Blumenthal & Markey Call on Tesla to Recall All Vehicle Components that Pose Known Safety Risks

[WASHINGTON, D.C.] – After alarming reporting on Tesla safety flaws, U.S. Senators Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) and Edward J. Markey (D-MA) called on the company to immediately recall all vehicle components that pose a risk to consumers. A recent Reuters investigation revealed that Tesla knows about existing flaws in its cars, including serious issues with steering control and suspension caused by component failures, but conceals the causes of the flaws from U.S. regulators while blaming its customers for them.

“We write with extreme concern following recent reporting about Tesla’s knowledge of safety flaws in its vehicles and concealment of the causes of these flaws from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA),” wrote Blumenthal and Markey to Tesla co-founder and CEO Elon Musk. “This reporting puts your statement from January that ‘Teslas are the safest car on the road’ at stark contrast with reality. We call on you to swiftly recall all Tesla components that pose a safety risk and correct the record with NHTSA to ensure it can properly do its job.”

NHTSA is currently conducting investigations into one suspension connection point, the fore link, and power steering after failures experienced by Tesla drivers. In 2020, Tesla recalled the front suspension aft link and rear suspension upper link in China, suggesting the company is aware of these flaws in its vehicles, but no recall has yet taken place in the U.S. or other countries.

“[W]e are disturbed that you would blame your customers for these failures. Reporting notes that Tesla repeatedly attributed the suspension failures to ‘vehicle misuse’ or ‘driver abuse,’ including when justifying to NHTSA why it was not pursuing the aforementioned suspension recall in the United States,” continued the senators. “It is unacceptable that Tesla would not only attempt to shift the responsibility for the substandard quality of its vehicles to the people purchasing them, but also make that same flawed argument to NHTSA.”

The full text of the letter can be found here and below.

Blumenthal and Markey have long pushed for autonomous vehicle (AV) technology safety. In August 2021, Blumenthal and Markey sent a letter to the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), calling for the agency to launch an investigation into Tesla’s advertising of driving automation systems. The full text of the letter can be found here. In February 2022, Blumenthal and Markey sent a letter to Tesla Co-founder and CEO Elon Musk following numerous reports of dangerous braking flaws in Tesla’s Autopilot and Full Self-Driving systems and amid several federal safety investigations, voicing serious concerns with the implementation of the company’s technology. The full text of the letter to Musk can be found here. In June 2022, Blumenthal and Markey issued a joint statement applauding the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) for upgrading its investigation into Tesla’s Autopilot system from a preliminary evaluation to an engineering analysis after identifying additional crashes at first responder sites. In October 2022, Blumenthal and Markey issued a joint statement on a reported DOJ investigation into Tesla’s misleading advertising of driving automation systems. In February 2023, Blumenthal and Markey issued a joint statement on Tesla’s recall of its vehicles equipped with Full Self-Driving Beta software due to crash risk, and in December 2023, the senators issued a joint statement on Tesla’s recall of 2 million vehicles with Autosteer, an Autopilot feature.

December 27, 2023

Mr. Elon Musk

Co-founder and Chief Executive Officer

Tesla

3500 Deer Creek Road

Palo Alto, California  94304

Dear Mr. Musk,

            We write with extreme concern following recent reporting about Tesla’s knowledge of safety flaws in its vehicles and concealment of the causes of these flaws from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). This reporting puts your statement from January that “Teslas are the safest car on the road” at stark contrast with reality.[1] We call on you to swiftly recall all Tesla components that pose a safety risk and correct the record with NHTSA to ensure it can properly do its job.

            An alarming Reuters report last week outlined repeated failures in steering control and suspension parts on Tesla vehicles shortly after purchase. The report detailed complaints about suspension connection points, including fore and aft links, and sudden losses of power steering – often while a vehicle was in motion.[2] We are encouraged that NHTSA is conducting investigations into the fore link and power steering.[3] However, it appears that Tesla knew about the flaws in its components and failed to take action: in 2020, Tesla recalled the front suspension aft link and rear suspension upper link in China after pressure from regulators, but no such recall occurred in the United States or elsewhere in the world, putting countless Americans and others on the road at undue risk.[4] We urge you to swiftly issue a recall for any component – power steering, suspension, or otherwise – that poses a threat to the safe functioning of a vehicle.

            Moreover, we are disturbed that you would blame your customers for these failures. Reporting notes that Tesla repeatedly attributed the suspension failures to “vehicle misuse” or “driver abuse,” including when justifying to NHTSA why it was not pursuing the aforementioned suspension recall in the United States.[5] It is unacceptable that Tesla would not only attempt to shift the responsibility for the substandard quality of its vehicles to the people purchasing them, but also make that same flawed argument to NHTSA. NHTSA exists to ensure roadway safety, but it cannot do its job with incomplete or incorrect information.

            In light of these apparent false and misleading representations, we demand that you correct the record in every respect and that you commit to providing accurate and truthful statements in the future. The credibility and reputation of your company is at stake – and even more importantly, the safety of motorists and others on the roads.

            As you are well aware, no company is above the law. We appreciate your urgent attention to this important matter, and we await your written response.

Sincerely,