Tesla blamed customers for malfunctions of their cars, knowing that they were due to defective parts, reports Reuters

Again, Tesla is embroiled in controversy over perceived problems with its electric vehicles. According to a new report from ReutersElon Musk’s company he blamed his clients due to a number of mechanical faults recorded in their vehicles, when he allegedly knew they were caused by defective parts.

The aforementioned media outlets claim to have gained access to internal Tesla documents from 2016 to 2022, where the company would admit that the problems were caused by “faulty” or “defective” parts. However, he would instruct his staff to shift responsibility to the drivers themselves.

Among the cases reported by Tesla, faults are mainly mentioned at the suspension and steering levels. Some are more serious than others. The report indicates that many owners of the brand’s electric vehicles – presumably tens of thousands – contacted service centers as a result annoying noises or vibrations.

Although more extreme cases have also been reported, such as wheel detachment when driving at a speed of almost 100 kilometers per hour with the autopilot turned on. OR sudden loss of power steering at full acceleration, which almost ended with the Tesla (and its driver) ending up in a ditch.

Reuters insists that mechanical problems with Tesla vehicles are nothing new, and neither are complaints from its customers. Likewise, he argues that the problems are not exclusive to one country or region, but have been reported in Asia, North America and Europe.

Tesla will accuse its customers of “abuse” or “misuse” of its vehicles.

What is truly curious is that some of the shortcomings They would be produced in new models or with very little use.. One of the cases identified was that of a British user whose right front suspension broke on his 2023 Model Y less than 24 hours after Tesla delivered it to him. An agreement worth more than $14,000 that Elon Musk’s firm refused to cover, saying the incident was due to previous suspension damage.

Repeating element in a report Reuters is that in response to customer complaints about mechanical problems in their vehicles, Tesla would rather blame them for “abuse” or “misuse” of them.. An argument that would even be presented to US regulators and, in turn, would become a repeated explanation in their service centers.

For example, Elon Musk would reassure drivers that the defects found in the suspension links and arms were caused by hitting curbs while parking or excessive other “hard impacts.” However, this may not be the case.

The report even mentions that Tesla’s choice of the terms “abuse” or “misuse” would not be bizarre, but cover yourself legally and avoid repairs, even if the cars are still under warranty.

long-standing problems

Problems due to faulty parts in suspension arms and axle shafts of Tesla electric vehicles They were first discovered in 2013.. In China, for example, a large number of customers have reported mechanical faults with these components since 2016, although it was only in 2020 that the company decided to call for a general inspection of its vehicles. And this would only happen after a slap on the wrist from the Asian giant’s regulators. However, sources Reuters They claim that although the manufacturer was aware of the global scale of these problems, it never did the same in Europe or North America.

According to an internal report submitted by a Tesla engineer, the company spent almost $4 million when repairing suspension arms, front and rear links of Model S and passenger cars. In fact, $1.3 million of that amount would go toward repairing vehicles less than two years old.

Meanwhile, in 2020, Tesla engineers concluded that their cars’ suspension components continued to have a high failure rate, even after redesign. Likewise, the company’s customers have reported that power steering problems have accelerated between 2021 and 2022, especially in the Model 3 and Model Y. At this point, Tesla or Elon Musk have not publicly commented on what was reported Reuters, and it is unlikely that they will do so. We will closely monitor the news.