Tesla Wins Five-Week Extension in U.S. Full Self-Driving Traffic Violations Probe

Regulators hit pause—again. The investigation into Tesla's autonomous driving tech just got another month and change to simmer.

The Paper Trail Grows

Federal authorities are digging deeper, demanding more data on how Tesla's flagship software handles real-world roads. That five-week extension isn't a gift—it's a signal the scrutiny is intensifying. Every missed stop sign, every ambiguous lane change logged by the system adds another page to the dossier.

Beta Testing on Public Roads

It's the core tension of the autonomous age: deploying cutting-edge AI where the stakes are life and limb. Tesla's 'Full Self-Driving' pushes updates to consumer vehicles, treating highways as a live development lab. Regulators are now auditing the experiment, traffic violation by traffic violation.

The compliance clock is ticking louder. Another delay means more time for Tesla to prepare its defense—and for investigators to build their case. The outcome could redefine the rules of the road for everyone.

For now, the probe rolls on. The market barely flinched—after all, what's another five weeks when you're betting on a sci-fi future? Just another line item in the 'regulatory risk' column that tech investors love to ignore.

Over 8,000 records still need manual review

“As of today, there are 8,313 records remaining that require manual review,” the company wrote in paperwork posted on the agency’s website. Tesla said its team could get through about 300 records each day. The new deadline is Feb. 23.

The success of FSD matters more than ever for the company. CEO Elon Musk is betting on the technology to boost sales after two straight years of falling vehicle deliveries. Musk often talks up how well Tesla’s driving features work. But California officials have pushed back, saying the company makes its cars sound more capable than they really are. The state has warned it could ban Tesla sales for 30 days, with that punishment possibly kicking in early this year.

Beyond the traffic violation investigation, NHTSA is also looking at whether Tesla vehicles can properly spot and react to bright sunlight, fog, and other conditions that make it hard to see. That separate probe started in October 2024 after several crashes, including one that killed someone.

In its request for more time, Tesla said it was swamped with questions from regulators.

Dealing with three big information requests at nearly the same time “is unduly burdensome and affects the quality of responses, the company said in its extension filing, as seen by Bloomberg.

Tesla plans to ask for yet another extension

Tesla also signaled it will ask for yet another extension down the road. Once it finishes counting up traffic violation reports and explaining what it thinks caused these problems, the company plans to request more time to dig deeper into each complaint.

That WOULD include details like which version of the FSD software was running, whether drivers got warnings before violations happened, and whether any crashes, injuries, or deaths were reported.

NHTSA has asked for timelines showing what happened in each incident, starting 30 seconds before the first traffic violation and ending when a driver took back control, a final violation occurred, or a crash happened.

Meanwhile, a member of Congress wants new rules for car doors. Representative Robin Kelly, a Democrat from Illinois, has put forward a bill that would make carmakers include manual door releases in new vehicles. The measure targets the electric door systems that Tesla helped make popular.

Under the proposed law, cars with electric doors would need a clearly marked mechanical latch that is “intuitive to use and readily accessible for the occupant.” Vehicles would also need ways for emergency crews to get inside when the power goes out.

Kelly introduced the bill last week. It marks the first time Capitol Hill has moved to address worries about electric car doors. Several people have been badly hurt or killed after getting trapped inside vehicles when powered doors failed to open.

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