Police believe that the car’s automation features were at fault
One particular Tesla owner has been left with a mess, as it appears their car had a mind of its own, driving into three other cars and then eventually off the roof of a shopping center roof – all with the driver still inside.
Self-driving cars and electric vehicles have been all the rage over the past few years, and studies have shown them stand up strong against vigorous tests and have even proven them to be safer than their human-operated counterparts in most scenarios.
There have been quite a few reported failures with Tesla vehicles in particular though, with fatal door malfunctions, misinterpreted features, and poor camera detection.
The latest addition to this list is one Model S vehicle that appeared to have a mind of its own, taking its driver and passenger on a ride that they could not stop through several cars and eventually off the top of a parking lot roof.
The incident occurred in Sydney, and video footage reported by 9 News Australia shows the Tesla vehicle dangerously accelerating towards and through other vehicles in the parking lot, before toppling over the edge.
Three cars were struck in total, and while the pair, aged 59 and 68, stuck inside the vehicle were taken to hospital after the crash, they thankfully weren’t seriously hurt, and were treated for chest injuries.
No other individuals were injured as part of the chain of accidents, although the affected cars did have to be taken in for repairs.
New South Wales police have released a statement claiming that: “Investigations into the circumstances surrounding the incident are ongoing.”
It is unclear from the footage whether the driver had any control over the vehicle, but the understanding is that there was a fault in the automotive features of the electric car.
The Model S has since been taken to a garage to receive an electronics check, where it will be understood how the situation came to be and if there were indeed any faults or malfunctions that caused the crash.
It has raised questions surrounding not only the safety of self-driving vehicles and technology right now, but also specifically within Elon Musk’s Tesla vehicles.
Musk’s Tesla has received concerns from the NHTSA over the safety of their FSD technology (STR/AFP via Getty Images)
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) has recently opened up a probe into Tesla’s Full Self-Driving (FSD) technology, following the car manufacturer’s decision to recall 2.4 million vehicles.
What prompted this was four separate collisions, including two fatal incidents, and the NHTSA remains unconvinced whether Tesla’s recall provided adequate safeguarding improvements within the FSD tech.
Featured Image Credit: 9 News Australia / YouTube
