Federal agency sends team to probe Tesla crash that killed 3

DETROIT — The U.S. government’s road safety agency has dispatched a team to investigate the possibility that a Tesla involved in a California crash that killed three people was operating on a partially automated driving system.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration on Wednesday confirmed that it had sent a special crash investigation team to probe the May 12 crash on the Pacific Coast Highway in Newport Beach. The investigation is part a larger inquiry of the agency into crashes involving advanced driver assist systems like Tesla’s Autopilot. Since 2016, the agency has sent teams to 34 crashes in which the systems were either in use or suspected of operating. Of the 34, 28 involved Teslas, according to a NHTSA document released Wednesday.

Fifteen people died in the crashes that NHTSA is investigating, and at least 15 more were hurt. Of the deaths, 14 occurred in crashes involving Teslas, the documents say.

Inside the specific crashes, investigations are underway by NHTSA into Teslas on Autopilot colliding into emergency vehicles parked along roads. Also, a probe into Autopilot’s inability to brake for no apparent reason.

Last month, NHTSA and automakers asked for reports from public roads about any collisions involving fully autonomous vehicles or vehicles with partially-automatic driver assist systems. The partially automated systems can keep a vehicle in its lane and at a safe distance to other vehicles. The NHTSA claims that data can show if there is a pattern in crashes involving these systems.

A message was left Wednesday asking for comment from Tesla, which has its headquarters in Austin, Texas. The document was not released by the NHTSA for comment.

Tesla warns Autopilot users and its “Full Self-Driving” system that cars cannot drive themselves. Drivers must be prepared to intervene at any time.

NHTSA is also investigating two Volvo-related crashes, one in which a Navya shuttle collided with a car, and two in which a Cadillac was involved, one in a Lexus, one in an Hyundai. One of the Volvo crashes was an Uber autonomous test vehicle that ran over and killed an Arizona pedestrian in March of 2018.

In the Newport Beach crash, police were called around 12: 45 a.m. and found that a 2022 Tesla Model S sedan had crashed into a curb and then hit construction equipment on the south side of the road.

Authorities found two men and a woman dead in the car, and three construction workers suffered minor injuries, according to police. The Newport Beach Police Department stated that it had called in its Major Accident Investigation Team.