Tesla has been urged to address "basic safety issues" before expanding its full self-driving mode.
Elon Musk, the billionaire CEO of Tesla, recently confirmed that the company is seeking a wider release of self-driving mode by the end of September, but Jennifer Homendy, the chair of the National Transportation Safety Board, has urged caution from the manufacturer.
Jennifer hit out at Tesla's use of the term self-driving mode, which - in an interview with the Wall Street Journal newspaper - she described as "misleading and irresponsible".
She added that Tesla has "clearly misled numerous people to misuse and abuse technology".
The National Transportation Safety Board has the authority to undertake investigations and make recommendations. However, the body doesn't have the power to enforce change.
Last month, meanwhile, Elon Musk suggested Tesla will launch a humanoid robot prototype next year.
The billionaire businessman claimed that the 'Tesla Bot' - which weighs 125lbs and is designed to do "boring, repetitious and dangerous" work - could be available as soon as 2022.
Musk thinks the robot will have a screen where a human face will be on hand to provide "useful information" for the person using the device.
