- Tesla spent over a year investigating the issue at the behest of a non-U.S. regulatory agency
- In the U.S. Tesla’s latest recall affects the 2023 Model 3 and Model Y
- Tesla’s NHTSA recall filing leaves unanswered questions for global markets
Tesla has acknowledged over 300,000 of its EVs could lose power steering.
On Thursday, Tesla’s Daniel Donovan, Technical Publications Manager, filed an acknowledgement with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) that stated the automaker will be conducting a recall. The recall, posted a day before by the agency, involved 376,241 Tesla EVs.
Specifically, the recall involved the 2023 Model 3 sedan and 2023 Model Y crossover.
Tesla estimates only 1% of the vehicles included in the recall have the defect.
Those vehicles were manufactured in the U.S. prior to software release 2023.38.4. Model 3s affected were produced between February 28, 2023 and October 11, 2023 while Model Ys were assembled between February 24, 2023 and October 11, 2023.
These vehicles are equipped with electronic power-assist steering (EPAS) systems that, prior to software version 2023.38.4, could experience a code error that leads to overstressed motor drive components. Tesla said that if this occurs above 0 mph, steering effort will not be affected though alerts will appear on the vehicle’s dash-mounted screen. Once the vehicle reaches 0 mph, the steering system will revert to a manual system without assist. It’s unclear how long and under what conditions the reversion to manual steering would persist.
Tesla acknowledged this could increase the risk of a collision. Tesla will recall all vehicles in all markets affected by this situation, but failed to mention how many vehicles that would include outside the U.S. or detail those vehicles.
Tesla said software release 2023.38.4 and beyond resolve the issue, and that as of January 23, 2025, some 99% of affected vehicles in the U.S. have installed the release or later software versions. Tesla did not mention how many vehicles outside the U.S. have been updated or any information pertaining to those vehicles. U.S. vehicles in production rolled off the assembly line with the updated software as of October 11, 2023.
The recall notice said an unidentified regulatory authority in a non-U.S. market area opened an investigation into complaints related to the loss of power steering by the described conditions. Tesla spent over a year performing technical reviews with this unidentified authority before issuing a recall for vehicles affected on January 16, 2025. The automaker didn’t file the report with the NHTSA until February.
Tesla admitted in the filing that it has identified over 3,012 warranty claims and 570 field reports in the U.S., but does not expand on any claims or reports outside the U.S. market, which is where the original investigation started. Tesla claimed it’s unaware of any crashes, injuries, or deaths related to the condition.
Tesla’s already issued a large recall in 2025 and seven Cybertruck recalls in 2024 alone. The automaker’s sales fell in 2024 while its share of the U.S. EV market fell below 50%.