Tesla: recall due to display defect

Some Tesla owners are currently complaining about the failure of the elementary display. Accordingly, the automaker is recalling about 130,000 vehicles. Excessive heat generation during fast charging is said to be behind the problem.

Fast-charging function as trigger

Unlike many other vehicles, the failure of the infotainment display in a Tesla is a major problem. After all, this is the vehicle’s central control unit and, on top of that, the only way to view data about the vehicle. Even the speedometer is not behind the steering wheel as usual, but is shown on the display. This results in risks in everyday road traffic that should not be underestimated. This is also the opinion of the U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). However, the authority did not become aware of the problem on its own initiative.

Rather, Tesla has taken flight here and pointed out to the experts that a recall is imminent in the wake of the technical problems. After some negative incidents around the Autopilot, this would probably have led to unwanted press again. The reason for the display failure is said to be the vehicle’s fast charging system. This is said to cause such high temperatures that the display can suffer from various restrictions. In addition to delayed reactions to inputs, it can also come to the complete defect.

Effects on driving safety

In the Tesla, the infotainment display forms the central control unit. This means that even essential things like driving modes, air conditioning and more simply cannot be set without a display. Safety-relevant features like the rearview camera are also omitted here. In Tesla’s eyes, this increases the accident risk of the popular electric cars. The electric car manufacturer will certainly be reminded of the winter of 2021 when it comes to the whole issue. Here, too, there were due problems with the processor installed in the infotainment. Delayed or no inputs at all were the result.

Model 3, Y, X and S affected

The most annoying thing about the current recall will certainly be that it affects many current vehicles. In particular, the two flagship Model X and S of the 2021 and 2022 model years are affected by the problem. But the latest Model 3 and Y from the 2022 model year are also said to have display problems as a result of fast charging. However, one should apparently not have a blanket fear of the overtaxed processor. Tesla states that problems only occur when the car has a certain firmware installed.   To prevent accidents from happening in the first place, Tesla now wants to fix the problem as quickly as possible in all affected vehicles. For this reason, the e-car manufacturer will also put a lot of effort into fixing the problem.

Solution for all in July

When you consider how the company plans to fix the problem, it becomes clear at what high technical level vehicles will be in 2022. Thus, even a simple Over The Air (OTA) update should be enough to get rid of the problem. In July, all customers affected by the problem are supposed to receive a corresponding announcement letter. The update is supposed to change the functionality of the integrated CPU a bit. Tesla wants to help with the temperature management in particular.