Tesla has been forced to issue a recall for almost every car it sold in the U.S. because of illegible warning lights. The massive recall affects more than 2 million cars and follows a similarly huge recall that hit almost every car Tesla has sold in China. Great start to 2024.
The latest recall for the electric vehicle maker was sparked due to issues with warning lights on the dash, reports Automotive News. The font on certain warning lights is too small. The outlet explains:
The latest recall includes vehicles across Tesla’s various models, including the Model S, Model X, 2017-2023 Model 3, Model Y, and 2024 Cybertruck vehicles, the NHTSA said.
“Warning lights with a smaller font size can make critical safety information on the instrument panel difficult to read, increasing the risk of a crash,” the NHTSA said.
The font in question is used to mark the brake, park and anti lock brake controls. The NHTSA reports that the text used on the Tesla dashboards falls under the 3.2mm (1/8 inch) size required and, as such, is harder for drivers to read. Because of this, they’re more at risk of making a mistake or crashing.
To fix the situation, it won’t require anything dramatic like ripping out dashboards and installing new interiors, oh no. Instead, the cars need nothing more than a software update that Tesla created in January 2024.
According to Automotive News, the patch has already started rolling out to impacted Teslas. The over-the-air update was made available from January 23, free of charge to Tesla owners. Once installed, it brings the fonts in line with U.S. regulations.
This recall is now officially the first recall of the Tesla Cybertruck. The long awaited electric pickup finally went into production in 2023 with deliveries starting at the end of the year. How exciting!
Tesla hasn’t said how many Cybertrucks were delivered, or how many are in need of a software patch as part of this recall. However, it did confirm that new software was being installed on trucks currently being assembled in the U.S.
If you are worried that your car might be affected by a recall, there are a few easy ways to check if it’s the case. First up, the NHTSA has a super handy app that you can use to see if your vehicle is impacted by a recall, or you can head to the regulator’s website and plug your VIN into its recall search tool.