Der Spiegel says the Transport Ministry called the feature a “considerable traffic hazard.”
The Autopilot function on Tesla’s Model S car represents a “considerable traffic hazard,” according to an internal report for Germany’s Transport Ministry seen by magazineDer Spiegel.
Experts in the Federal Highway Research Institute carried out tests on the electric car and criticized it on a number of points, the magazine reported on Friday.
For example, drivers are not alerted by the Autopilot system when the vehicle gets into a situation that the computer cannot solve, Spiegel cited the report as saying.
In addition, the car’s sensors do not detect far back enough during an overtaking maneuver, while the emergency brake also performs inadequately, according to the report.
Spiegel said Transport Minister Alexander Dobrindt was aware of the report but did not want to take the model out of service.
The ministry told Reuters a final evaluation had not yet been taken and further tests were being conducted.
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