By David Shepardson

WASHINGTON (Reuters), -The U.S. safety regulators have launched a formal safety probe into 580,000 Tesla (NASDAQ) cars sold in the United States since 2017. The investigation focuses on Tesla’s 2017 decision to allow gaming to be displayed on the vehicle’s front center touchscreen.

National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), stated that its preliminary assessment covers several 2017-2022 Model 3 Tesla Model 3 S, X and Y vehicles. This functionality, referred to as “Passenger Play,” “may distract the driver and increase the risk of a crash,” the agency said https://static.nhtsa.gov/odi/inv/2021/INOA-PE21023-9605.PDF.

NHTSA stated that it had “confirmed” the availability of this feature in Tesla passenger play-equipped vehicles since December 2020. The game function was only available when the car was in Park before then.

Tesla didn’t immediately respond to our request for comment. NHTSA stated that it would evaluate the features, such as the frequency of use and scenarios for Tesla’s ‘Passenger Play’.

The New York Times featured the game feature earlier this month. NHTSA responded by saying that it is in talks with Tesla regarding the feature.

In December, the agency pointed out that distracted driving is responsible for many road fatalities in America – 3142 deaths in 2019. Safety advocates claim that official statistics underestimate this problem since not all drivers are aware of the danger after crashes.

According to the Times, the Tesla update included three new games: solitaire and a fighter jet and conquest strategy scenarios. Vehicles now have warning labels that warn of the dangers.

The Times reports that while a button is used to confirm that the player has been designated as a passenger by asking for proof, the button can also be used to allow a driver to play the game simply by pressing the button.

NHTSA published guidelines in 2013 to encourage carmakers to consider safety and driver distraction prevention when designing vehicles and incorporating infotainment systems into cars.

According to the agency, the guidelines recommend that “in-vehicle device be made so that the driver cannot use them for inherently distracting secondary functions while driving.”

After a string of accidents involving Autopilot and emergency vehicles, the agency opened an investigation into safety concerns regarding 765,000 Tesla cars.

NHTSA will conduct a preliminary assessment before deciding whether the probe should be upgraded to an engineering analysis. The agency cannot demand recalls until this evaluation has been completed.