Elon Musk’s Tesla has recalled over a million vehicles in the United States due to a faulty window automated reversal system that may not detect impediments.
The recall affects 1,096,762 vehicles, including Model 3s from 2017 to 2022, Model Ys from 2020 to 2021, and Model S and Model Xs from 2021 to 2022.
The faulty windows could pinch the fingers of a driver or passenger as they close.
Tesla informed the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration that it will update the automated window reversal mechanism remotely. OTAs, as they are referred to by Tesla owners, are enhancements sent wirelessly to the vehicle, similar to software updates on a smartphone.
Tesla stated that it was unaware of any warranty claims, field reports, accidents, injuries, or fatalities associated with the recall.
Tesla has recalled over a million vehicles, including a number of Model 3 vehicles (pictured)
Tesla informed the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration that it will update the automated window reversal mechanism remotely. OTAs, as Tesla users refer to them, are enhancements supplied wirelessly to the vehicle, similar to software upgrades on a smartphone.
The recall comes a month after Elon Musk (pictured) expressed optimism for the general distribution of fully-autonomous vehicles in the United States and Europe by the end of the year.
According to the NHTSA, a window that closes without the necessary automated reversing mechanism may exert excessive force by pinching a driver or passenger prior to retracting, causing damage.
According to the NHTSA, the vehicles did not meet the power window criteria of a federal motor vehicle safety standard.
During August product testing, Tesla personnel discovered window automated reversal system performance with “higher than expected fluctuations in response to pinch detection,” according to the automaker.
After significant additional testing, Tesla decided that the vehicle’s pinch detection and retraction performance did not fulfill the requirements for autonomous reversing systems.
Tesla announced on September 13 that production and pre-delivery vehicles got a software update that conforms the operation of power windows to the criteria.
Beginning on November 13, owners of vehicles affected by the error will be notified.
Thursday morning, Bloomberg reported that Tesla’s stock slipped 0.8%. This is not the automaker’s first OTA notification, and recalls normally do not affect auto stock prices.
Elon Musk has taken to Twitter to explain why the windows of his Cybertruck cracked during a humiliating strength test at its launch ceremony last week.
This is not the first time Tesla has encountered defective windows.
Musk had an embarrassing incident in 2019 when the windows of the company’s new Cybertruck cracked easily during a live strength demonstration.
Tesla stated that the electric truck of the future was constructed from the same stainless steel used in rockets and could withstand any impact.
To demonstrate, Tesla Designer Franz von Holzhausen threw a steel ball at the futuristic-appearing vehicle’s glass, which unexpectedly shattered under the impact pressure.
Musk asserted that the only reason the windows shattered was because Holzhausen allegedly struck them with a sledgehammer during previous tests.
Tesla vehicles can be retrofitted with the Full Self-Driving Capability package, allowing them to steer, park, and stop at traffic lights and signs. An employee is pictured above driving a Tesla Model S hands-free on a highway near Amsterdam.
Musk stated that he intends to have his company’s self-driving cars “widely available” in the United States and Europe by the end of 2022.
The CEO of SpaceX addressed the audience at the Offshore Northern Seas 2022 conference in Norway, “The two technologies I am concentrating on and hoping to have completed by the end of the year are getting our Starship into orbit… and then having Tesla cars capable of self-driving.”
Self-driving vehicles should be widely available in the United States and… possibly in Europe, subject regulatory approval.
Tesla vehicles can be retrofitted with the Full Self-Driving Capability package, allowing them to steer, park, and stop at traffic lights and signs.
However, autonomous vehicles have not yet been approved in the United States or Europe.
The governments of both the United States and the United Kingdom have stated that autonomous vehicles will not be permitted to enter production or operate on public roads before 2025.