This past weekend, the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) said it was unhappy with Tesla for revealing the fact that the Autopilot was engaged in the Model X that crashed last week near Mountain View, California, killing its driver.
It didn’t take long for Elon Musk to react, through a reply to a tweet posted by Tesla Motors Club. In the short and concise message, Musk says the NTSB is nothing but an advisory body and not a regulating one, hence it cannot stop the company from publishing safety-related data.
“Lot of respect for NTSB, but NHTSA regulates cars, not NTSB, which is an advisory body. Tesla releases critical crash data affecting public safety immediately & always will. To do otherwise would be unsafe,” Musk said.
Although it found the Autopilot was engaged at the time of the Model X crash, Tesla hints to either the driver or a highway barrier being at fault for the fiery moment.
Judging by the data retrieved from the burned down car, Tesla says the driver had received several visual and audible hands-on warning in the moments leading to the event, but his hands were not detected on the steering wheel for six seconds before to the collision.
Additionally, Tesla claims the severity of the crash was increased by the highway barrier, which had either been removed or crushed in a prior accident without being replaced.
Separately, a test conducted by a Tesla Model X driver showed that the Autopilot feature could potentially fail to detect a pedestrian at night as well, just as in the case with Uber’s fatal accident in Tempe, Arizona.
Uber’s Volvo XC90 did not attempt to stop as it approached the pedestrian, as if not seeing the obstacle entirely. Tesla’s Autopilot did the same and only stopped after the driver pressed the brakes.
“Lot of respect for NTSB, but NHTSA regulates cars, not NTSB, which is an advisory body. Tesla releases critical crash data affecting public safety immediately & always will. To do otherwise would be unsafe,” Musk said.
Although it found the Autopilot was engaged at the time of the Model X crash, Tesla hints to either the driver or a highway barrier being at fault for the fiery moment.
Judging by the data retrieved from the burned down car, Tesla says the driver had received several visual and audible hands-on warning in the moments leading to the event, but his hands were not detected on the steering wheel for six seconds before to the collision.
Additionally, Tesla claims the severity of the crash was increased by the highway barrier, which had either been removed or crushed in a prior accident without being replaced.
Separately, a test conducted by a Tesla Model X driver showed that the Autopilot feature could potentially fail to detect a pedestrian at night as well, just as in the case with Uber’s fatal accident in Tempe, Arizona.
Uber’s Volvo XC90 did not attempt to stop as it approached the pedestrian, as if not seeing the obstacle entirely. Tesla’s Autopilot did the same and only stopped after the driver pressed the brakes.