The forensic investigation revealed there is much more data than previously made known by Tesla, and that data can be stored for up to a year.
The Dutch government’s forensic lab said on Thursday it had decrypted electric carmaker Tesla Inc’s (TSLA.O) closely guarded driving data-storage system, uncovering a wealth of information that could be used to investigate serious accidents.
It was already known that Tesla cars store data from accidents, but the Netherlands Forensic Institute (NFI) said it had discovered far more data than investigators had previously been aware of.
…
The NFI investigated a collision involving a Tesla driver using Autopilot and a car in front of it that suddenly braked hard.
The investigation showed the Tesla driver reacted within the expected response time to a warning to resume control of the car, but the collision occurred because the Tesla was following the other vehicle too closely in busy traffic.
“That makes it interesting, because who is responsible for the following distance: the car or the driver?” said NFI investigator Aart Spek.