The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) has launched a preliminary investigation into Ford’s BlueCruise driver-assistance system amidst an apparent regulatory crackdown on such platforms.
The NHTSA opened its probe in response to two separate incidents where a Mustang Mach-E crashed into a non-moving vehicle while the hands-free service was activated. The agency said it has confirmed BlueCruise was involved in the two cases through an initial examination.
As part of its analysis, the NHTSA will determine whether the platform is effective at maintaining driver attentiveness during operation. This echoes the agency’s focus during its investigation and subsequent recall of Tesla’s Autopilot in December 2023.
Last week, the auto regulator re-opened that case to determine whether the electric vehicle brand left key safety issues unaddressed during its recall, which impacted roughly 2 million units.
Ford began offering BlueCruise in 2021 as part of its suite of driver-assistance features. The automaker uses cameras to monitor driver attentiveness while the system is activated.
