We've been actively covering the issue with Tesla's vehicle's lack of heat for some time now. It has been ongoing since last winter, though the number of owners experiencing issues seems to have accelerated over the past few months.
Essentially, Tesla owners living in cold climates have had problems with their cars' heat pumps, which not only means a lack of heat in general, but also the inability to properly defrost the vehicle's windshield. While the lack of heat is a safety concern and could leave people in an emergency situation, the inability to see out the front windshield is arguably a much more pressing concern.
Following suit with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), as well as Transport Canada, Tesla China has officially initiated a recall related to the potential heat pump issues. According to Teslarati, over 26,000 China-built Model Y and Model 3 vehicles are included in the recall, which notes that the heating problems could reduce the performance of the EV's windshield defrosting system.
More specifically, the publication notes that China’s State Administration for Market Regulation (SAMR) indicates some ~12,000 Model 3 sedans and ~14,000 Model Y crossovers are impacted by the recent "heat pump" recall. The affected Tesla vehicles were produced between December 28, 2020, and January 15, 2022.
According to Tesla, it has already established a fix for the related problem in the States and Canada. The solution will come in the form of an over-the-air (OTA) software update. However, Tesla has been working on this issue for some time now, and previous OTA updates were unable to provide a complete solution, so we'll have to wait to learn how it all plays out.
In the meantime, Tesla owners in China are advised to travel with caution until the heat pump fix arrives.
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Do you own a Tesla? Let us know how the winter has treated you so far. Have you experienced a lack of heat? What about the inability to defrost your windshield?
In addition, we're interested to know if anyone has received any of the previous fixes for this issue, or the latest software update solution. If so, is the problem solved? Let us know all the details in the comment section below.
Source: Teslarati