Tesla has announced a recall of more than 200,000 electric vehicles due to malfunctioning onboard computers that could disable key safety features, including the rearview camera system.
The recall affects recent builds of Tesla's entire vehicle lineup - Model 3, Model Y, Model S, and Model X - manufactured between January 2023 and December 2024. The issue stems from problematic hardware that can experience short circuits in the company's latest HW4 (AI4) computer systems.
According to Tesla's safety recall report filed on January 6th, the company has received 887 warranty claims and 68 field reports related to the computer defect as of December 30th. The malfunction puts the vehicles out of compliance with National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) regulations regarding rearview camera reliability.
While Tesla began deploying an over-the-air software update on December 18th to address the issue, the company acknowledges that some vehicles will require complete computer replacement if the update proves insufficient. This marks Tesla's third recent recall involving rearview camera functionality, following similar actions for other models in January 2024 and the Cybertruck in October 2023.
The computer systems in question are integral to Tesla's autonomous driving ambitions, including planned robotaxi services. Owners of affected vehicles will be notified and can receive necessary hardware replacements at no cost through Tesla service centers.
The recall underscores ongoing challenges as automakers integrate increasingly sophisticated computer systems into vehicles while maintaining compliance with safety regulations.