Feds say no need to recall Tesla's one-pedal driving despite petition

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration declined to force Tesla to recall its electric vehicles over one-pedal driving, rejecting a 2023 petition from a Greek engineer who claimed the feature causes sudden unintended acceleration. NHTSA determined that one-pedal driving—which uses regenerative braking to slow the car when the driver lifts off the accelerator—is not causing parked Tesla EVs to accelerate unexpectedly. Tesla's system differs from some competitors like Porsche, which use brake-by-wire technology that blends regenerative and friction braking rather than relying solely on throttle lift-off. The decision ends another chapter in Tesla's long history of facing sudden acceleration accusations, though the fundamental question of whether such incidents are engineering failures or driver error remains contested.