U.S. automotive safety officials have opened a formal probe into the autonomous driving system used by General Motors’ (NYSE:GM) self-driving vehicle unit Cruise.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said it has received complaints about the self-driving vehicles – retrofitted Chevrolet Bolt EVs – engaging in “inappropriately hard braking” or becoming “immobilized while operating,” according to a filing.
Officials said although the two types of incidents appear to be separate from one another, they each result in the Cruise vehicles becoming unexpected roadway obstacles.
“This may introduce multiple potential hazards such as a collision with a Cruise vehicle, risk to a stranded passenger exiting an immobilized Cruise vehicle, or obstruction of other traffic including emergency vehicles,” NHTSA said in the filing.
Drew Pusateri, a spokesman for Cruise, a majority-owned unit of GM, said the San Francisco-based company has and will continue “to fully cooperate with NHTSA or any regulator.”
Pusateri said in an email that there’s “always a balance between healthy regulatory scrutiny and the innovation we desperately need to save lives.” He said the company has driven nearly 700,000 fully autonomous miles in an “extremely complex urban environment with zero life-threatening injuries or fatalities.”
The investigation, which was opened earlier this week, comes as Cruise awaits regulatory approval to expand its robotaxi service in San Francisco from about 30% of the city to the entire municipality.
GM shares dipped 87 cents, or 2.3%, to $36.75, at Friday’s open.
