Two recalls are combined, one for the Model 3 and one for the Model S
475,318 vehicles are in the US and the rest is in Canada
A faulty “frunk” latch and a fragile backup camera cable are to blame
Tesla announced a recall of 517,478 vehicles in Canada and the United States over two safety concerns.
125,827 units of the Model S built in 2014 (of which 6,818 units are in Canada) will be inspected in order to determine if the secondary latch for the front trunk is defective. If so, the part will be replaced free of charge. Tesla estimates that around 14% of the recalled vehicles will receive a replacement part.
A failed secondary latch could allow the front trunk to suddenly open while driving, which could startle the driver and obstruct the forward visibility.
2021 Tesla Model 3 | Photo: Tesla
The second recall affects more vehicles. 391,651 units of the Model 3 built between 2017 and 2020 (of which 35,342 units are in Canada). According to the automaker, the repeated opening and closing of the rear trunk can cause excessive wear to the cable that provides the Rear-view camera’s feed to the infotainment system.
If the cable wears down too much, the image from the camera may stop showing on the vehicle’s screen, which increases the risks of a collision while reversing. Tesla estimates that only about 1% of the recalled vehicles will have a defective camera and a protective guide for the cable will be added in order to make it more resistant to wear.
This is a very significant recall for Tesla because the total number of vehicles recalled is higher than the number of vehicles it sold for the entirety of 2020, at around 500,000 units.
