Tesla has implemented software fixes for most of its vehicles sold in the U.S. to address the risk that the car’s software could not detect an unlocked hood, which could open and obstruct the driver’s view, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.
The over-the-air update, which NHTSA officially described as a product recall, applies to more than 1.85 million vehicles from model years 2017 to 2024 across the Model S, Model X, Model 3 and Model Y product lines, as well as some earlier Model S and Model X vehicles.
This is the latest major product recall due to software issues at Tesla, which released a software update to nearly all of its vehicles sold in the US in December to improve safety features for its Autopilot system and in February addressed a problem with font sizes on its instrument panel.
According to the NHTSA recall report, the company began investigating the issue in March after receiving complaints from Chinese drivers. A month later, the company identified the problem as being related to a “deformed latching switch,” and its investigation found that the issue was occurring more frequently in China than in North America for “unknown reasons.”
According to the recall notice, the company began distributing the software update to Tesla owners on June 18.
NHTSA said the company has identified three warranty claims related to the issue, but no injuries or fatalities.
