The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration is about to take a closer look at Tesla’s Autopilot, the company revealed on Thursday. In a blog post, Tesla says that it learned on Wednesday evening that the NHTSA is “opening a preliminary evaluation into the performance of Autopilot” following a fatal crash involving a Model S.
The incident, which happened in May, involved a white tractor-trailer that was turning left across a divided highway, perpendicular to the path of the Tesla, which was cruising on Autopilot. “Neither Autopilot nor the driver noticed the white side of the tractor trailer against a brightly lit sky, so the brake was not applied.
