A Tesla Model 3 reportedly driving on Autopilot mode crashed into a parked Florida Highway Patrol car Saturday morning, according to local media reports.
The state trooper had stopped to help the driver of a disabled vehicle on an interstate highway near downtown Orlando around 5 a.m. when the incident occurred, the Orlando Sentinel reported.
The emergency lights were activated on the state patrol car when the Tesla slammed into it and then crashed into the disabled vehicle, narrowly missing the trooper, the report says. There were no major injuries.
The Tesla’s Autopilot advanced driver-assistance system was engaged when it struck the patrol car, police officials tweeted.
A NHTSA spokesperson said the agency is aware of the incident involving a Tesla vehicle near Orlando and is gathering information on the crash.
U.S. auto safety regulators this month opened an investigation into the EV maker’s Autopilot mode after a series of collisions with first responder vehicles where the driver-assist system was engaged.
The safety probe covers an estimated 765,000 Teslas from the 2014 to 2021 model years. Most of the crashes occurred after dark and in total resulted in 17 injuries and one death.
NHTSA has come under scrutiny by safety advocates for failing to ensure the safety of systems such as Autopilot despite recommendations from the National Transportation Safety Board to develop standards for driver-monitoring systems and other safeguards such as limiting where driver-assist technology can be activated.
Critics also say the name Autopilot misrepresents the driver-assist system’s capabilities. In addition to Autopilot, questions have been raised about Tesla’s newer driver-assist feature that it calls Full Self Driving and is beta testing with live drivers on public roads.
Both systems require a “fully attentive driver, who has their hands on the wheel and is prepared to take over at any moment,” according to Tesla’s website.
No automaker sells a vehicle for public purchase today that is self-driving.
Tesla and the Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles did not immediately respond to requests for comment Monday.