ATHENS, Ohio — The U.S. has opened a formal investigation into the potential for Tesla drivers to play video games on a center touch …
ATHENS, Ohio — The U.S. has opened a formal investigation into the potential for Tesla drivers to play video games on a center touch screen while the vehicle is in motion. In a document posted Wednesday on its website, the agency says the feature, called « Passenger Play, » may distract the driver and increase the risk of a crash. « To date, the agency has received one owner complaint describing the gameplay functionality and has confirmed that this capability has been available since December 2020 in Tesla « Passenger Play »-equipped vehicles, » a NHTSA spokesman said in an email. « Before this time, enabling gameplay was only possible when the vehicle was in park. » The probe, which covers all four Tesla models, the S, X, Y and 3, was opened « to evaluate the driver distraction potential of Tesla ‘Passenger Play’ while the vehicle is being driven. » Investigators « will evaluate aspects of the feature, including the frequency and use scenarios of Tesla « Passenger Play. »‘ The probe by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration covers about 580,000 electric cars and SUVs from model years 2017 through 2022.
