Tesla recalls 1.6 million electric vehicles in China due to safety concerns – Fox Business

Auto expert Mike Caudill argues that Elon Musk's design of the Tesla Cybertruck will turn off potential buyers of Cavuto: Coast to Coast.

According to Portal, electric vehicle maker Tesla is recalling more than 1.6 million electric cars exported to China due to safety concerns, Chinese market regulators said on Friday.

Elon Musk's electric vehicle company is taking back 1.62 million vehicles, including Model S,

Tesla could remotely upgrade the vehicles to fix the problems, China's state market regulator said in a statement. The move is classified as a product recall under Chinese regulations.

A Tesla Model 3 is on display ahead of the 2022 China International Fair for Trade in Services (CIFTIS) at the China National Convention Center on August 28, 2022 in Beijing, China. Tesla recalls more than 1.6 million electric vehicles exported to China… (Getty Images)

SENATORS CALL FOR TESLA TO RECALL ELECTRIC VEHICLES AFTER 'ALARMING' REPORT; CAR MANUFACTURER SAYS CLAIM FALSE

If the automatic steering function is activated in these vehicles, drivers could abuse the combined driving function and thus increase the risk of accidents, the message says, according to AP.

Fox Business requested comment from Tesla but did not immediately receive a response.

The news follows a similar recall in May, in which the company recalled approximately 1,104,000 vehicles in China to allegedly address widespread safety risks. Regulators said drivers were more likely to accidentally accelerate and risk a collision. The recalls affected Tesla's Model S, Model X, Model 3 and Model 6 vehicles.

Tesla Chief Executive Officer Elon Musk gets into a Tesla car as he leaves a hotel in Beijing, China, May 31, 2023. Tesla is recalling more than 1.6 million electric vehicles exported to China due to safety concerns about auto-assisted steering and… (Portal/Tingshu Wang / Portal Photos)

Tesla has sought to expand vehicle production by building new facilities at home and abroad – including factories in China. Tesla operates a factory in Shanghai that can produce 22,000 automobile units per week.

TESLA DRIVERS HAVE THE HIGHEST ACCIDENT RATE, STUDY SAYS

In early December, more than two million Tesla owners in the U.S. received over-the-air software updates due to a recall related to the vehicles' Autopilot feature. Later that month, Tesla recalled 120,000 vehicles because of a risk that the doors unlocking during operation could cause an accident.

According to its 2023 production and delivery report, Tesla ended 2023 on a strong note, beating estimates for fourth-quarter deliveries. The company delivered a record 484,507 vehicles between October and December, reaching its 2023 target of 1.8 million.

A charger with a Tesla logo at a Supercharger fast-charging battery station in California. Elon Musk's electric vehicle maker is taking back 1.62 million vehicles because of problems with automatic steering assistance and door lock controls. (Smith Collection/Gado/Getty Images / Getty Images)

GET FOX BUSINESS ON THE GO by CLICKING HERE

Deliveries in the fourth quarter were about 11% higher than in the third quarter, when modernization of assembly lines to produce the updated Model 3 mass-market sedan partially affected production.

The new and much-hyped Cybertruck model was expected to account for only a small number of deliveries last year.

Timothy Nerozzi, Eric Revell, Chris Pandolfo and Aislinn Murphy of FOX Business and Portal contributed to this report.