Tesla woes increase as the EV maker recalls more cars

Tesla was forced to recall over 120,000 cars after it was found they did not comply with the US government regulations. The recalled cars had doors that can be unlocked during a crash, which could cause the door to unlatch and open, increasing the risk of injury.

Tesla has already written to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration to acknowledge the issue noting that it was not aware of any injuries as a result of the issue.

Tesla will be releasing an over-the-air (OTA) software update free of charge to fix the issue. Owner notification letters are expected to be sent out Feb. 17, 2024.

The latest recall comes just a week after the EV maker announced a recall of almost all its US vehicles over safety concerns of the auto-pilot driver assistance feature. Before that, Tesla had to recall over 360,000 units concerning the company’s full self-driving software.

Tesla’s self-driving capabilities have been in the spotlight several times over the years after multiple recorded accident cases.

However, the biggest debate is whether it's the company’s fault or a case of driver recklessness.

In its user manual, legal documents, and even communication with regulators Tesla acknowledges that the auto-steer which is a key autopilot feature is "intended for use on controlled-access highways" with "a center divider, clear lane markings, and no cross traffic".

The experts note that the EV maker has the technical ability to restrict the use of the feature in unsuitable environments, but it has put little effort into doing so. All this comes even as a new issue seems to be brewing.

A former Tesla owner, Shreyansh Jain, has come out to castigate the company after he was forced to pay a $14,000 repair bill for an issue he encountered less than 24 hours after taking his brand-new Model Y home.

Jain says that the vehicle's suspension broke when he was driving with his family even though he had only done 115 miles.

After reporting the issue to Tesla, Jain says the automaker denied responsibility noting the issue was the result of previous damage to the car.

However, according to an investigation by Reuters which cited interviews with more than 20 customers and 9 Tesla workers, as well as thousands of internal documents, Jain is one of thousands of customers to experience issues with suspension and steering over the last 6 years.

Tesla is yet to respond to any of the issues but in a post on X last week, the company claimed to be a victim of media bias.

The company noted that news outlets were misconstruing the nature of its safety features and ignoring “incontrovertible data” showing Tesla’s features are “saving lives and preventing injury.”