Tesla to Recall More Than Two Million Vehicles Over Autopilot Safety Concerns

Tesla will recall more than two million vehicles over concerns its Autopilot system can be misused by drivers, amid a two-year probe by U.S. auto-safety regulators into crashes involving the driver-assistance technology.

The recall covers some Tesla Models 3, S, X and Y sold in the U.S. between 2012 and 2023, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said Tuesday.

Tesla’s Autopilot system may not have sufficient controls in place to prevent driver misuse, it said. There is an increased risk of a crash when Autopilot is engaged and a driver doesn’t maintain control of the vehicle or is unprepared to intervene, the NHTSA said. The agency said as part of its investigation it had reviewed 956 crashes where Autopilot was said to have been used.

The company will offer owners a free software update. Tesla didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.

Tesla shares fell about 1% in premarket trading.

In this video investigation from August, a WSJ analysis of dashcam footage and data from a Texas crash shows Tesla’s Autopilot system failed to recognize stopped emergency vehicles. Photo illustration: Ryan Trefes