The touchscreen in some cars Tesla appears to have a problem that could put drivers' lives at risk, prompting the company to recall the models.
Specifically, the Safety Administration (NHTSA) is asking Tesla to recall a total of 158,000 cars. These are certain Model S released from 2012 to 2018 and some Model X released from 2016 to 2018. The agency claims that the recall of the vehicles is necessary due to problematic touchscreens.
The issue first emerged in June, when NHTSA launched an investigation after complaints about problems with the touchscreens in cars Tesla. Since the video rearview camera and other important information are displayed on this touchscreen, any malfunction while driving could put drivers at risk, as it could cause a collision.
On January 13, Tesla received a letter from NHTSA explaining that the display issues stem from flash memory issues in Tesla’s media control unit (MCU). The agency acknowledges that Tesla has implemented “several over-the-air updates in an effort to mitigate certain issues,” but emphasizes that are these updates not sufficient to address the issues and keep people safe.
The letter also refers to previous communication between Tesla and NHTSA on the same issue, where Tesla had admitted that all MCUs will definitely experience problems at some point.
The organization is now asking Tesla to recall vehicles with the problematic touchscreens while the investigation continues.
The Tesla Model 3 is apparently not mentioned in the letter, although a potential screen issue could be very dangerous. Unlike the Model S and Model X, which have a second screen in front of the driver that continues to display key information even if the main touchscreen fails, the Model 3 presents all data on a single touchscreen.
Source: Mashable
