Tesla autos have accounted for practically 70% of reported crashes involving superior driver-assist techniques since final June, in keeping with federal figures launched Wednesday. However officers warned that the information is incomplete and is not meant to point which automobile maker’s techniques is perhaps most secure.

The Nationwide Freeway Site visitors Security Administration stated the first-of-its-kind information does not but have correct context and is simply meant to be a information to shortly establish potential defect developments and assist decide whether or not the techniques are enhancing the security of autos.

“I might advise warning earlier than trying to attract conclusions primarily based solely on the information that we’re releasing. In reality, the information alone might elevate extra questions than they reply,” NHTSA Administrator Steven Cliff stated throughout a media occasion.

Based on the information, Tesla automobiles represented 273 accidents involving its superior driver-assist techniques since firms have been required to start out reporting the incidents roughly a yr in the past. That is out of 392 crashes reported total by 11 automakers and one provider from June 2021 via Could 15.

Honda was second with 90 reported accidents, adopted by Subaru at 10 and Ford Motor at 5. All different firms reported 4 or much less accidents, together with Toyota at 4, BMW at three and Common Motors at two.

The information launch is the primary for the reason that authorities started mandating in June 2021 that firms report incidents involving “Stage 2” superior driver-assist techniques, which are supposed to assist an attentive driver however not change them. They embrace Tesla’s techniques akin to Autopilot and GM’s Tremendous Cruise.

The information doesn’t take into context components such because the variety of autos automakers have made, the variety of autos they’ve on the street or the distances traveled by these autos. When and the way a lot information firms supplied additionally varies, that means a lot of it’s incomplete.

For instance, crashes involving superior driver-assist techniques have resulted in not less than six fatalities and 5 severe accidents, in keeping with the information. Nonetheless, whether or not there have been accidents in a majority of the crashes – 294 of them – is unknown, that means there are seemingly extra.

“That is an unprecedented effort to collect practically actual time security information involving these superior applied sciences,” Cliff stated. “Understanding the story that the information inform will take time as most of NHTSA’s work does however it’s a narrative we have to hear.”

Whereas Tesla automobiles with the corporate’s “Autopilot” know-how had essentially the most accidents, it is believed the corporate additionally has essentially the most variety of autos with such techniques on the street. Its techniques additionally have a tendency to supply higher capabilities and are allowed to function in additional areas than different techniques.

Tesla’s techniques are marketed below the model names Autopilot, Full Self Driving and Full Self Driving Beta within the U.S.

Tesla’s movie star CEO Elon Musk final month on Twitter stated that the corporate’s newest model of FSD Beta could be rolling out to 100,000 automobiles. The corporate didn’t instantly reply to a request for remark.

Based on the Related Press, Tesla has extra autos with partly automated techniques working on U.S. roads than most different automakers do — roughly 830,000, relationship to the 2014 mannequin yr. And it collects real-time information on-line from autos, so it has a a lot quicker reporting system. That compares to GM, which has reportedly bought greater than 34,000 autos for the reason that debut of its “Tremendous Cruise” system in 2017.

The NHTSA has intensified its focus and investigations on Tesla due to the corporate’s aggressive growth of superior driver-assist techniques, together with prototype software program for Tesla house owners.

In February, Tesla stated it might recall software program from 53,822 of its Mannequin S, X, 3 and Y autos within the U.S. to get rid of a function that lets automobiles routinely roll previous cease indicators. The automobiles featured a comparatively new model of the corporate’s Full Self-Driving Beta software program.

That program offers Tesla drivers early entry to new options that are not fully debugged but, together with “autosteer on metropolis streets,” which let drivers routinely navigate round advanced and crowded city environments with out shifting the steering wheel with their very own fingers. Regardless of the title, Full Self-Driving Beta doesn’t make Tesla autos autonomous.

Launch of the information comes practically a yr after the NHTSA issued an order requiring automakers and operators of autos outfitted with superior driver help or automated driving techniques to right away report crashes.

NHTSA additionally launched a separate report on higher-level techniques, often called automated driving techniques, that may embrace the autos largely driving themselves. Most of those techniques are nonetheless being examined and never accessible to the general public, however some firms akin to Alphabet’s Waymo and GM’s majority-owned Cruise have opened operations to the general public.

NHTSA says there have been 130 reported automated driving system crashes from June 2021 to Could 15. Waymo, at 62, had essentially the most. It was adopted by Transdev Different Companies at 34, and Cruise at 23 (excluding 16 crashes reported individually by GM). Twenty-five firms reported crashes. They ranged from conventional automakers to Apple, which has reportedly been engaged on such a car for years.

The company plans to launch information updates month-to-month concerning the techniques.

– CNBC’s Lora Kolodny contributed to this report.