U.S. closes investigation into Tesla’s (TSLA) 'Passenger Play' feature

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) announced on Tuesday the closing of its investigation into 580,000 Tesla (NASDAQ: TSLA) vehicles regarding the inclusion of games in Tesla's "Passenger Play" feature accessible through the front center touchscreen.

Following the start of the investigation in December 2021, Tesla promptly agreed to discontinue the feature that allowed video games to be played on vehicle screens while the cars were in motion. NHTSA clarified that it was not seeking a recall of the vehicles; however, their analysis of the data provided by Tesla raised significant concerns regarding driver distraction during the period when the feature was available.

NHTSA, in closing the investigation, emphasized that it did not indicate a conclusive finding of the absence of safety-related defects, nor did it preclude the agency from taking further action if necessary.

In 2014, NHTSA issued guidelines aimed at encouraging automakers "to factor safety and driver distraction-prevention into their designs and adoption of infotainment devices in vehicles."

NHTSA's guidelines "recommend that in-vehicle devices be designed so that they cannot be used by the driver to perform inherently distracting secondary tasks while driving."

Shares of TSLA are up 3.41% in pre-market trading on Tuesday.

By Michael Elkins | [email protected]

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