News
Tesla modules retrieved by NTSB could reveal clues on fatal Model X crash
NTSB investigators looking into the fatal Tesla Model X crash have retrieved the ill-fated SUV’s restraint control module and infotainment module from the wreckage of the vehicle.
Photographs of the ongoing NTSB investigation have been shared online by ABC7 News photographer Dean C. Smith. The series of pictures depicts a team of investigators from both the NTSB and the CHP’s Multidisciplinary Accident Investigation Team inspecting the wrecked Tesla. Smith was also able to photograph a module from the electric SUV being placed inside an evidence bag.
The NTSB later confirmed to the local news agency that the investigators were able to recover two components of the destroyed Model X — the vehicle’s restraint control module and its infotainment module. NTSB Spokesman Christopher O’Neil noted that the NTSB would be working with Tesla and the CHP in analyzing the data stored in the two devices.
“We’re going to work with CHP and Tesla to download the information from those modules and then see what data is available to us that might give insights into what was going on during the accident sequence,” O’Neil said.
Images of the continuing investigation from the NTSB and CHP could be viewed below.
- The NTSB’s investigation into a fatal Tesla Model X crash continues. [Credit: Dean C. Smith/Twitter]
- The NTSB’s investigation into a fatal Tesla Model X crash continues. [Credit: Dean C. Smith/Twitter]
- The NTSB’s investigation into a fatal Tesla Model X crash continues. [Credit: Dean C. Smith/Twitter]
- The NTSB’s investigation into a fatal Tesla Model X crash continues. [Credit: Dean C. Smith/Twitter]
Will Huang, the brother of the ill-fated electric SUV’s driver, has also shared some of his insights about the crash in a statement to ABC7. According to Will, his brother had brought the car to the Tesla service center before the accident due to what he believes were issues with the Model X’s Autopilot. Tesla has noted, however, that the owner of the Model X had taken the vehicle to the service center because of concerns about the SUV’s navigation, not its Autopilot, according to the local news agency.
“We’ve been doing a thorough search of our service records, and we cannot find anything suggesting that the customer ever complained to Tesla about the performance of Autopilot. There was a concern raised once about navigation not working correctly, but Autopilot’s performance is unrelated to navigation,” Tesla reportedly stated.
In a statement to the local news agency, Will Huang noted that a crash attenuator could have likely saved his brother’s life. Crash attenuators, better known as crash cushions, are designed to absorb the impact of a vehicle’s collision. As noted by Tesla in its blog post yesterday, however, a huge part of the crash cushion on the spot where the Model X met its end had been removed due to a previous collision.
“That (the crash attenuator) ultimately should’ve saved my brother’s life. We’ve seen videos of similar crash(es) with cushion, and the driver walked out of it unharmed,” Huang noted.
In a recent announcement on its Twitter account, CHP Redwood City revealed that the last collision recorded at the same location as the ill-fated Model X crash happened on March 12, 2018, 11 days before the Tesla’s accident.
Update on #Tesla collision: Per media request, the last collision recorded at that same location took place on Monday 3/12/2018 at 2230 hours. pic.twitter.com/ibizNYWOkk
— CHP Redwood City (@CHP_RedwoodCity) March 29, 2018
The Tesla Model X has a 5-star safety rating from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). The electric SUV is equipped with 12 airbags — head and knee airbags in the front, 2 side curtain airbags, 4 seat-mounted side airbags, and 2 door-mounted airbags — which cocoon a driver and the vehicle’s passengers during an accident. As we reported last December, a Model X successfully protected its driver after getting into an accident with a car traveling at near-highway speeds. During that incident, all the Model X’s airbags deployed, and the driver was able to walk away from the collision unharmed.
Cybertruck
FIRST LOOK: Tesla Cybertruck police cruiser interior
The LVMPD released a new video of the police cruisers that were donated by billionaires Ben and Felicia Horowitz.
The first look at the Tesla Cybertruck police cruisers for the Las Vegas Metro Police Department has been going around as the city begins to add them to its active fleet.
The LVMPD released a new video of the police cruisers that were donated by billionaires Ben and Felicia Horowitz, showing their design, as well as the first look at the front of the vehicle where police will sit, as well as the back where the criminals will think about their actions.
Tesla Cybertruck police fleet in Las Vegas pic.twitter.com/Z8t2wLMVR3
— TESLARATI (@Teslarati) October 30, 2025
Sheriff Kevin McMahill commented on the addition of the Cybertrucks to the fleet, which includes recognition of their symbolism regarding the mission of the Department itself:
“These represent something bigger than a police vehicle. They represent innovation and our continued commitment to serve this community with the best tools available — safely, efficiently, and responsibly. They can handle everything from Fremont Street to Red Rock Canyon.”
The LVMPD had the Cybertrucks primed for law enforcement use by Upfit Tesla, a division of Unplugged Performance, the unequivocal leader in performance upgrades for Teslas.
The first look at the interior of the police cruisers is awesome to see, especially as it shows the Cybertruck’s ability to cater to every and any application for personal or professional use.
The front of the Cybertruck police vehicle shows an interior fully outfitted for a shift in Las Vegas. A laptop is mounted next to the center touchscreen, and siren and light controls are located in the center for easy access for officers:
The rear of the cruiser is plain and fitted with plastic seats, typical for the transportation of criminals and suspects, as well as a partition that appears to be made of ballistic glass, helping to protect officers from those they have arrested. It is also reinforced with steel and foam lines the top of the partition:
The fleet was donated shortly after a Cybertruck exploded at the front entrance of Trump Tower in Las Vegas in January. While the person inside lost their life, the Cybertruck’s ability to muffle most of the blast and keep damage relatively limited to the building impressed many.
News
Tesla Cybercab spotted testing on public roads for the first time
The car was spotted just minutes from Tesla’s Engineering Headquarters in Los Altos, California. There are a few interesting tidbits we can gather from the photo and the information shared with it.
The Tesla Cybercab has been spotted testing on public roads for the first time, marking a substantial step forward in the vehicle’s development.
The car was spotted just minutes from Tesla’s Engineering Headquarters in Los Altos, California. There are a few interesting tidbits we can gather from the photo and the information shared with it:
BREAKING: Tesla’s Cybercab spotted testing on public roads for the first time!
This was in Los Altos, California, about 10 minutes from Tesla’s Engineering HQ. As would be expected at this stage, a person was in the driver seat.
The future is autonomous 🤖 pic.twitter.com/cvd6UrnKZo
— Sawyer Merritt (@SawyerMerritt) October 29, 2025
The vehicle had a driver and side view mirrors equipped on it, which seems to be pretty expected, especially at this stage.
Tesla might have been using its Full Self-Driving software with the vehicle as it enters this new stage of testing on public roads. This seems most likely, especially as the car, which has long been developed to be void of a steering wheel and pedals, will totally rely on autonomous tech to transport one or two passengers to their destination.
Additionally, side view mirrors are required by law at delivery, and Tesla was likely looking to keep things as safe and elementary as possible, especially with this early stage of testing.
As this is the first time the vehicle has been spotted on public roads and the first time it was likely testing on them, Tesla was being cautious.
There have been a lot of developments with Cybercab over the past few weeks, as the car has been spotted testing on the Fremont Factory’s test track, units have been seen outside of Gigafactory Texas’s crash testing facility, and there has been some additional speculation about what the vehicle’s standard equipment will be.
There have also been quite a few job postings by Tesla for manufacturing and production roles related to Cybercab over the past few weeks.
Yesterday, Tesla’s Board Chair, Robyn Denholm, revealed that the company could end up building Cybercab with a steering wheel and pedals, contrary to what Tesla and CEO Elon Musk have wanted to do.
The vehicle has yet to reach that stage of regulatory testing, but Tesla wants to start volume production in Q2. If it wants to release the vehicle without any manual controls, that means that Full Self-Driving will need to be completed within the next eight months.
News
Tesla hints it could see ‘a few more vehicles’ released soon
Denholm said on CNBC yesterday that “we do have a few other vehicles coming out.”
Tesla Board Chair Robyn Denholm hinted the company could see “a few more vehicles” coming out and being released soon, although there is no indication of what could be on the way based on her comments.
However, Tesla has hinted toward several potential releases in the coming years, as other executives, including Chief Designer Franz von Holzhausen, have talked briefly about what could be on the way.
Denholm said on CNBC yesterday that “we do have a few other vehicles coming out.”
BREAKING: $TSLA BOARD CHAIR ROBYN SAYS — “WE HAVE NEW VEHICLES COMING OUT” 👀
It’s happening ! pic.twitter.com/f8UuZWGLuP
— TheSonOfWalkley (@TheSonOfWalkley) October 27, 2025
It was a vague and almost cryptic sentence, as, in all honesty, it was not completely clear whether she was talking about recent releases that are just making their way to market, like the Model 3 and Model Y “Standard,” or new vehicles altogether.
Nevertheless, it’s worth dissecting.
Tesla “Standard” Models
On October 7, Tesla launched the Standard Model 3 and Model Y, stripped-down versions of their now “Premium” siblings. The Standard trims lack premium features like leather seats, a rear touchscreen, and a glass roof, among other features.
These cars are just starting to be delivered for the first time, so it is possible that Denholm was referring to these cars.
Potential Model 2 Hint?
There has always been a looming vehicle model that many Tesla fans and owners have been intrigued by: the Model 2.
This car was hinted at being the $25,000 model that Tesla was rumored to be developing, and many thought that was the vehicle that would be released earlier this month, not the Standard Model 3 and Model Y.
Instead, the Model 2 could be something that would enable Tesla to reach an entirely new consumer base, including those who are not able to swing the payment for the company’s more premium offerings.
It seems Tesla will have to launch some sort of extremely affordable model in the future, and with the Cybercab being slotted at that rough price point, it would not be out of the question for it to be in the realm of possibility for future releases.
It’s worth noting, however, that it is probably unlikely this will happen. Tesla is so deadset focused on autonomy, it seems Cybercab would take extreme precedence over the unconfirmed “Model 2.”
Cybertruck-inspired SUV
Tesla fans have been begging the company to develop a full-size SUV that would compete with the Ford Expedition or Chevrolet Tahoe, but the company has not given any indication that this would be something it would build.
Nevertheless, there was a very subtle hint in a recent promotional clip that showed a Cyber SUV mock-up placed strategically next to a clay model of a Model 3:
The Model X is simply not what people want when it comes to an SUV, as it does not have the seating capacity and cargo space that many need with a full-sized SUV.
This issue, in particular, has been one that has been extremely relevant to the company’s future lineup as consumers have shown they would be interested in a Tesla vehicle that fit this description.
Additionally, von Holzhausen said in September that a Cyber SUV or a smaller electric pickup with a more traditional design is “definitely things we’ve considered…We’re working on so many innovative and fun things.”
Tesla gives big hint that it will build Cyber SUV, smaller Cybertruck
-
Elon Musk2 weeks agoSpaceX posts Starship booster feat that’s so nutty, it doesn’t even look real
-
Elon Musk2 weeks agoTesla Full Self-Driving gets an offer to be insured for ‘almost free’
-
News2 weeks agoElon Musk confirms Tesla FSD V14.2 will see widespread rollout
-
News2 weeks agoTesla is adding an interesting feature to its centerscreen in a coming update
-
News2 weeks agoTesla launches new interior option for Model Y
-
News2 weeks agoTesla widens rollout of new Full Self-Driving suite to more owners
-
Elon Musk2 weeks agoTesla CEO Elon Musk’s $1 trillion pay package hits first adversity from proxy firm
-
News2 weeks agoTesla might be doing away with a long-included feature with its vehicles





