According to China’s State Administration for Market Regulation, a software issue may be impacting more than 400,000 Tesla Model Y crossovers and Model 3 sedans in China. The EVs are being recalled thanks to potential problems with their position lights. Reportedly, the lights on both sides of the vehicles may occasionally fail to light up, which could cause a safety concern.
Tesla China will recall the 435,000 Model 3 and Model Y vehicles since a defect has been discovered and changes must be made. There have been concerns by some folks – including Tesla CEO Elon Musk – that these software updates are being called "recalls," not only in the US but also in China. While the fix is only a simple and free over-the-air software update, it's still a cause for concern, and it still needs to be taken care of.
Thankfully for Tesla customers, many of these fixes don't cause an inconvenience, but the recalls are still necessary. At this point, it arguably doesn't matter what the fix is called, but rather, that owners are alerted and that the update rolls out and actually addresses the problem and eliminates the safety concern.
With all of that said, Tesla has had its fair share of these recalls, especially this year. However, it's also cranking out many more cars than it ever has before, so an escalation in the number of vehicles impacted by each of the various recalls may be expected.
This particular "position lights recall" impacts 435,132 EVs in China. More specifically, it applies to about 142,000 Model 3s produced at Giga Shanghai between December 27, 2020, and November 7, 2022. About 293,000 Model Ys are affected, but only those manufactured in China between January 1, 2021, and November 11, 2022.
According to Teslarati, China’s State Administration for Market Regulation provided the following details related to the Tesla China recall:
“For some vehicles within the scope of this recall, during the process of waking up from the parking state, the software of the vehicle’s position lights may have an error when initializing internal parameters, resulting in the position lights on one or both sides of the rear of the vehicle not being able to light up. Occasional failure of position marker lights in a dark environment will reduce the visibility of the vehicle, and in extreme cases will increase the risk of vehicle collision accidents, posing safety hazards.”
While owners are waiting for the update, they should drive with additional caution. Tesla China has advised that as soon as the update becomes available, Model Y and 3 owners should upgrade ASAP.
Source: Teslarati