NHTSA Investigates Aftermarket Driver-Assistance Devices Linked to Five Crashes

Aftermarket devices designed to augment or enhance a vehicle’s factory-installed advanced driver assistance systems are the subject of a new federal investigation.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s Office of Defects Investigation says it has identified five crashes that occurred while drivers were using the device. In each case, the vehicle collided with either a stationary vehicle or another vehicle traveling at low speed.

Two of the crashes resulted in three deaths. Four of the five crashes caused a total of 11 injuries, some of them serious, according to NHTSA documents.

Investigation focuses on Comma AI and OpenPilot

The aftermarket technology at the center of the investigation is associated with Comma AI, a company founded by George Hotz. Hotz rose to prominence in the early 2010s after jailbreaking Apple’s iOS and hacking Sony PlayStation consoles.

In 2015, Hotz turned his attention to partially automated driver assistance, which had gained attention following concerns about the use of Tesla’s Autopilot system. Hotz initially sold his system to Tesla and modified his Acura to provide more advanced driver assistance that could operate without his hands on the wheel. His goal was to replace Mobileye as Tesla’s supplier.

Mobileye dropped Tesla as a customer the following year, frustrated that Tesla was using Mobileye products in ways the company considered unintended.

Comma moved from plug-in hardware to open-source software

Comma’s first attempt to sell a device that car owners could plug into their vehicles’ OBD ports ended after NHTSA began asking questions in 2016. The company instead published its OpenPilot software and hardware plans on GitHub, allowing users to build their own devices.

Initially, Comma Neo and OpenPilot supported one Acura model and one Honda model. By 2020, however, the company’s software and $999 device were no longer supported.

Despite that limitation, Consumer Reports rated the system higher than any other original-equipment manufacturer driver-assistance system in its 2020 evaluation. Read the Consumer Reports evaluation.