Tesla car warned driver to keep hands on wheel before fatal crash

By Steve Berg

June 20, 2017 at 12:57 pm CDT

Tesla In this photo provided by the National Transportation Safety Board via the Florida Highway Patrol, a Tesla Model S that was being driven by Joshua Brown, who was killed when the Tesla sedan crashed while in self-driving mode on May 7, 2016. A source tells The Associated Press that U.S. safety regulators are ending an investigation into a fatal crash involving electric car maker Tesla Motors' Autopilot system without a recall. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration scheduled a call Thursday, Jan. 19, 2017, about the investigation. (NTSB via Florida Highway Patrol via AP, File)

By Steve Berg

June 20, 2017 at 12:57 pm CDT

WILLISTON, Fla. — A new report says a Tesla car warned a driver several times to keep his hands on the wheel before a fatal crash.

Reuters says The Tesla Model S that Joshua Brown was driving last year in Florida has a semi-autonomous mode that can perform many driving functions without human help, but the company says people still need to keep their hands on the wheel.

The NTSB says the car gave 7 visual warnings and 6 audio chimes to alert Brown he was not doing so, before the car hit a tractor-trailer truck, shearing of the top third of the car and killing Brown.

His family's lawyer says they're not taking any legal action against Tesla, but are still reviewing the report.

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