Tesla’s autonomous systems are already the subject of an multiple investigations by the NHTSA focused on crashes, but now it seems they’re being put under an entirely different microscope. The California attorney general’s office has opened its own investigation into Tesla’s Autopilot technology and the way it was marketed to consumers, according to a new report.
CNBC was contacted by Greg Wester, a Model 3 owner who filed a complaint with the Federal Trade Commission in August of last year over his EV’s erratic behavior, which included phantom braking, when Autopilot was engaged. Wester was unhappy with the autonomous driving experience and told the FTC that he felt duped after shelling out thousands of dollars for the top-line Full Self Driving package.
Clearly the wheels of justice move slower than a Tesla’s because it was the second quarter of 2023 before Wester heard anything back about his complaint. That’s when he received a voicemail from California Attorney General Rob Bonta’s office requesting to talk with Wester about his grievances. He shared the message with CNBC who was able to confirm that the caller was an analyst at the AG’s office.
Related: Report Of 736 Crashes And 17 Deaths Related To Tesla Autopilot Isn’t Telling The Whole Story
“Tesla should offer customers the option to receive a full refund of Autopilot features if they are unsatisfied with the product,” Wester said in an interview. He also claimed that when he ticked the FSD option box he believed he was buying a fully autonomous car but received “a driver monitoring product with partial autonomy.”
The news outlet claims that Wester’s isn’t the only complaint being investigated by the California AG’s office. Its news team says it’s aware of a former Tesla employee and current Model 3 owner who has also been contacted by the AG’s analysts for an “active” investigation.
Both Tesla and the AG’s office declined to comment on the story (or didn’t respond to a request for a comment, in Tesla’s case) when approached by CNBC, and Tesla has not previously disclosed that it’s under investigation by the attorney general’s office. But hey, with so many people complaining about something, you can imagine that it maybe just slipped their mind.
In Tesla’s defense, while the ‘Autopilot’ name is the system’s own worst enemy, phantom braking isn’t exclusive to cars from that particular automaker. Many of the cars we’ve driven with semi-autonomous systems also behave erratically. That doesn’t make it right, but it might mean that Tesla isn’t the only one getting it wrong.