Gaming while driving: Tesla allows it, Mercedes does recall

Earlier this week, reports surfaced that Tesla allows drivers to play video games on dashboard touch screens while vehicles are moving

DETROIT -- A few days after reports surfaced that Tesla allows drivers to play video games on dashboard touch screens while vehicles are moving, Mercedes-Benz has issued a U.S. recall for a simliar issue.

The German automaker said in documents posted Friday by U.S. regulators that the issue affected 227 vehicles and already has been fixed by updating an internal computer server.

But the fact that Mercedes did the recall over concerns about distracted driving, and Tesla has not, raised questions about whether federal auto safety standards are being applied equally by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

“MB is following the regulatory rules as they are supposed to — in sharp contrast to what we've been seeing from Tesla,” said Philip Koopman, a professor of electrical and computer engineering at Carnegie Mellon University. If NHTSA doesn't take action against Tesla, the agency will have one standard for Tesla and another for Mercedes and other automakers, Koopman said.