Fatal Tesla crash in Saratoga: Driver overrode Autopilot’s braking, the NTSB says

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By David Shepardson | Reuters

WASHINGTON  – The U.S. National Transportation Safety Board on Tuesday said it had closed an investigation into a fatal August 2020 Tesla crash in Saratoga, California, without taking any action.

The NTSB said the driver was operating a 2019 Tesla Model 3 with the driver-assistance system Autopilot engaged but he was pressing the accelerator, causing the vehicle to go into override mode.

Further, the agency’s report, said the Tesla had issued multiple visual and audible alerts to the 75-year-old driver because his hands were not detected on the steering wheel while using Autopilot.

The announcement said the “investigation was initiated to support the NTSB’s interest in automated vehicle performance” but because of the findings “no further action beyond this memorandum will be taken.”

Around 11:20 a.m. on Aug. 12, 2020, the Tesla was northbound on Highway 85 approaching Saratoga Avenue when the first of two collisions occurred. The car was going about 68 mph, the NTSB report said. The driver increased the speed to 72 mph, and the car — detecting a minivan in front of it — triggered Automatic Emergency Braking.

The driver increased pressure on the accelerator to 95% and struck the rear of the minivan.

The Tesla then exited the highway at Saratoga Avenue and reached a speed of 114 mph on the off-ramp. It was going 110 mph when it hit a pickup truck where the ramp intersects with Saratoga Avenue.

The Tesla caught fire, resulting in fatal injuries to its driver and the passenger, who was his wife.

Four other people were injured, including the two occupants of the pickup truck — one of whom had life-threatening injuries — and the driver of the minivan.

Last month, the agency released a report on another fatal Tesla crash, which made national headlines because police insisted nobody had been in the driver’s seat. The NTSB said there was indeed a person behind the wheel but it had not yet been determined if Autopilot was engaged.

 

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