NHTSA's records show two open reviews that name Tesla's Cybercab or Robotaxis as of October 14, 2026. One is an audit query, AQ26002, about how Tesla certified the Cybercab. The other is a defect petition, DP26010, about 2026 Tesla Robotaxis (the Model Y and the Cybercab) and posted speed limits in school zones. Neither is a finding that a Tesla has a defect. The facts below come from NHTSA's own records. RideTruth's catalog has no Cybercab, so the data section covers the Model Y only.
What is NHTSA looking at in each review?
The two reviews differ in what they ask, which vehicles they name and when they started.
| ID | Type of action | Opened | Subject vehicles | What it examines |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| AQ26002 | Open Audit Query | September 3, 2026 | Tesla Cybercab; population 1,000 (estimated) | The process and technical data Tesla relied on when certifying the Cybercab |
| DP26010 | Defect petition | October 9, 2026 | Model year 2026 Tesla Robotaxis (Model Y and Cybercab) with the Automated Driving System engaged | Whether to grant or deny a petition alleging the system exceeds posted speed limits in active school zones |
NHTSA's summary for AQ26002 says Tesla began commercial deployment of a small number of Cybercabs in Austin, Texas on September 3, 2026. Tesla told the agency it had certified them as compliant with all applicable Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards. The summary adds that the vehicles lack permanently attached, conventional manual controls, such as a brake pedal, gas pedal, steering wheel and mirrors. NHTSA says it will consider how far Tesla's certification depended on determinations that certain of those standards do not apply to the Cybercab.
For DP26010, NHTSA's Office of Defects Investigation says it received the petition on September 23, 2026. The petitioner alleges that the driving system exceeds posted speed limits in active school zones and supplied links to video footage. The description NHTSA publishes for DP26010 gives no vehicle count. Some news coverage gives one. This page leaves it out because NHTSA's text does not confirm it.
How far along is each review?
Both are at the opening stage. NHTSA's record for each lists its status as open, and the latest activity date on each is the day it was opened: September 3, 2026 for AQ26002 and October 9, 2026 for DP26010. That was the state of both records on October 14, 2026.
The audit query is NHTSA asking how a certification was done. It does not say the Cybercab fails any standard. NHTSA's summary says Tesla told the agency it certified the vehicles as compliant. The petition is a request, not a ruling. NHTSA's record says it opened DP26010 to evaluate the allegations and decide whether to grant or deny the petition. NHTSA has not said which way it will decide. Neither review is a recall, which is a campaign a manufacturer files, and either one can close without one.
Model Y complaints in RideTruth's data, and why they are not robotaxi data
The catalog has a Model Y and no Cybercab. The petition names model year 2026, so the 2026 Model Y is the closest match in our data, and the match stops there. As of October 13, 2026, it has 396 NHTSA complaints. Of those, 165 (41.7%) name Driver Assistance & Speed Control, the largest of the categories our data sorts them into for that year. Each complaint is counted under every category it lists, so the 165 overlap with the counts for other categories.
These complaints are filed on the 2026 Model Y as sold to the public; nothing in RideTruth's data ties any of them to Tesla's Robotaxi service. They say nothing about how the robotaxis drive or whether the petition's allegation holds. The 2026 has had less time to draw reports than the 2021 or 2023, and no count here is scaled to Model Y sales.
Across the 2020 through 2027 model years, the 2023 Model Y has the most complaints in our data, 1,172, then the 2021 with 1,085. The 2026 has 396. Our catalog also lists a 2027 Model Y, with 0 complaints so far. The photo above shows a Model Y Standard, which Commons dates to 2025; it is a car sold to the public, not a robotaxi.
Model Y owners looking for a recall, not a review, can start with our post on the 2026 Model Y suspension recall.
Where does NHTSA post updates?
This page is a snapshot of NHTSA's records on October 14, 2026. NHTSA's own site is where any later step on AQ26002 or DP26010 would appear; searching nhtsa.gov for either ID finds its record.
For a Model Y you drive yourself, your garage stores the car and repeats its search for new NHTSA recall campaigns on every visit.