Tesla faces federal probe for its dashboard video games

Auto safety regulators are concerned that a video game feature in many vehicles made by electric car maker Tesla could distract drivers and lead to crashes.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said Wednesday they are looking at roughly 580,000 Tesla vehicles equipped with a feature known as "Passenger Play." Passenger Play, which is accessible through the cars' main driver's console, is supposed to turn on only when a Tesla car is in park, safety officials said. But NHTSA said it has received complaints in recent months that Passenger Play can turn on while someone is driving, raising the risk of an accident, according to a document filed by the agency.

The investigation will examine 2017-2022 Tesla Models 3, S, X Y, safety officials said. In one complaint, a Tesla driver from Oregon told NHTSA in August that Tesla should be ordered to strip all video games and live video from the front touch-screen console.