5 on Your Side: How Tesla autopilot features can cause driver complacency

Most of us would never think of watching a movie while we’re driving down the highway. But a driver of a Tesla was just cited for doing that after he crashed into the cruiser of a Nash County Sheriff’s Deputy, narrowly missing hitting the deputy himself, who was standing outside the vehicle.

They said the car was going about 70 miles per hour and slammed into the back of the deputy's vehicle, which was parked in the roadway, with lights flashing.

Tesla on 'autopilot' hits Nash County deputy's cruiser, while driver watches movie

Thankfully, no one was seriously hurt.

Kelly Funkhouser, Consumer Reports’ Connected and Automated Car guru, said she understands how it could happen.

"Highly capable systems, such as the Tesla, where it does a really good job at keeping the car in the center of the lane most of the time – and has the adaptive cruise control – really can cause this over-reliance or complacency," she said.

Whether the systems are called 'Autopilot' or 'Active Driver Assistance,' the names lead many drivers to think the cars can do more than they’re meant to.

Yes, some cars can steer automatically and hit the brakes if needed – but they cannot think for us.

Funkhouser said these autopilot functions can’t match the skills of a human driver.

"I think that they’re great to have. It’s great for people to have these on their cars if they want to experiment, but they must keep awareness on the road and pay attention, even if it’s easy for them to check out," said Funkhouser.

Her experience driving Teslas at CR helps her understand how human nature could kick in, making a driver think it's safe to take their eyes off the road.

"When you’ve driven this car hundreds or thousands of miles and it’s never had a problem before – this likely leads to this behavior where you want to pick up your phone or watch a movie, because now driving is so boring," said Funkhouser. "You’re just watching the car do its thing instead of being actively engaged."

However, AAA just tested active driving assistance systems and found they’re not always consistent – a good reason for drivers to stay actively engaged, even when the car is in autopilot.

At times, tested vehicles failed to stay within lanes or braked so abruptly that a car might rear-end them.

Similar to the crash in Nash County, some tested vehicles failed to prevent a collision with a vehicle in the road.

"It’s definitely the driver’s responsibility to still make sure they’re paying attention," said Funkhouser.

In fact, Tesla’s website says autopilot features still require "active driver supervision and do not make the vehicle autonomous."

Funkhouser said she'd like to see the addition of a monitoring system that detects when a driver may be watching a movie or falling asleep on the road.

CR and AAA are calling for car manufacturers to improve the assistance features for even more safety.

Tesla autopilot features are helpful and can make driving more relaxing – but that's no comparison to a fully active and engaged driver who has their eyes on the road.