http://jrnl.ie/4038417fTesla car, in autopilot mode, speeds up before crashing into parked fire engine
Two people were injured, including the owner of the car who has been charged with traffic offences.
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Tesla Crash-Utah The Tesla Model S, pictured in the aftermath of the crash
Source: AP
A TESLA THAT crashed while in autopilot mode in Utah this month accelerated in the seconds before it smashed into a stopped firetruck, according to a police report obtained by the Associated Press.
Two people were injured.
Data from the Model S electric vehicle show it picked up speed for 3.5 seconds before crashing into the firetruck in suburban Salt Lake City. The driver manually hit the brakes a fraction of a second before impact.
Police suggested that the car was following another vehicle and dropped its speed to 89 kph to match the leading vehicle. They say the leading vehicle then likely changed lanes and the Tesla automatically sped up to its preset speed of 97 kph without noticing the stopped cars ahead.
The police report, which was obtained last week through an open records request, provides detail about the vehicle’s actions immediately before the 11 May crash and the driver’s familiarity with its system.
The driver of the vehicle, Heather Lommatzsch (29), told police she thought the vehicle’s automatic emergency braking system would detect traffic and stop before the car hit another vehicle.
She said she owned the car for two years and used the semi-autonomous autopilot feature on all kinds of roadways, including the Utah highway where she crashed, according to the report.
No warnings
Lommatzsch said the car did not provide any audio or visual warnings before the crash. A witness told police she did not see signs that the car illuminated its brake lights or swerved to avoid the truck ahead of it.