Trump Lines Up Behind Tesla to Oppose Car Crash Safety Rule

William Vaillancourt
·1-min read
Elon Musk and Donald Trump
Anna Moneymaker / Getty Images

Elon Musk’s electric car company, Tesla, has opposed a federal regulation requiring the reporting of car crashes. Now the Trump transition team does too, Reuters reported Friday.

It’s unclear whether the Trump administration will act on the recommendation from the transition team, which argued the regulation meant “excessive” data was collected, according to a document seen by the publication.

Musk was selected by Trump to co-lead an agency on government “efficiency,” and has pledged to cut federal staff, budgets, and regulations.

Tesla vehicles were involved in 40 out of 45 fatal crashes reported to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) through Oct. 15, based on a Reuters analysis of data. The company has drawn lawsuits over its autopilot and “full self-driving” systems, as well as a Department of Justice investigation.

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According to Reuters, Tesla executives figured they would benefit from a presidential administration that agreed with their stance on the crash requirement. The Biden administration does not. Musk spent upwards of $250 million to help elect Trump.

Those familiar with executives’ thinking, the report continued, said the company thinks the requirement is unfair because Tesla believes it is better at reporting crash data than its competitors, and so the discrepancy in numbers makes them look bad.

The regulation has other opponents in addition to Tesla, including the Alliance for Automotive Innovation, a trade and lobbying group for some rival car and truck manufacturers.

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