Tesla recall 2023: 2 million vehicles recalled over Autopilot issue, are UK customers affected

Tesla is issuing a recall for over two million vehicles across its model range the US regulator found its driver assistance system, Autopilot, was partly defective. According to documents released by U.S. safety regulators on Wednesday (December 13), the company plans to resolve the issues through a software update.

The recall follows a two-year investigation by US auto safety regulators into a series of accidents occurring during the use of the partially automated Autopilot system, some of which resulted in fatal road collisions.

The US National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's findings indicate that Autopilot's method of verifying driver attentiveness can be insufficient, leading to "foreseeable misuse of the system."

This recall includes nearly all Tesla vehicles sold in the US since Autopilot was activated in late 2015. Safety advocates have long called for more stringent regulations regarding the driver monitoring system, primarily designed to detect whether the driver's hands are on the steering wheel.

Although Autopilot can autonomously steer, accelerate, and brake within its lane, it is a driver-assist system and cannot operate independently despite its name. Independent tests have shown that the monitoring system is susceptible to manipulation, with instances of drivers being caught driving under the influence or sitting in the back seat.

In its defect report submitted to the safety agency, Tesla acknowledged that Autopilot's controls may not be adequate to prevent driver misuse.

This is the second time the electric vehicle carmaker issued a recall. In October, 54,676 Model X vehicles manufactured between 2021-2023 were recalled over the vehicle controller issue, which was said likely to fail to detect low brake fluid and not display a warning light.

Tesla, based in Austin, Texas, has yet to comment on the matter.

Are UK customers affected?

The UK customers are not affected by the latest recall. The last recall involving the UK customers were related to Tesla Model 3 over a user interface issue.