Gaming whereas driving: Tesla permits it, Mercedes does recall

Just a few days after stories surfaced that Tesla permits drivers to play video video games on dashboard contact screens whereas automobiles are shifting, Mercedes-Benz has issued a U.S. recall for a simliar problem.

The German automaker mentioned in paperwork posted Friday by U.S. regulators that the difficulty affected 227 automobiles and already has been mounted by updating an inside laptop server.

But the truth that Mercedes did the recall over considerations about distracted driving, and Tesla has not, raised questions on whether or not federal auto security requirements are being utilized equally by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

“MB is following the regulatory rules as they are supposed to—in sharp contrast to what we’ve been seeing from Tesla,” mentioned Philip Koopman, a professor {of electrical} and laptop engineering at Carnegie Mellon University. If NHTSA would not take motion towards Tesla, the company can have one normal for Tesla and one other for Mercedes and different automakers, Koopman mentioned.

NHTSA did not immediately deal with the double normal or Tesla, however mentioned in an announcement Friday that the federal automobile security act prohibits producers from promoting automobiles that pose an unreasonable threat to security. “Every motor vehicle manufacturer in the United States has the same responsibility to identify and immediately repair, for free, such safety defect in their vehicles,” the assertion mentioned.

The company mentioned it is assessing how automakers establish and safeguard towards distraction hazards because of faults, misuse or supposed use of infotainment screens. NHTSA mentioned it recurrently communicates with automakers about considerations, in addition to reviewing shopper complaints and a “massive amount of data that companies are required to submit on a regular basis, looking for evidence of safety risks. If the data show that such a risk may exist, NHTSA will act immediately,” the company mentioned.

A message was left Friday in search of remark from Tesla, which has disbanded its media relations division.

Mercedes mentioned in paperwork that on some 2021 and 2022 EQS and S mannequin automobiles, drivers might entry tv packages and the web whereas the automobiles are touring. The automaker mentioned it supposed to disable the options whereas the automobiles are shifting, however the recalled automobiles had an incorrect laptop configuration.

“If an occupant were to actively select the function or application while the vehicle is driving, then driver distraction might result, which could increase the risk of a crash,” the corporate wrote in paperwork. The recalled automobiles have lively and related “Mercedes me” accounts.

Mercedes wrote that it has no stories of any crashes or accidents from the issue, which was found in an organization vehicle in Germany.

Last month a Tesla owner near Portland, Oregon, filed a grievance with NHTSA after discovering that whereas driving, he might play video video games and browse the web on the display of his 2021 Tesla Model 3. The company mentioned Thursday that it’s speaking with Tesla concerning the problem.

NHTSA already is investigating why Tesla’s “Autopilot” partially automated driving system retains crashing into stopped emergency automobiles, and it has inquired about why Tesla did not file recall paperwork when it did an over-the-air web replace in an effort to handle the protection drawback. It’s additionally trying into the efficiency of Tesla’s “Full Self-Driving” software program after getting a grievance that it almost triggered a crash.

Tesla says neither system can drive automobiles and that drivers have to be able to intervene always.

Jason Levine, government director of the nonprofit Center for Auto Safety, mentioned the auto business appears to have reached some extent with infotainment screens the place it should “choose whether to be an enabler or a preventer” of distracted driving.

“We are glad to see Mercedes recall and repair this unreasonable risk to everyone on the road, but would urge NHTSA to move quickly to ensure that all screen-based entertainment distractions are disabled when vehicles are in motion, no matter the manufacturer,” Levine mentioned.

Mercedes possible is paying shut consideration to U.S. security legal guidelines after it needed to pay a $13 million penalty to NHTSA in 2019 for a collection of reporting failures involving recalled automobiles.

The automaker agreed to the cost and to repair flaws after the company alleged that Mercedes was sluggish to report safety issues and wasn’t mailing out recall notification letters shortly sufficient.

Mercedes’ U.S. unit mentioned on the time that it did not do something incorrect intentionally.

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