Even Tesla can't avoid the shortage of semiconductors. At the same time, Tesla, through its own semiconductor supply and demand relationship, has been better than other car brands, and has not affected new car sales. However, according to the understanding, Tesla did not inform the user in advance and replaced the parts without authorization, and this matter has been fermented in many places around the world.
Due to the problem of semiconductor supply, many auto brands, including imported brands, are more or less facing difficult production and the problem of reduced allocation. If the allocation is reduced, then the use of some functions of the vehicle will definitely have an impact. Some manufacturers will promise users that when the parts are solved, they can be installed for free to users.
The problem with Tesla is that they sold the reduced product without prior notice or price changes, and they didn't give users free installations at a later stage. Tesla announced that starting in 2021, AMD's Ryzen chip will be installed in its infotainment system. The chip used before was the Intel Atom A3950. Thanks to the new high-end semiconductors, Tesla says it can enjoy high-end games comparable to the PlayStation.
However, it is understood that some of the vehicles recently shipped by Tesla also use Tesla Atom chips, mainly on the Tesla forum in the United States. In other words, users pay the same amount but buy relatively old chip models.
Tesla has yet to officially disclose this. As a result, consumers have to contact the person in charge by email or phone to check directly which chips are installed in the car and whether there are any other configurations missing.
For this reason, Tesla buyers are checking the condition of their cars by sorting through the vehicle identification numbers and sharing which chips are installed in their cars and which specifications are omitted. Some vehicles have reportedly had their heated wipers downloaded.
The electronic control unit mounted on the steering shaft was also removed without Tesla's notice. CNBC reported that Tesla has removed one of the two electronic control units installed on the steering wheels of the Model 3 and Model Y to meet its sales targets for the fourth quarter of last year. It is reported that tens of thousands of cars have been sold to China, Australia, the United Kingdom and Germany.
Two Tesla employees, who asked to remain anonymous, told CNBC, "Tesla has discussed internally whether to tell customers to remove electronic controls from the steering wheel because these reductions are not particularly critical and still have autonomous driving or full autopilot (FSD) capabilities." So Tesla decided not to notify our customers. ”
As a result, consumers are also increasingly worried about whether they will receive new cars that are missing certain parts. In the past, for users in some countries, the vehicle identification number could be queried from the moment the vehicle was boarded on board, but from this year, it was not available until after the vehicle was delivered.
Meanwhile, despite last year's semiconductor crisis, Tesla has recorded a record. The total number of vehicles delivered worldwide was 936,172, an increase of 87% from 499,647 in 2020.