Tesla Robotaxi complaints pile up days after launch

Elon Musk’s self-driving taxi service is already running in test mode in Austin, Texas.

The company mentioned plans to produce a dedicated two-seat coupe for its taxi fleet, but in the meantime, the tech is being tested in fewer-than-two-dozen Model Y crossovers. Users must secure a personal invitation to try out the service and will be able to hail a cab only in a relatively quiet neighborhood with no complex junctions or highways in the vicinity. The cars move completely autonomously, but an operator is sitting in the front passenger seat at all times to supervise the process without interfering.

Users set up routes from their mobile app or a dedicated touchscreen display in front of the back seat row. Logging in using your Tesla account info lets the car auto-apply your preferences.

Elon Musk says the number of taxis will be bolstered to a thousand in the coming months, and they will be available in a number of cities across the USA. However, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) has already reported receiving serious complaints about the Robotaxi.

One of the videos submitted for review shows a vehicle apparently confusing two intersections and trying to make a premature turn. Another AI-driven Model Y simply slammed the brakes in the middle of the road, next to some parked police cars.

There were also obvious traffic safety violations. For one, a Model Y was spotted going at 56 km/h (35 mph) in a 48 km/h (30 mph) zone. Making things more interesting is the fact that it was a Tesla shareholder who shared the incriminating video.

Asked for a comment, the NHTSA responded that it was aware of the issues and cooperating with the automaker to identify causes and seek solutions. No incidents of any severity have been linked to these reports thus far.