Tesla is below investigation by US regulators over complaints the steering wheel can fall off sure new Model Y automobiles whereas they’re in use.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration mentioned it is conscious of two incidents by which the wheel indifferent from the steering column whereas drivers have been working the 2023 mannequin yr SUVs. The preliminary analysis, opened March 4, applies to an estimated 120,089 automobiles, in accordance with a submitting posted on NHTSA’s web site.
The affected automobiles have been delivered to homeowners with out the retaining bolt that holds the steering wheel in place, the company mentioned. NHTSA is assessing “the scope, frequency and manufacturing processes associated with this condition.” There are not any recognized accidents or deaths associated to the difficulty, NHTSA mentioned.
Tesla did not instantly reply to a request for remark.
The transfer by NHTSA is the most recent in a sequence of investigations concentrating on Tesla, its merchandise and its chief govt officer, Elon Musk. The Austin, Texas-based automaker final month recalled 362,758 electrical automobiles after NHTSA mentioned Tesla’s automated-driving expertise might enhance the danger of a crash.
A Tesla proprietor in New Jersey posted pictures on Twitter in January that appeared to indicate a indifferent steering wheel in a Model Y he mentioned he acquired a number of days earlier. He mentioned in subsequent tweets that Tesla agreed to exchange the automobile and that NHTSA had contacted him concerning the difficulty.
Tesla shares fell 3.2 % at 9:50 am in New York.
The Model Y is a key product for Tesla, which not too long ago began manufacturing the automobile at its two latest vegetation — one exterior Berlin and the opposite in Austin. The firm experiences a mixed determine for Model Y and Model 3 deliveries and handed over greater than 1.2 million of the automobiles final yr. The Model Y was the best-selling EV globally final yr and may very well be one of many prime automobiles of any sort this yr, in accordance with BloombergNEF.
Steering wheel detachments, whereas uncommon, will not be distinctive to Tesla.
In August, Ford Motor recalled 692 F-53 Motorhome Stripped Chassis and F-59 Commercial Stripped Chassis automobiles as a result of the steering wheel attachment bolt might loosen and separate from the steering column. It additionally recalled about 1.3 million Ford and Lincoln model automobiles in 2018 over an analogous downside.
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