Tesla Asked to Recall 158,000 Cars Due
to Defective Touchscreen Display.
The National Highway Traffic Safety
Administration (NHTSA) has requested
a recall of about 158,000 Tesla vehicles. .
The recall request applies to Model S cars
built between 2012 and 2018 and Model X SUVs
built between 2016 and 2018. .
According to a letter sent to Tesla by
the NHTSA, the defect was found in the
media-console units (MCU) of these vehicles.
The mentioned models are fitted with
a Nvidia Tegra 3 processor and an
integrated 8G flash memory device. .
When the car is started, a portion of the
memory storage is used. Once full, the
car’s MCU fails to work properly. .
If the vehicle’s touchscreen display doesn’t work,
the driver cannot access controls such as the rear-view
camera, heating, air conditioning and defrosting. .
The vehicle's autopilot feature could also
be negatively affected, as well as the ability
to hear the car’s indicators. .
The NHTSA believes that on average this
inevitable failure will happen within five to six years. .
Tesla is aware of the problem and
has so far attempted to remedy it with
over-the-air software updates. .
The NHTSA believes that
will only be a temporary solution.
Tesla has until January 27 to
respond to the request.
The NHTSA wants Tesla to either recall the
cars or formally notify customers of the issue
and explain why a recall isn’t necessary.