A Tesla vehicle in Autopilot mode collided with a parked police cruiser in California, authorities said.
The Tesla sedan was driving outbound when it struck a parked Laguna Beach police car, the Laguna Beach police department said Tuesday.
According to police, the driver in the Tesla sustained minor injuries. The police cruiser was empty of officers at the time of the crash.
This morning a Tesla sedan driving outbound Laguna Canyon Road in “autopilot” collides with a parked @LagunaBeachPD unit. Officer was not in the unit at the time of the crash and minor injuries were sustained to the Tesla driver. #lagunabeach #police #tesla pic.twitter.com/7sAs8VgVQ3
— Laguna Beach PD PIO (@LBPD_PIO_45) May 29, 2018
Laguna Police Sgt. Jim Cota told the Los Angeles Times the police car “is totaled.”
This is not the first time a Tesla has crashed while in Autopilot mode. A Model X on Autopilot crashed into a highway divider in March, killing the driver. In May 2016, another fatal crash was caused after a driver relied too much on the Autopilot function.
A spokesperson for Tesla told the Times it frequently warns drivers to stay engaged while using the Autopilot mode.
“Tesla has always been clear that Autopilot doesn’t make the car impervious to all accidents, and before a driver can use Autopilot, they must accept a dialogue box which states that ‘Autopilot is designed for use on highways that have a center divider and clear lane markings,” the company said in a statement.