Safety Advocates Praise Tesla Recall; Say More Needs To Be Done

Tesla's major recall this week of more than 2 million vehicles to reportedly fix their faulty Autopilot system drew a mixed bag of responses from safety advocates.

Two Sides To This Issue

On one hand, the advocates praised the company for taking steps to ensure the safety of Tesla drivers, while on the other, they believe the fix doesn't go far enough. Safety advocates believe Tesla must do more to ensure that "drivers are paying full attention at the wheel," according to Automotive News (AN), the industry's leading trade paper.

For example, Mary "Missy" Cummings, a safety advocate who has been "critical of Tesla's automated-driving systems," called the recall a "good initial step, but there's a lot that still needs to be done." Cummings told AN. She is a safety advocate and professor at George Mason University. Cummings worked for the safety agency following an aviation career, which included a stint with the National Aviation and Space Administration (NASA) and the military as a pilot.

Tesla's recall comes two years "into a defect investigation by the" National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). The agency's probe has found that "Tesla's Autopilot doesn't do enough to guard against misuse." This probe spurred the company's action earlier this week. It is the largest recall in the company's history 

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Tesla initiated the recall on Tuesday. In its recall, the automaker noted that "it expected an over-the-air software [update] to incorporate additional controls and alerts," said AN. Interestingly, Tesla no longer has a public relations department, so there is no way to quickly receive a comment directly from any company spokesman.

No Response From Automaker

Indeed, they still haven't responded to requests for comments on the "recall or NHTSA's investigation, which remains open," AN said.

Some of the potential changes that "Tesla could make is moving to a system where drivers are required to have good driving scores on their (Tesla) internal monitoring system to access Autopilot," Cummings told the trade paper.

She also said that "drivers shouldn't be able to use it in areas it's not designed for, like city streets."

A Center for Auto Safety spokesman based in Washington said he was "' glad that Tesla appears to be putting additional restrictions' around where and when Autopilot can be enabled, as well as adding more warnings."

Michael Brooks, executive director of the Washington-based Center for Auto Safety, said he was "glad that Tesla appears to be putting additional restrictions" around where and when Autopilot can be enabled and adding more warnings.

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Brooks noted that flaws still existed. He said, "' there don't appear to be any answers or fixes relating to the system's repeated failures to detect and respond to emergency personnel and other related hazards.'"

Many Crashes With Autopilot

Brooks referred to many crashes in which Teslas, under Autopilot control, have crashed into first-response vehicles.

The associate director of safety policy at Consumer Reports, William Wallace, told the trade paper that the wait for this recall has been too long.

"Tesla should have launched a broad recall for Autopilot at least five years ago, and delays like this are unacceptable," he said.

"We credit NHTSA for its perseverance, but it's clear the agency needs a greater practical ability to force recalls when a company drags its feet."

Two Washington lawmakers also added their comments. In a joint statement, Sens. Edward Markey, D-MA, and Richard Blumenthal, D-CT, said the Tesla recall took too long. They called it "egregiously overdue."

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Both senators have long been auto safety advocates. They urged "NHTSA to 'continue its investigations to spur necessary recalls, and Tesla to stop misleading drivers and putting the public in great danger.'"

Marc Stern has been an automotive writer since 1971. His automotive articles have appeared in venues including Popular Mechanics, Mechanix Illustrated, AutoWeek, SuperStock, Trailer Life, Old Cars Weekly, and Special Interest Autos. You can follow Marc on Twitter or Facebook. I usually cover Ford cars and trucks. However, I have followed major recalls such as this, one of history's most significant safety recalls relating to exploding airbags.