The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) has opened an investigation to understand how Passenger Play functionality of Tesla can distract drivers. The American manufacturer anticipates and decides to disable video games integrated into the dashboard of its vehicles.
The end of Passenger Play in motion
There is a real topic on driver concentration of Tesla vehicles. Indeed, the functionality of Autopilot is debated and about thirty accidents, in which ten people have died, are already the subject of an investigation. NHTSA wants to understand the role Autopilot, Tesla’s autopilot system, may or may not have played. Under pressure, Tesla therefore decided to deactivate its video game functionality, accused of distracting drivers …
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From now on, when vehicles are in motion, drivers and passengers will no longer be able to access the Passenger Play feature, which allows you to play video games while driving. An update to deactivate Passenger Play on the move will be published in a few days. The regulator’s spokeswoman said Tesla promised the change after discussing the matter with NHTSA officials. Tesla drivers will now have to be stationary to play the built-in games.
Are Tesla vehicles dangerous?
Unsurprisingly, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s investigation continues despite this update to Passenger Play. The agency reaffirmed that the Vehicle Safety Act prohibits companies from selling cars that pose significant safety risks, especially if distracted while driving. Investigation covers around 580,000 Tesla electric vehicles, manufactured between 2017 and 2021. Tesla declined to comment on this investigation.
While Tesla drivers will soon no longer be able to access Passenger Play while driving, they can still continue to watch videos. This could prompt the NHTSA to crack down. That’s not all: the vehicles of the American manufacturer are decried by several automotive experts for their “Button saving”. Most of the settings are made on a touch screen, which requires the driver to look away from the road … An element that will obviously be taken into account in the NHTSA survey for determine the dangerous nature of Tesla vehicles.