Michael Brooks, executive director at the consumer advocacy group Center for Auto Safety, noted the agency had identified steering rack part numbers, suggesting it was examining possible hardware defects.
The high failure rates of the new models suggest that “there is a significant issue here,” Brooks said.
By David Shepardson and Hyunjoo Jin
February 2, 2024
WASHINGTON/SAN FRANCISCO, Feb 2 (Reuters) – U.S. safety regulators on Friday upgraded their probe into Tesla (TSLA.O), opens new tab vehicles over power steering loss to the status of an engineering analysis – a required step before the agency could demand a recall.
Tesla shares, which dropped more than 25% in January alone, fell more than 3% on Friday.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) said the investigation covered about 334,000 Model 3 and Model Y vehicles from the 2023 model year.
The agency’s upgraded probe follows a Reuters investigation that found tens of thousands of owners had experienced premature failuresof suspension or steering parts since 2016, citing Tesla documents and interviews with customers and former employees. The Tesla documents showed that the automaker sought to blame drivers for frequent failures of suspension and steering parts it has long known were defective.
