San Francisco: Elon Musk-run Tesla has recalled nearly 137 Model Y electric vehicles (EVs) in the US due to a potential safety concern.
According to the US National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's (NHTSA) safety recall report, 137 2022-2023 Tesla Model Y may possibly have a "loose" fastener that could cause disconnection of the steering wheel from its column.
Tesla estimates that approximately 10 per cent of the affected vehicles may have this issue. Tesla manufactured the recalled cars between June 23, 2022, and May 1, 2023, the report mentioned.
According to the recall report, the driver "may lose steering control" if the fastener "allows the steering wheel to disconnect", which could increase the chances of a crash.
Tesla received four warranty claims and one field report potentially related to the problem. Between mid-November and late April, the company received those in a 5.5-month period, the report said.
However, there have been no reports of crashes, injuries, or fatalities to date.
The company is also "not aware of any instances of the steering wheel completely detaching from the steering column due to this condition," as per the report.
Tesla intends to replace any fasteners found to be loose during service inspections in recalled vehicles. According to the NHTSA notice, this will be done at no cost to the impacted customers.
There have been at least 3 previous occasions involving reports of steering wheel issues involving Tesla vehicles. Back in May 2020, a British man had his Model 3 wheel fall off just a month after it was delivered. In January another man experienced a similar issue when the wheel in his Model Y fell off less than a week after delivery.
In May, Tesla recalled over 1.1 million electric vehicles (EVs), or nearly all the vehicles it has sold in China, in response to a braking problem.