A MAN died in a horror smash when a Tesla “autopilot” vehicle ploughed into a tree at nearly 100mph and burst into flames in the Netherlands.
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Police are investigating the cause of the early morning accident in the town 40 kilometres south-east of Amsterdam. According to the vehicle maker, the car’s log showed the man was travelling at 154.5 kilometres per hour. “We are working with the authorities to establish the full facts surrounding the accident”.
Tesla TSLA, -2.16% crashes have come under scrutiny since the company revealed in June that a Model S ran into a truck in Florida while in its Autopilot feature was engaged.
When the firefighters had issues in putting away the fire due to fear of getting injury by electric shock, the automaker sent a team of technicians at the accident scene to assist them.
The Dutch news agency ANP said it took fire officers several hours to recover his body as they feared being electrocuted.
Firefighters’ spokesperson, Ronald Boer, said the vehicle was completely damaged which created challenges to put away the fire. In that case, the auto was operating in autopilot, which uses cameras, radar and computers to spot objects and stop it if it senses an impending collision.
Amidst the controversy that Tesla is now facing following a fatal auto crash in Florida that occurred last May, another recent accident has put the company in an unfavorable spotlight.
The system allows the vehicle to automatically change lanes, manage speed and brake to avoid a collision. The driver can override the system by using the normal controls.
Tesla could tell whether autopilot was engaged in both fatal crashes because it collects that data from customers. Tesla and Dutch authorities were investigating the incident Wednesday. It uses the data to make improvements to the autopilot and other functions, which are beamed to customers through over-the-air software updates.
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Dutch media outlets published pictures showing pieces of the vehicle strewn across the road, including small fires that appear to have been ignited by battery cells that broke free from the underbody battery pack.
