- Tesla issued a voluntary recall for its Full Self-Driving-equipped cars, addressing some concerns surrounding unsafe vehicle behavior with the system engaged.
- The recall involves all of Tesla’s current consumer models, including the Model S, Model X, Model 3 and Model Y.
- The automaker will upgrade the vehicles’ FSD Beta software through an over-the-air update.
- This latest version should safely perform tasks like stopping at stop signs and moving out of certain turn-only lanes more reliably, according to what Tesla told the NHTSA.
- Tesla says it plans to deploy the FSD Beta update “in the coming weeks”.
- According to the NHTSA report, the company will notify owners around April 15, 2023.
This latest Tesla recall aims to improve the performance of its ‘Full Self-Driving’ software.
Current and older versions of the FSD Beta can engage in vehicle behavior that may increase the risk of a crash, according to what the automaker told the NHTSA. Tesla will deploy an over-the-air update in the coming weeks to address the issue.
The recall campaign affects 362,758 examples of the 2016-2023 Model S and Model X, the 2017-2023 Model 3 and the 2020-2023 Model Y, per the defect report the automaker submitted to federal regulators. Cars equipped with the Full-Self Driving Beta software, the company says, “could potentially infringe upon local traffic laws or customs while executing certain driving maneuvers.” Those maneuvers include stopping at stop signs, using the proper lanes to negotiate a lighted intersection or proceeding through a yellow light “without due caution”. The report further acknowledged that “the system may respond insufficiently to changes in posted speed limits or not adequately account for the driver’s adjustment of the vehicle’s speed to exceed posted speed limits.”
Through February 14, Tesla says it’s dealt with 18 warranty claims related to the matter between May 8, 2019 and September 12, 2022. The automaker also claimed it’s not aware of any injuries or deaths directly related to FSD Beta’s performance as laid out by the recall documents. What’s more, it said on February 7 that, “while not concurring with [the NHTSA]’s analysis, Tesla decided to administer a voluntary recall out of an abundance of caution.” The company began communicating with agency officials on this matter on January 25, as part of ongoing communications related to Autopilot and FSD Beta.
Tesla reaffirmed its official stance on its semi-autonomous systems, noting that the technology does not make the cars fully autonomous, and human supervision is still a crucial component of the vehicles’ operation. The main feature of FSD Beta — a $15,000 up-front or $199/month added cost to any Tesla vehicle — is “autosteer on city streets”. That allows cars to maneuver urban environments, although this update aims to make it do that more cautiously.
The company says it will notify its service centers as of today, while owners should receive notifications regarding the FSD Beta situation by April 15.
