Consumer Reports Calls Tesla’s AutoPilot ‘Misleading and Potentially Dangerous’

Federal regulators say preliminary reports show the fatal Tesla crash happened when a semitrailer turned left in front of the vehicle that was in Autopilot mode at a highway intersection on May 7.

Consumer Reports has publicly called on Tesla to disable the automatic steering portion of Autopilot in the wake of the fatal accident that took the like of Joshua Brown.

“This is not a self-driving car” but the name “autopilot” suggests that it is, MacCleery argued.

DETROIT (AP) — Consumer Reports said Thursday that Tesla Motors is misleading vehicle owners by calling its semi-autonomous driving system “Autopilot”, potentially giving them too much trust in their car’s ability to drive itself.

Consumer Reports said it wants Tesla to require drivers to keep their hands on the wheel as part of an updated driver-assist system, as well as changing the name.

Other auto brands, including Lincoln, Volvo, Infiniti and Mercedes-Benz have steering technology similar to that included in Tesla’s Autopilot, but those manufacturers require drivers to keep their hands on the steering wheel nearly all the time.

A known Tesla Motors Inc. bull and an influential magazine have at least one thing in common when it comes to the electric-car maker: It should consider renaming its suite of advanced driver assistance systems.

In an extensive article posted at the top of its website Thursday morning, Consumer Reports said Tesla should “disable hands-free operation until its system can be made safer”.

The system didn’t detect a tractor-trailer that had turned in front of Brown in bright sunshine, and Brown didn’t react.

NHTSA is investigating the May 7 crash and death in Florida of a Model S driver who was using Autopilot.

It marks a sharp reversal for the watchdog magazine which conclude last October that Tesla’s Autopilot system “worked quite well”.

The spokesperson also pointed to a statement the company released in June, which noted that “the data is unequivocal that Autopilot reduces driver workload and results in a statistically significant improvement in safety when compared to purely manual driving”.

About 25 seconds before the crash, “Autosteer began a graceful abort procedure in which the music is muted, the vehicle begins to slow and the driver is instructed both visually and audibly to place their hands on the wheel”, according to the company. “He was a friend to Tesla and the broader EV community, a person who spent his life focused on innovation and the promise of technology and who believed strongly in Tesla’s mission”.

MacCleery said the Tesla accidents show “regulators urgently need to step up their oversight of cars with these active safety features”.

Tesla said it is continually introducing fully tested improvements to make the Autopilot system safer than driving without it. “We will continue to develop, validate, and release those enhancements as the technology grows”, the spokeswoman said.

Tesla’s much anticipated Model X will be out in September, 2015.

“It will be hard for Tesla to be found liable given that they clearly state the human driver is ultimately responsible”.

If Tesla were to heed the advice, it would surely mean redesigning the steering wheel to include sensors recognising when drivers are in contact.

Tesla gives its customers more than the small print, she said.