American authorities are recalling no less than 2 million Tesla vehicles, to remedy a serious defect of its Autopilot technology. Elon Musk’s manufacturer explains that a simple software update should be enough.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), the federal agency responsible for road safety in the United States, issued a recall notice on Tuesday, December 12 after conducting a two-year investigation into collisions involving Tesla vehicles. Autopilot, the automatic control system for electric cars, is being blamed, but the manufacturer is not itself going to recall too many vehicles.
The 4 main Tesla models affected by the recall
NHTSA has identified an increased risk of collision in certain situations where Autosteer (which maintains a set speed or following distance and keeps the vehicle in its lane) fails to prevent a collision. misuse by the driver. The NHTSA recall affects four models distributed in the United States:
- the Model S, sold between 2012 and 2023 inclusive,
- the Model X (2016-2023),
- the Model 3 (2017-2023),
- the Model Y (2020-2023).
All initially recalled vehicles are equipped with Autosteer, the driver assistance feature included in the vehicles’ Autopilot package. But although the authority’s opinion mentions a ” product recall », Tesla preferred to opt for an over-the-air software update, rather than a physical recall of the more than 2 million vehicles.
Tesla sued in multiple cases for its Autopilot
Tesla has indicated that it has started to deploy version 2023.44.30 of its software, free of charge and for all customers who may be affected, with a deployment which should also extend over several days. The latest version includes additional controls and alerts to enhance driver supervision when using Autosteer.
The update restricts the use of Autosteer in specific circumstances, preventing its full activation when engagement conditions are not met. These changes aim to avoid risky situations and encourage drivers to maintain full control of their vehicle.
Tesla also discussed with the NHTSA how to respond to the agency’s concerns, which resulted in an agreement on the proposed solutions, despite differences in analysis. Let’s not forget that while Tesla does not consider this a recall, more than 50 investigations into accidents related to Tesla’s Autopilot have been opened since 2016.
This action is in any case part of a series of measures taken by the manufacturer owned by Elon Musk in 2023 to remedy material defects and problems linked to its driving assistance systems. The company will likely continue to monitor and improve its technologies to ensure the safety of drivers and passengers.
Source : NHTSA, Bloomberg
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