NHTSA launches Tesla (TSLA.US) Model 3 door safety investigation involving nearly 180,000 vehicles

The Zhitong Finance App learned that the US Auto Safety Supervisory Authority said on Wednesday that it has launched a defect investigation into the Tesla (TSLA.US) Model 3 due to concerns that the vehicle's emergency door opener is not easy to touch in an emergency and that the logo is not clear.

According to the US National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) Defect Investigation Office, the investigation involved about 17,9071 2022 models. The investigation was officially launched on December 23. Earlier, the supervisory authority received a defect complaint stating that the mechanical door opener of the vehicle involved was not only designed to be hidden and not clearly marked, but also difficult to quickly locate and operate in an emergency situation.

As of now, Tesla has not responded to this matter.

According to reports, Tesla's models mainly use electronic door locking systems, and the car door needs to be operated with a button instead of a traditional mechanical door handle. Although the vehicle is equipped with a manual door opener for emergency situations or power failure scenarios, experts have long pointed out that the visibility, clarity and ease of operation of this mechanical device are insufficient, and the impact on rear passengers is particularly obvious.

Just last month, Tesla was sued for a serious accident. In a Tesla Model S fire accident in the US state of Wisconsin, all 5 occupants were killed. The cause of the accident is said to have been a defect in the vehicle's design that prevented the car door from opening, and the occupants were trapped inside the car.

Furthermore, in November of last year, a Cybertruck collided and caught fire in the suburbs of San Francisco in the US, causing the deaths of two college students. The family also filed a lawsuit against Tesla, alleging that Cybertruck's doorknob design defects caused the two students to be trapped in a burning vehicle.

It should be emphasized that the acceptance of a complaint of defects is not equivalent to a supervisory authority issuing a recall order, but this marks the official commencement of the regulatory review process. Once it has been verified that there are safety-related defects, further regulatory measures may be triggered in the future.

It is worth mentioning that NHTSA announced in September of this year that it has initiated a preliminary evaluation of about 17,4290 Model Y models due to successive reports of electronic doorknob failure.