The US National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) has initiated an audit inquiry into Tesla’s self-driving rental car Cybercab, just hours after Tesla’s Cybercab launch event in Austin, Texas. These vehicles lack a steering wheel and brake pedals, making this design a focal point of the review.
Tech media outlet TechCrunch first reported this news on September 4th. According to a summary of the audit inquiry released by NHTSA, Tesla had previously “notified the agency that its certification of Cybercab vehicles complies with all applicable federal motor vehicle safety standards (FMVSS).” Under federal law, car manufacturers are allowed to self-certify that their vehicles meet safety regulations, but current regulations require vehicles to be equipped with a steering wheel and brakes.
In the inquiry, NHTSA raised questions hoping to understand Tesla’s self-certification of Cybercab, including whether it was based on the determination that certain federal motor vehicle safety standards do not apply to Cybercab, meaning the company may have independently concluded that some safety regulations do not apply to this driverless rental car.
On the evening of September 3 (Thursday), Tesla held an invite-only launch event in Austin, inviting several social media influencers to test drive the model. Two hours before the event, Tesla’s official social media account X posted stating “The future has arrived in Austin” with a quote from CEO Musk describing Cybercab as “the first vehicle designed specifically for unsupervised fully automated driving.”
Tesla first showcased the Cybercab prototype at a Hollywood studio event in 2024. According to the Statesman.com, Tesla has registered 45 Cybercabs for its robot taxi fleet in Texas, but the company mentioned that Cybercab passenger services are currently only available in certain areas of Austin. Tesla previously operated a modified version of the Model Y for its robot taxi service in Austin.
As of the time of writing on Friday, Tesla had not responded to requests for comments. The company’s stock price dropped more than 5% in early trading that day.