Beljing: Tesla is to recall more than 1.6 million of its electric cars sold in China between August 2014 and December last year, the State Administration for Market Regulation reported in Beijing on Friday. The problem relates to autopilot functions and door-locking, the agency said. Imported models in the series Model S, Model X and Model 3, along with Chinese-produced models in the series Model-3 and Model-Y, are all being recalled.
The models all rolled off production lines between August 26, 2014 and December 20, 2023, or were imported between October 2022 and November 2023. The US company is to resolve the problems by means of a software update, and the vehicles will not have to be brought into the workshop, according to the statement. The authority advised drivers to exercise caution in the meantime.
In the final quarter of last year, Tesla delivered 484,507 vehicles to customers in China. Over the whole of 2023, the US company sold almost 1.81 cars, meeting its sales targets. China's own electric car brand, BYD, sold more than 526,000 electric cars in the last quarter, pushing Tesla into second place.
China is a vital component in US-based Tesla's global layout, both as a large consumer market and the host of a major manufacturing plant in Shanghai.
"For vehicles within the scope of this recall, when the automatic assisted steering function is turned on, the driver may misuse the level two combined assisted driving function, increasing the risk of vehicle collision and posing a safety hazard," said the SAMR.
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