05:00 PM EST, 01/15/2025 (MT Newswires) -- Federal investigations into safety issues involving Tesla (TSLA) vehicles will continue during Trump administration despite close ties between Tesla chief Elon Musk and Donald Trump, Secretary of Transportation nominee said during confirmation hearing Wednesday.

Appearing before the US Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation, Secretary-designate Sean Duffy said he would allow probes of Tesla now underway by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration to continue.

"I can commit to this committee and to you that I will let NHTSA do their investigation," Duffy said in response to a question by Sen. Ed Markey, D-Massachusetts, whether the department could resist outside pressure on such investigations.

The NHTSA is examining at least four crashes involving certain Tesla models that occurred when people were using the company's smart summon feature to remotely move their car from one place to another using a mobile phone application.

The government previously has looked into similar problems with Tesla's driver-assistance system, prompting the company to recall vehicles in December 2023.

Tesla did not immediately respond to a request from MT Newswires seeking comment.