The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) is investigating Tesla's 'Actual Smart Summon' Remote Parking Feature After Multiple Crash Incidents Reported.
NHTSA says it has received reports of 16 incidents involving Tesla's Intelligent Summon feature in 2016-2025 Model S and x vehicles, as well as 2017-2025 Model 3 and 2020-2025 Model Y. The administration's Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) is investigating approximately 2.6 million vehicles with the parking feature.
Tesla relaunched its remote parking Smart Summon as Actually Smart Summon (or ASS, get it?) last fall, after updating it to account for the company's decision to eliminate radar and ultrasonic sensors in favor of a remote parking approach. camera only. Tesla owners control the vehicle by pressing a button on the Tesla smartphone app. The vehicle then uses cameras to navigate a parking lot with no one behind the wheel. Releasing the app button stops the vehicle's movement.
Some 2.6 million vehicles with parking functions are being investigated
But NHTSA is concerned about incidents that went wrong. No injuries have been reported, but the agency is investigating “multiple allegations of accidents, involving both Smart Summon and Actually Smart Summon, where the user had very little reaction time to avoid a collision, either with line of sight available or by releasing the button on the phone application, which stops the movement of the vehicle.”
No ASS-related accidents have been reported through NHTSA's standing general order requiring companies to report incidents involving automated or autonomous functions.
Of course, the accident reporting rule and all NHTSA safety investigations into Tesla are headed toward an uncertain future with Donald Trump set to retake the White House. Trump's top donor and advisor is Elon Musk, who will benefit if the incoming administration decides to ignore or close all of his various investigations into his companies.
