Comma's self-driving kit for older cars faces federal probe after 5 crashes

Date:
Tue, 29 Sep 2026 14:16:00 +0000

Description:
Comma promises to "make driving chill" but the NHTSA is investigating a
number of crashes involving the aftermarket self-driving device

FULL STORY ======================================================================Copy link Facebook X Whatsapp Reddit Pinterest Flipboard Threads Email Share this article 0 Join the conversation Follow us Add us as a preferred source on Google Newsletter Subscribe to our newsletter Commas device offers self-driving capabilities as an aftermarket solution The NHTSA says it knows of five crashes where drivers were using device Two of the crashes reportedly resulted in three deaths Commas aftermarket devic e that promises to add self-driving capabilities to over 350 vehicle models from 27 automakers is under scrutiny, after the NHTSA (National Highway Traffic Safety Administration) launched an investigation into multiple crashes that reportedly involved the Commas products.

According to NHTSAs Office of Defects , it is aware of five incidents that involved Comma three, Comma 3X, Comma four and Openpilot, where in some
cases, vehicles reportedly struck stopped or slowly moving vehicles within
the same travel lane. Comma, which was founded by George Hotz , who rose to notoriety after becoming one of the first to jailbreak Apple s iOS and the PlayStation 3 , offers a solution that advertises autonomous lane centering, adaptive cruise control and even automatic lane changing in vehicles that might not be sold with any sort of autonomous driving capabilities. Latest Videos From TechRadar Watch full video here:

The system pairs a small camera device that is mounted near the rear-view camera with a bespoke wiring harness that plugs into the On-board Diagnostics (OBD) port of compatible vehicles. (Image credit: Comma.ai) Comma then offers open source Openpilot software for the particular make and model of the car, allowing the system to effectively take over the controls. You may like Tesla Autopilot and Full Self-Driving face scrutiny after two fatal crashes I replaced Ford's hands-free driving subscription with a $1,000 open-source gadget Tesla's FSD keeps speeding but drivers are the ones paying the price

What started as a device that could only work with a handful of vehicles from Acura and Honda has grown into a community that has coded software for more than 350 models.

According to the company, more than 30,000 drivers are using Openpilot, with more than 402 million miles (650 million km) driven. Get daily insight, inspiration and deals in your inbox Sign up for breaking news, reviews, opinion, top tech deals, and more. Contact me with news and offers from other Future brands Receive email from us on behalf of our trusted partners or sponsors By submitting your information you agree to the Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy and are aged 16 or over.

The NHTSA says that one incident saw a vehicle reportedly using comma.ai products strike a first responders vehicle, with the resulting crash killing three.

The investigation will obtain data to verify system status for each incident and evaluate system performance and safeguards that are intended to ensure safe operation of vehicles equipped with comma devices, the Office of Defects Investigation says. Analysis: An over-reliance on autonomy (Image credit: Jason Cipriani/Future) When reviewing Commas self-driving device earlier this year, our writer was convinced that the $1,000 device (around 750 / AU$1,430) was well worth the initial outlay, especially considering Ford was charging $500 per year (about 380 / AU$710) for its BlueCruise intelligent cruise control software at the time. What to read next Tesla relies on cameras for self-driving, and Waymo says that isnt enough Every new car in the EU now has to watch its driver and privacy advocates are worried Teslas driverless Robotaxi has a traffic-post problem, and the timing couldnt be worse

That said, our reporter felt very uneasy about random people on the internet writing software that could control his car and that the operating system needed some adjustment to keep his Ford F-150 Lightning from ping-ponging
from one side of a lane to another.

But that hasnt prevented our writer managing over 1,000 miles (and counting) of Comma-based driving since, with that $500 a year subscription to Ford well and truly cancelled.

However, the overarching over-reliance on autonomous driving functionality is a worrying trend, particularly in the US, where a number of high profile crashes have involved systems like Teslas Full Self-Driving and AutoPilot.

In fact, a recent NBC News investigation surfaced a total of 43 social media videos that appeared to show Tesla drivers distracted and even asleep at the wheel while Full Self-Driving was reportedly activated.

Some industry groups believe that companies like Tesla have long over-hyped the capabilities of their self-driving technologies, lulling the general public into a false sense of security and causing them to believe autonomous functionality is a replacement for a human driver.

Commas homepage makes no clear mention anywhere that the driver must remain
in control, instead advertising its device as delivering hands-free driving for the car you already have.

To me, this sort of device feels exceptionally dangerous, as it not only
hands over programming control to a community of non-sanctioned amateurs, it also promotes drivers engaging in side tasks and not concentrating on the
road ahead.

Until fully licensed SAE Level 4 and 5 vehicles arrive, where vehicles are capable of all driving duties and us humans are effectively just operators,
we need to remain in control, otherwise this worrying trend of drivers
abusing driver-assistance tech will only continue to grow. Follow TechRadar
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Link to news story: https://www.techradar.com/vehicle-tech/self-driving-vehicles/commas-self-drivi ng-car-kit-faces-federal-probe-nhtsa-links-5-crashes-to-hands-free-aftermarket -device-thats-in-over-30-000-vehicles


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