DETROIT — Tesla has issued a recall that routinely despatched a software program replace fixing a security downside in its electric vehicles, apparently heading off a looming confrontation with U.S. security regulators.
However recall paperwork posted on the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration web site Tuesday do not deal with one other security situation specified by the company when it demanded that Tesla clarify why it wasn’t doing recalls for safety-related software program updates completed over the web.
The recall covers almost 12,000 Teslas with a glitch within the “Full Self-Driving” software program that may make the automobiles cease for no good purpose. The corporate’s paperwork says the issues with computerized emergency braking can enhance the chance of different autos hitting Teslas from behind.
The recall covers all 4 Tesla fashions — the S, X, 3 and Y. Tesla paperwork say a software program replace despatched on Oct. 23 launched the glitch.
Firm paperwork say Tesla began getting studies from homeowners the subsequent day about phantom braking. In a matter of hours, the corporate says it canceled additional updates or reverted the software program to a earlier model. That disabled emergency braking on a number of the autos.
On Oct. 24, the corporate traced the trigger to a communication disconnect between two pc chips. It developed one other software program replace to repair the issue and despatched it out on Oct. 25, in accordance with the paperwork. The corporate mentioned it voluntarily agreed to do a recall on Oct. 26.
The transfer seems to indicate that Tesla now will situation a recall when it pushes out software program updates to repair issues of safety. It additionally units a precedent for different automakers that they do the identical.
On Oct. 12, regulators despatched a letter to Tesla demanding to know why the corporate did not recall its autos when it despatched a software program replace to repair an issue with its Autopilot partially automated driving system. The replace addressed detection of emergency autos parked on roads whereas crews responded to crashes.
The NHTSA opened an investigation of Autopilot in August after getting studies of a dozen crashes into emergency autos. The investigation covers 765,000 autos, virtually all the pieces that Tesla has offered within the U.S. for the reason that begin of the 2014 mannequin yr. Of the dozen crashes which can be a part of the probe, 17 individuals had been injured and one was killed.
Tesla had till Monday to elucidate why it did not situation a recall for the Autopilot replace. As of early Tuesday, NHTSA had not posted any paperwork detailing Tesla’s response.
The company mentioned conversations with Tesla proceed “to make sure that any security defect is promptly acknowledged and addressed in accordance with the Nationwide Site visitors and Motor Automobile Security Act.” The assertion didn’t say if Tesla responded to the company’s questions on the Autopilot software program replace.
Messages had been left early Tuesday in search of remark from Tesla.
Tesla did a software program replace in late September that was supposed to enhance detection of emergency automobile lights in low-light situations. The company says Tesla is conscious that federal regulation requires automakers to do a recall in the event that they discover out that autos have security defects.
Tesla says that Autopilot and “Full Self-Driving” are driver-assistance programs and can’t drive themselves, regardless of their names. The automaker says drivers must be able to intervene at any time.
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