.
NHTSA opens the audit query, "mere hours after Tesla put the first Cybercabs on the streets of Austin," TechCrunch reported. IBTimes reported the agency also issued a special order seeking more information.
Reactions
NHTSA said Tesla told the agency it had self-certified the Cybercab as compliant with all Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards. In the US, automakers certify their own compliance; the agency can investigate that process after the fact.
"Among other things, NHTSA will consider the extent to which Tesla's certification depended on determinations that certain FMVSS are inapplicable to the Cybercab," the agency said in its notice.
Tesla does not appear to have sought an exemption from those rules, The Verge reported — which is what prompted the probe.
Investors reacted fastest. The stock slide came within the hour of the announcement.
What's Next
An audit query does not stop production or force the Cybercabs off the road. The open question is money: Zoox was barred from charging fares while its own certification probe ran, and it is not yet clear whether Tesla will be allowed to charge for Cybercab rides while NHTSA works.
The agency's separate proposal to drop manual-control requirements for autonomous vehicles is still pending, and would change the standard Tesla is being measured against if it is finalized.
More
This is not the only federal inquiry hanging over the company. NHTSA is also probing 3.2 million Teslas equipped with Full Self-Driving, a review that could lead to a recall, The Verge reported.
NHTSA sits under Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy. Elon Musk is a major Republican donor, but The Verge noted the two men are not close.
Poll
Should Tesla be allowed to charge for Cybercab rides while the federal probe is open?
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