Elon Musk hits back after 'autopilot' equipped tesla crashes into fire truck in US... as woman escapes with a broken ankle

Elon Musk slams the media over its reporting of Tesla crashes
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Lucia Binding15 May 2018

Elon Musk has criticised "super messed up" reports of Tesla car crashes in the US in a series of scathing Twitter posts.

After a second Tesla car accident made headlines in a week, the business magnate has hit out over the news coverage in comparison to gas-powered cars.

The latest crash involved a Model S crashing into a truck stopped at a red light in Utah, with the driver escaping with a broken ankle.

It is unknown if the Autopilot was activated during the accident, but several reports stated that the vehicle was “equipped” with Autopilot.

Mr Musk retweeted the Washington Post’s report on the story with the response: “It’s super messed up that a Tesla crash resulting in a broken ankle is front page news and the ~40,000 people who died in US auto accidents alone in past year get almost no coverage”.

The Tesla CEO posted another tweet stating: “What’s actually amazing about this accident is that a Model S hit a fire truck at 60mph and the driver only broke an ankle. An impact at that speed usually results in severe injury or death.”

The crash, which took place in South Jordan, Utah, comes as federal safety agencies investigate the performance of Tesla’s semi-autonomous driving system.

A South Jordan police Sgt Samuel Winkler said that the Tesla’s air bags were activated in the collision.

The driver’s life was at risk but only suffered a broken right ankle, while the driver of the Unified Fire Authority mechanic truck did not require medical attention.

There was light rain falling and the roads were wet when the crash occurred, police said in a statement.

Tesla Model S in a showroom in Brooklyn, New York

It read: “Witnesses indicated the Tesla Model S did not brake prior to impact.”

Mr Musk has been extremely critical of the way the media portrays accidents involving Tesla vehicles on Autopilot.

He said that Tesla can detect dips in Autopilot use from its fleet when there is negative press coverage.

Speaking at Tesla’s Q1 2018 conference call on May 2, he said: “Of course, when there’s negative news in the press, it dips.

“This is not good because people are reading things in the press that causes them to use autopilot less – and then that makes it dangerous for our customers, and that’s not cool. That’s why I’m against that.”

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