A new bill in Congress would require manual door releases in all cars with electric latches after at least 15 people died in Tesla crashes.
Federal safety officials have given Tesla an extra five weeks to respond to questions about its cars breaking traffic rules while using the company’s automated driving system.
The electric carmaker asked for the delay earlier this week from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. The agency launched its look into what Tesla calls Full Self-Driving, or FSD, back in October.
At the time, regulators pointed to dozens of cases where Tesla vehicles ran red lights, traveled the wrong way down roads, or made other dangerous mistakes.
Last month, NHTSA sent Tesla a list of questions. The agency wanted to know how many customer complaints, damage claims, legal disputes, and lawsuits might be tied to these problems. On Jan. 12, Tesla told regulators it needed extra time to sort through reports about traffic violations that could be connected to the investigation.
Over 8,000 records still need manual review
“As of today, there are 8,313 records remaining that require manual review,” the company wrote in paperwork posted on the agency’s website. Tesla said its team could get through about 300 records each day. The new deadline is Feb. 23.
The success of FSD matters more than ever for the company. CEO Elon Musk is betting on the technology to boost sales after two straight years of falling vehicle deliveries. Musk often talks up how well Tesla’s driving features work. But California officials have pushed back, saying the company makes its cars sound more capable than they really are. The state has warned it could ban Tesla sales for 30 days, with that punishment possibly kicking in early this year.
Beyond the traffic violation investigation, NHTSA is also looking at whether Tesla vehicles can properly spot and react to bright sunlight, fog, and other conditions that make it hard to see. That separate probe started in October 2024 after several crashes, including one that killed someone.
In its request for more time, Tesla said it was swamped with questions from regulators.
Dealing with three big information requests at nearly the same time “is unduly burdensome and affects the quality of responses, the company said in its extension filing, as seen by Bloomberg.
Tesla plans to ask for yet another extension
Tesla also signaled it will ask for yet another extension down the road. Once it finishes counting up traffic violation reports and explaining what it thinks caused these problems, the company plans to request more time to dig deeper into each complaint.
That would include details like which version of the FSD software was running, whether drivers got warnings before violations happened, and whether any crashes, injuries, or deaths were reported.
NHTSA has asked for timelines showing what happened in each incident, starting 30 seconds before the first traffic violation and ending when a driver took back control, a final violation occurred, or a crash happened.
Meanwhile, a member of Congress wants new rules for car doors. Representative Robin Kelly, a Democrat from Illinois, has put forward a bill that would make carmakers include manual door releases in new vehicles. The measure targets the electric door systems that Tesla helped make popular.
Under the proposed law, cars with electric doors would need a clearly marked mechanical latch that is “intuitive to use and readily accessible for the occupant.” Vehicles would also need ways for emergency crews to get inside when the power goes out.
Kelly introduced the bill last week. It marks the first time Capitol Hill has moved to address worries about electric car doors. Several people have been badly hurt or killed after getting trapped inside vehicles when powered doors failed to open.
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