U.S. ends probe into Tesla remote driving feature after software updates

WASHINGTON – The U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said on Monday it closed a probe into nearly 2.6 million Tesla vehicles over a feature allowing users to move ​cars remotely after finding it was linked only to low-speed incidents.

The agency opened the probe into the “Actually Smart Summon” feature in early 2025 after reports ⁠of several crashes. The system allows users to move vehicles over short distances in parking ‌areas or on private property, using a smartphone ​app.

The agency concluded that the feature was linked primarily to low-speed incidents resulting in minor property damage and said it had reports of about 100 crashes but no injuries or fatalities.

Tesla did not immediately ⁠respond to a Reuters request for comment.

Most reported ‌incidents involved vehicles striking obstacles ‌such as parked cars, garage doors or gates, often early in a Summon session when visibility or situational awareness ⁠was limited, NHTSA found.

No incidents were reported that involved a major crash, air bag deployment or a vehicle being towed away, ‌it said.

The agency said the ‌low frequency and severity of the incidents did not warrant further action. 

Tesla addressed issues through a series of software updates aimed at improving obstacle ⁠detection, camera blockage identification and vehicle response to dynamic ​objects such as gates, ⁠the regulator ​said. 

The updates also sought to reduce errors caused by environmental factors such as snow or condensation affecting cameras.

NHTSA last month separately upgraded a probe into Tesla’s Full Self-Driving system to an “engineering ⁠analysis,” a more advanced stage that typically precedes a potential recall and expanded the review to about 3.2 million vehicles.

Tesla’s driver-assistance and self-driving features remain under ⁠regulatory scrutiny over concerns about crashes, visibility limitations and whether the systems adequately warn drivers in real-world conditions.

In October, NHTSA opened an investigation into 2.9 million vehicles equipped with its Full ⁠Self-Driving system over more than ‌50 reports of traffic-safety violations and a series ​of crashes.

The auto ‌safety agency said FSD has “induced vehicle behavior that violated traffic ​safety laws.” NHTSA and Tesla have had a series of meetings over the issue in recent months.

(Reporting by David Shepardson in Washington and Akash Sriram in Bengaluru; Editing by Mrigank Dhaniwala, Shinjini Ganguli and Joe Bavier)