Tesla has announced a recall of 1.85 million vehicles in the United States due to a software glitch that may fail to detect an unlatched hood, according to the automaker. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) warns that an unlatched hood could open fully, obstructing the driver's view and increasing the risk of a collision. Tesla started deploying an over-the-air software update in mid-June to address this issue, which detects an open hood and alerts the driver, NHTSA stated. The recall impacts 2021-2024 Model 3, Model S, Model X, and 2020-2024 Model Y vehicles. These vehicles were fitted with hood latches manufactured in China by Magna Closures Co Ltd. Tesla began investigating reports of unprompted hood openings in certain Model 3 and Model Y vehicles in China in March, leading to a hardware recovery and vehicle inspection. Although such incidents were less frequent in Europe and North America, Tesla initiated engineering studies last month to examine hood latch assemblies and decided to recall the vehicles earlier this month. Tesla reported three incidents of this issue in the United States but no crashes or injuries related to the recall. This recall marks Tesla's largest since December, when it recalled 2.03 million US vehicles to add new safeguards to its autopilot system. However, after 20 crashes involving vehicles with the updated autopilot, NHTSA launched an investigation, citing several concerns about the recall. Tesla recently reported its lowest quarterly profit margin in over five years, highlighting the challenges faced by the electric vehicle manufacturer in boosting auto sales amidst a demand slowdown.
Text: Lara Palmer
30.07.2024
Software failure to detect unlatched hood prompts largest recall since autopilot update.