Tesla issues largest voluntary recall with the Model S for power steering issues

Tesla is taking a proactive stance and recalling 123,000 Model S vehicles built before April 2016 over a power steering issue. The automaker emailed customers saying none of the other models are affected by this issue and there are no injuries or crashes reported in connection with this issue. In the email, Tesla said they’ve “observed excessive corrosion in the power steering bolts” and the issue seems more prevalent in colder climates where road salt is used.

“If the bolts fail, the driver is still able to steer the car, but increased force is required due to loss or reduction of power assist,” Tesla wrote in the email to customers. “This primarily makes the car harder to drive at low speeds and for parallel parking, but does not materially affect control at high speed, where only small steering wheel force is needed.” But Tesla assures Model S owners that they don’t have to stop driving their cars if they haven’t experienced issues. And they would let Model S owners know when a retrofit for their car is available in their area. It’ll take around an hour to install. It is the company's biggest recall, affecting around half of the Model S vehicles built to date. In 2015, Tesla needed to recall 90,000 Model S cars for a seat belt issue, and in the following year, 53,000 Model S and X cars had to have their parking brakes replaced.

Source: The Verge