Tesla will recall more than 20,000 Canadian vehicles, along with 362,000 U.S. vehicles, to update its Full Self-Driving (FSD) Beta software after U.S. regulators said on Thursday the driver assistance system did not adequately adhere to traffic safety laws and could cause crashes. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) said the Tesla software allows a vehicle to “exceed speed limits or travel through intersections in an unlawful or unpredictable manner [that] increases the risk of a crash.”
Tesla said it disagreed with NHTSA’s analysis, but ultimately acquiesced to the safety agency’s January request. The electric-vehicle manufacturer has previously clashed with NHTSA, which has a number of pending Tesla probes, over other safety issues and recall demands.
Tesla will release an over-the-air (OTA) software update free of charge. The EV maker said it is not aware of any injuries or deaths that may be related to the recall issue.
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The recall covers 2016 through 2023 Model S and Model X vehicles; 2017 through 2023 Model 3s; and 2020 through 2023 Model Y vehicles equipped with FSD Beta software, or pending installation. In Canada, Transport Canada says that 20,667 vehicles are covered by the campaign.
This is a fresh setback for Tesla’s driver assistance system. Chief Executive Elon Musk has repeatedly missed his own targets to achieve self-driving capability, which he has touted as a potential cash cow. The move is a rare intervention by federal regulators in a real-world testing program that the company sees as crucial to the development of cars that can drive themselves.
The recall comes less than two weeks before the company’s March 1 investor day, during which Musk is expected to promote the EV maker’s artificial intelligence capability and plans to expand its vehicle lineup.
Definitely. The word “recall” for an over-the-air software update is anachronistic and just flat wrong!
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) February 16, 2023
While Tesla’s Autopilot feature assists with steering, accelerating and braking for other vehicles and pedestrians within its lane, the company says FSD is a more advanced system “designed to provide more active guidance and assisted driving” under active supervision of the driver.
Tesla could not be reached for comment, but Musk tweeted on Thursday that the word “recall” for an over-the-air software update is “anachronistic and just flat wrong!”
Tesla released FSD Beta to nearly all of its 400,000 FSD customers in the United States and Canada in the fourth quarter, when it recognized FSD revenue of US$324 million.
A Tesla crashed into a fire truck near Los Angeles in 2018 Photo by Culver City Firefighters
Musk has positioned FSD technology as one of several artificial intelligence initiatives at Tesla. Last May, in an interview with members of a Tesla owners club, Musk called full self driving “essential” for the company. “It’s really the difference between Tesla being worth a lot of money or worth basically zero.”
NHTSA has an ongoing investigation it opened in 2021 into 830,000 Tesla vehicles with driver assistance system Autopilot over a string of crashes with parked emergency vehicles. NHTSA is reviewing whether Tesla vehicles adequately ensure drivers are paying attention. NHTSA said on Thursday despite the FSD recall its “investigation into Tesla’s Autopilot and associated vehicle systems remains open and active.”
Tesla said in “certain rare circumstances … the feature could potentially infringe upon local traffic laws or customs while executing certain driving maneuvers.” Last year, Tesla recalled nearly 54,000 U.S. vehicles with FSD Beta software that may allow some models to conduct “rolling stops” and not come to a complete stop at some intersections, posing a safety risk, NHTSA said.
Keyword: Tesla recalls 20,000 Canadian vehicles over Full Self-Driving software