Tesla Recalls Cybertruck Due to Faulty Pedals: Its Worst Defect to Date

To review this article, select My Profile and then View Saved Stories.

Brian Barrett

Tesla’s Cybertruck has been widely ridiculed. Its spaces between the panels are wide and amateurish, it is prone to rust and looks like an ergonomic cheese grater. But its most serious defect to date has led to the recall of some 4,000 vehicles.

The U. S. National Highway Traffic Safety Association has recalled 3,878 Cybertrucks, totaling all those manufactured between Nov. 13 last year and April 4. The challenge is the accelerator pedal: its pad can come off, causing the pedal to get stuck in the lining. Arriba. No needless to say, this is pretty bad.

“If the accelerator pedal pad becomes stuck in the inner liner above the pedal, the functionality and operation of the pedal will be impaired, possibly increasing the threat of a collision,” NHTSA wrote in its recall notice.

The news confirms an incident that took social media by storm earlier this week. The owner of a Cybertruck uploaded a video to TikTok that seems to show precisely this problem. “While driving, he slipped,” the sign reads, protesting with the throttle lever dislodged. “That upward slide and the way I was still hooked to the pedal kept the throttle down to 100 percent. “

The bright spot for Cybertruck owners, as also noted by the NHTSA, is that the brake beats the accelerator. This has not been the norm in the automotive industry; In 2010, Toyota recalled millions of cars after thousands of court cases for unintentional acceleration. At the time, NHTSA proposed regulations that would mandate this brake-override technology. The proposal was eventually withdrawn, but the industry still largely regained the upper hand. says David Friedman, former interim administrator of the NHTSA.

“We have to be thankful for the many lessons learned in the Toyota days, when the pedals locked up,” says Friedman. “It may have been a lot worse. “

Even with this available brake override, by the time an approximately 7,000-pound electric vehicle starts at full speed, not all drivers will necessarily be balanced enough to take the right corrective action before something goes extraordinarily wrong.

Tesla built its first Cybertruck in July 2023. But somewhere on the road to mass production, according to the NHTSA, the company has brought a new item to the production line: soap. The intention, apparently, is to make it easier to snag the pad. Unfortunately, this also made the tampon easier to remove. “Residual lubricant reduced pad retention on the pedal,” the NHTSA recall report says.

A visitor to Cybertruck reported the problem on March 31, NHTSA says. Two days later, Tesla engineers used data logs from the affected vehicle to verify that the accelerator was fully pressed and that the brake pedal had stopped the Cybertruck. The visitor’s review arrived. Within a week, Tesla had obtained footage verifying the nature of the first incident and conducted its own tests to reflect it. On April 12, he instituted a voluntary retirement, though he had no choice.

Boone Ashworth

Carlton Reid

Reece Rogers

“The law requires that a vehicle be recalled within a few days of knowing or having learned of the problem,” Friedman says. “I don’t ‘voluntarily’ prevent it by looking at the signs of prevention. It’s the law. “

This timeline aligns with previous reports that Tesla had suspended Cybertruck deliveries last week. Tesla CEO Elon Musk appeared to confirm the factor in a tweet about X on Wednesday night. “There were no injuries or injuries as a result,” he wrote. We’re just being very careful. “Telsa declined to comment.

“Tesla is coming back to Earth with a vengeance,” says Andy Palmer, former chief operating officer of Nissan and CEO of Aston Martin Lagonda, who has more than 40 years of experience in the automotive industry. “The Cybertruck recall is an age-old case of portions and processes. Changing what causes a gas pedal to fail. This is true for any automaker that starts launching multiple product launches. According to Palmer, classic automakers have strict processes when introducing new models to avoid precisely these types of incidents. . Tesla turns out to have a lot of room for improvement.

The incident is another black eye for the heavily beleaguered Cybertruck and Tesla itself. The company’s shares have fallen sharply this year as the Chinese festival intensifies and plans to offer a less expensive electric vehicle have been scrapped in favor of a global effort for robotics. Taxis.

In December, the company had to recall almost all of its cars to fix a flaw in its Autopilot software, which it repaired with an over-the-air update. Meanwhile, a shareholder war has raged over Musk’s pay package and X’s ongoing struggles. a continuous distraction for the company.

The NHTSA says Tesla brought in a new accelerator pedal component on April 17 and Cybertruck deliveries appear to have resumed. Cybertruck owners will want to take their cars to service centers for a free repair, as there is no software solution for soap.

Additional reporting via Jeremy White.

Updated on 19/04/2024 at 1:20 p. m. EST: aggregate observation by Andy Palmer and David Friedman.

Explore Election Season with our WIRED Politics Lab podcast

A hacker has destroyed the web in North Korea. Now the mask is removed

Reporting Sexual Harassment and Assault in Antarctica

This woman will know which little children will be born.

Update your Mac? Here’s what you’ll spend your money on

Aarian Marshall

Carlton Reid

Alistair Charlton

Matt Jancer

Benj Edwards, Ars Technica

Kathy Gilsinan

Save up to $58 on TurboTax Online

20% discount on all H-tax software

Up to $20 Off on Instacart in 2024

First Order: 25% Off DoorDash Promo Code ($15 minimum)

Free Finish Line for one year for all status members

Groupon Coupon: Extra 25% Off Sitewide

Leave a Comment Cancel Reply