Report: Tesla driver speeding.
Model S sedan, traveling with Autopilot self-driving feature on, was speeding at time of fatal collision, federal report shows
PALO ALTO — The driver in a fatal Model S crash in Florida was speeding with Autopilot engaged when his Tesla slammed into the side of a tractor-trailer, according to a federal report released Tuesday.
Tesla owner Joshua Brown was driving 74 mph in a 65 mph zone along a four-lane, divided highway in Central Florida, according to a preliminary report by the National Transportation Safety Board. The report did not cite a probable cause for the accident, and the agency said the investigation was ongoing. The Florida Highway Patrol had estimated Brown was traveling at 65 mph at the time of the crash.
The fatality is believed to be the first involving a car using self-driving features. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration is also probing the crash to determine the performance and design of Tesla’s Autopilot. Tesla’s driver-assistance system uses cameras, radar and other sensors to react to hazardous situations and position the car within lane markers.
The Palo Alto-based electric
vehicle maker has drawn criticism for releasing Autopilot too soon. Consumer Reports asked the company to rename the feature and require drivers to keep their hands on the steering wheel.
Tesla CEO Elon Musk defended the system last week, saying Autopilot saves lives even as a partially autonomous system. “When used correctly, it is already significantly safer than a person driving by themselves,” Musk wrote, “and it would therefore be morally reprehensible to delay release simply for fear of bad press or some mercantile calculation of legal liability.”
The NTSB report offered few new details about the May 7 crash near Williston, Florida. At around 4:40 p.m., Brown was driving his Model S on Autopilot at 74 mph, according to data downloaded from the car. The data revealed Brown was using the driver-assistance system, which features traffic-aware cruise control and auto-steering. The car was also equipped with automatic emergency braking.
Neither Brown nor the automated system applied the brakes as a tractortrailer carrying blueberries turned left across the sedan’s path. Tesla said shortly after the accident that the car’s sensors failed to recognize the white truck against the bright sky.
The Model S slid under the right side of the semitrailer, disconnecting the battery from the motors, according to the NTSB report. The car coasted off the highway, struck a utility pole and came to rest in the front yard of a private home, the report said. The tractor-trailer suffered only minor damage.
Brown, a 40-year-old Navy veteran from Ohio, was pronounced dead at the scene.
Five NTSB investigators conducted the on-site review, examining both vehicles and the wreck scene. The agency said final reports are generally released 12 months after preliminary reviews.