Overview
- The NHTSA recall, announced Tuesday, covers vehicles running Waymo’s fifth- and sixth‑generation self‑driving systems after software allowed cars to keep moving into flooded roads.
- The issue surfaced after an April 20 incident in San Antonio in which an unoccupied Waymo entered high water and was swept into Salado Creek, prompting a citywide pause that the company has since lifted.
- Waymo says a full software remedy is in development and has pushed interim changes over the air that tighten weather limits and update maps to keep cars out of flood‑prone routes.
- Regulatory filings list 3,791 affected vehicles across Phoenix, San Francisco, Los Angeles, Austin, San Antonio, and Atlanta, effectively revealing the scale of Waymo’s U.S. fleet and its rapid growth since 2025.
- Separate federal probes remain open into a January robotaxi contact with a child in Santa Monica and reports of cars passing stopped school buses, raising the chance of stricter rules and service limits during school hours or severe weather.