According to foreign media reports, after Tesla addressed yet another recall by the U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) last week through an OTA software update, some began to criticize the company for its frequent recall incidents. However, recent data suggests that Tesla's car recall numbers for this year are expected to drop from millions to several hundred thousand, indicating a continuous improvement in Tesla's production process.
Data released by the NHTSA shows that in 2022, Tesla had recalled a total of 3.8 million vehicles. However, a recent media report estimates that so far in 2023, the number of Tesla vehicles recalled stands at approximately 439,000. Based on estimates, the total number of recalls for Tesla this year is expected to be around 550,000.
To date this year, all automakers combined have recalled over 16 million vehicles, while the consolidated recall number stood at 19 million for 2022. While Tesla's recall rate was slightly above average in 2022, the media predicts a reduction in the company's recall rate this year.
Last week, Tesla recalled 55,000 Model X vehicles due to a controller malfunction that prevented the detection or display of low brake fluid levels. Subsequently, the company resolved this issue merely with an OTA software update, eliminating the need for owners to drive their cars to service centers for repair.
While some of Tesla's past recalls indeed required customers to get their cars fixed at service centers, most of the time, this hasn't been necessary. Hence, some argue that the term "recall" shouldn't be used when a visit to the service center isn't required.
Tesla CEO Elon Musk is among those who have voiced this opinion. He has repeatedly stated that the term "recall" is overused. In February of this year, he even mentioned in a tweet that the use of the term "recall" was "completely incorrect."
