The country’s runaway EV leader recalled over 360,000 vehicles equipped with its Full Self-Driving (FSD) Beta technology on Thursday, according to The New York Times. The US authorities issued a warning that the software could cause problems.
The recall notice was placed on the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s (NHTSA) website on Thursday. The agency discovered that FSD Beta could enable equipped vehicles to act “unlawful or unpredictable manner,” increasing the crash risk.
“The FSD Beta system may allow the vehicle to act unsafe around intersections, such as traveling straight through an intersection while in a turn-only lane, entering a stop sign-controlled intersection without coming to a complete stop, or proceeding into an intersection during a steady yellow traffic signal without due caution,” the notice stated.
The NHTSA also stated that the software might “deficiently” respond to changes in posted speed limits.
The recall affects all four of Tesla’s current EVs, including the Model S, Model 3, Model X, and Model Y, which are equipped with FSD Beta. According to CNBC, the software is only available to Tesla owners who have already purchased the company’s premium FSD driver’s assistance system. The service costs an additional $15,000 or $199 per month. Despite their names, neither the system nor the software enables equipped vehicles to drive themselves, though the technology can steer, accelerate, brake, and change lanes for the EV.
Tesla urges drivers to be prepared to take control of their vehicles anytime. The company has not disclosed how many people use the software, but the recall notice states that 362,758 vehicles are “potentially” affected by the problem.
Although Tesla disagrees with the agency’s assessment, it voluntarily agreed to the recall “out of an abundance of caution,” according to the Times. Through an over-the-air software update, the fix will be made available for free. Customers who are impacted will get letters of notification by April 15 at the latest.
Since the start of the year, Tesla’s stock price has increased, but in the days following the recall, it dropped more than 5.5 percent to $203.57 per share.