NHTSA complaint: 2016 TESLA MODEL X — UNKNOWN OR OTHER
WHILE TURNING LEFT TO ENTER A VERY NARROW GARAGE ENTRANCE I NEEDED TO DETERMINE WHETHER OR NOT I HAD TO STRAIGHTEN OUT BEFORE PULLING IN OR IF MY LEFT TURN WAS TIGHT ENOUGH TO PULL IN WITHOUT REVERSING TO STRAIGHTEN OUT. I SAW THAT I WAS IN THE POSITION THAT I COULD CONTINUE INTO THE GARAGE AND LIGHTLY PRESSED THE ACCELERATOR TO FINISH MY TURN INTO THE GARAGE. IT WAS AT THIS POINT THAT THE CAR ACCELERATED WITH EXTREME FORCE AND WITHIN A SECOND SLAMMED INTO A LARGE CONCRETE POLE THAT WAS JUST INSIDE THE GARAGE TO THE LEFT. I NEVER FELT THE CAR SLOW IN THAT MOMENT, ONLY SPEED UP AND I BELIEVE THE CAR SLAMMED INTO THE POLE WHILE ACCELERATING AND WOULD HAVE CONTINUED TO ACCELERATE IF NOT FOR THE LARGE POLE. I DID NOT HAVE EITHER FOOT DEPRESSED ON EITHER PEDAL AT THE MOMENT OF COLLISION. THE AIR BAGS DID NOT DEPLOY, BUT THERE WAS VERY SEVERE DAMAGE TO THE FRONT END OF THE CAR THAT WILL BE AT LEAST $25K. I WAS NOT ON THE PHONE OR DISTRACTED IN ANY WAY. I WAS DRIVING CAREFULLY AND PAYING FULL ATTENTION. THIS IS NOT A CASE OF MISTAKEN PEDAL BECAUSE I WAS INTENDING TO ACCELERATE. AT FIRST TESLA TOLD US OVER THE PHONE THAT THEIR LOGS SHOW THAT THE DRIVER PRESSED THE PEDAL 100% AND THEN TAPPED THE BRAKE BEFORE IMPACT. THIS EXPLANATION SOUNDED PHYSICALLY IMPOSSIBLE BECAUSE THE DISTANCE COVERED WAS LESS THAN 3 CAR LENGTHS. A MONTH LATER TESLA SENT A LETTER STATING THE DRIVER PRESSED THE ACCELERATOR 100% UNTIL THE VEHICLE SENSED A CRASH. TESLA DID NOT RESPOND TO OUR QUERY
National Highway Traffic Safety Administration — Office of Defects Investigation