Tesla Unintended-Acceleration Claims to be Reviewed by U.S. Regulators--Update
January 17 2020 - 2:21PM
Dow Jones News
By Ben Foldy
Federal regulators are looking into whether consumer complaints
of unintended acceleration in Tesla Inc. models warrant a formal
defect investigation into about 500,000 vehicles sold by the
electric-car maker.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration is evaluating
127 complaints received by the agency, which resulted in a reported
110 crashes and 52 injuries, according to documents posted online
Friday morning.
The agency said it received an emailed petition in December
citing the complaints and requesting an investigation. It didn't
identify who submitted it. By law, the agency is required to
evaluate petitions alleging defects and decide whether to open an
investigation.
The complaints about the issue include all three models Tesla
sells and potentially could cover about 500,000 vehicles,
regulators estimate, or nearly all of the cars the company has sold
in the U.S. since launching its Model S large sedan in 2012.
Tesla didn't respond to a request for comment.
NHTSA will follow standard practice and carefully review the
petition and relevant data, an agency spokesman said.
The company's shares, which have surged 22% since the start of
the year, fell less than 1% in morning trading Friday.
Public complaints of unintended acceleration among Tesla
customers include one from South Korean actor Ji Chang Son in 2016.
He claimed his Model X accelerated without command through the
garage wall into the living room of his Orange County, Calif.,
home. Tesla said data from the vehicle showed he had pressed the
accelerator. He denied that claim.
Many of the complaints cited in the NHTSA petition mention
similar circumstances. Owners describe their vehicles bolting
forward, often while attempting to park, causing them to plow into
walls, curbs or light posts. Many also said Tesla attributed their
crashes to driver error, claiming on-board data showed drivers had
accelerated.
Claims of unintended acceleration by customers involved in
crashes have long plagued the auto industry. A 1989 NHTSA study
found that the vast majority of acceleration incidents in which no
vehicle malfunction is present was caused by drivers mistaking the
gas pedal for the brake.
A decade ago, Toyota Motor Corp's strong reputation for safety
was dented following high-profile accusations of unintended
acceleration, which led to the auto maker recalling millions of
vehicles.
A federal probe eventually absolved Toyota's throttle-control
electronics in the vehicles, finding that driver error was to blame
in most mishaps. Sticky accelerator pedals and floor mats were said
to play a role in other incidents.
Since bringing out the Model S in 2012, Tesla has seen rapid
growth as it has worked to transform into a mainstream auto maker
from one that sells high-end luxury vehicles. Sales have surged
since 2017, when Tesla began selling the Model 3 compact car, its
first model offered around the industry's average selling price of
about $35,000.
Chief Executive Elon Musk has emphasized Tesla's focus on safety
and complained the company receives outsized attention for
incidents that other auto makers also face, such as car fires and
crashes.
NHTSA also is evaluating another petition, filed last September,
asking it to investigate allegations that Tesla modified its
battery management software, using remote software updates that
reduced the vehicles' range. The agency hasn't yet issued a
decision on that petition, which was filed by an attorney
representing plaintiffs in a class-action lawsuit.
Write to Ben Foldy at Ben.Foldy@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
January 17, 2020 14:06 ET (19:06 GMT)
Copyright (c) 2020 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
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