Tesla Ordered to Hand Over Extensive Data on ‘Elon Mode’ Autopilot Amid Safety Concerns

Tesla vehicles charge at a station in Emeryville, Calif., on Aug. 10, 2022. Godofredo A. Vásquez/AP Photo

Elon Musk’s Tesla has been ordered by federal regulators to hand over extensive data regarding its driver-assistance systems after reports emerged that some consumers had unlocked a new feature allowing them to drive for extended periods of time without being prompted to place their hands on the steering wheel.

The configuration was discovered earlier this year by a Tesla software hacker known online as @greentheonly, who affectionately coined it “Elon Mode,” after the Tesla CEO.

According to the hacker, the configuration allowed the drivers to operate their vehicles in a setting that reduced or eliminated their vehicles’ Autopilot driver-assist prompts that ask the driver to grab the steering wheel, effectively allowing drivers to go completely hands-free.

In a July 26 letter to the electric vehicle maker (pdf), the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) said it recently became aware that Tesla had “introduced an Autopilot configuration that, when enabled, allows drivers using Autopilot to operate their vehicles for extended periods without Autopilot prompting the driver to apply torque to the steering wheel.”

The agency said it was “concerned” that the feature was “introduced to consumer vehicles and, now that the existence of this feature is known to the public, more drivers may attempt to activate it.”

“The resulting relaxation of controls designed to ensure that the driver remains engaged in the dynamic driving task could lead to greater driver inattention and failure of the driver to properly supervise Autopilot,” NHTSA said.

SpaceX CEO Elon Musk attends an event during the Vivatech technology startups and innovation fair at the Porte de Versailles exhibition center in Paris on June 16, 2023. Joel Saget/AFP via Getty Images

Possible Fines, DOJ May Intervene

NHTSA ordered Tesla to hand over information regarding the date on which the software update was introduced to Tesla engineering and then consumer vehicles, and how many vehicles, including both Tesla engineering vehicles and consumer vehicles, may be using it.

The agency also asked Tesla to “describe in detail the steps and or conditions necessary to activate the setting in the subject software update that reduces or eliminates instances in which Autopilot prompts the driver to apply torque.”

It also asked the company to describe in detail its “basis or purpose in installing the subject software in on-road consumer vehicles beyond the Tesla engineering vehicles, including but not limited to the justification for which consumer vehicles or vehicle owners were eligible for the subject software update.”

Additionally, the agency asked Tesla to hand over incident or crash reports from collisions or near-misses involving vehicles that had the subject software update enabled.

If Tesla had failed to respond “fully or truthfully” to the request by Aug. 25, it could have resulted in a referral to the Department of Justice for a civil action to compel responses, according to the letter, as well as daily civil penalties.

Tesla responded to NHTSA’s requests on time but was granted confidential treatment by the agency, CNBC reported.

The Epoch Times contacted Tesla for comment but didn’t receive a reply by press time.

New Autopilot features are demonstrated in a Tesla Model S during a Tesla event in Palo Alto, Calif., on Oct. 14, 2015. Beck Diefenbach/File Photo/Reuters

Musk Touts Autopilot Feature

Tesla’s website describes Autopilot as a “suite of advanced driver assistance features that are intended to make driving safer and less stressful.”

The website states that none of these features, which come standard with all new Tesla vehicles, make the Model 3 fully autonomous or replace the driver.

“Always be prepared to take immediate action. Failure to follow these instructions could cause damage, serious injury, or death,” it states.

However, in April, Mr. Musk said that Tesla is gradually reducing the steering wheel alerts that ask drivers to keep their hands on the wheel, Reuters reported.

In an Aug. 30 post on his social media platform, X, formerly known as Twitter, Mr. Musk touted the feature, writing, “If you haven’t tried Tesla Autopilot, you don’t know how awesome it is.”

NHTSA’s letter comes as Tesla has come under increased scrutiny from regulators over allegations that its autopilot features were involved in multiple deaths. The vehicle maker is set to go to trial later this year over the allegations.

In July, the agency opened a special crash probe into a July 5 fatal accident in California involving a 2018 Tesla Model 3 in which advanced driver-assistance systems are suspected of having been used.

Earlier this month, NHTSA launched a special crash investigation into a fatal accident in Virginia involving a Tesla Model Y, which was suspected of relying on advanced driver-assistance systems when it hit a truck, killing the driver.