Back in February, Tesla voluntarily recalled 578607 electric vehicles for its controversial Boombox feature. The safety campaign covers all four of the automaker's current model lines, as the feature could mask the sound of a federally authorized pedestrian warning system. Disabling the drive, neutral, or reverse feature after an aerial firmware upgrade, but apparently that didn't fully solve the problem, as a new, slightly larger 594717 car recall was released Thursday.
According to the latest announcement and related documents of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, the recall relates to 2020-2022 models S, model X and model Y, and 2017-2022 model 3 electric vehicles, involving the summoning or smart summoning functions of these vehicles.
This novel feature, which allows passengers in the car to use external speakers to notify or play sounds to passers-by and other drivers, can mask the sound signals emitted by electric vehicles and remind pedestrians of the location of the vehicle. Even if the vehicle is in remote operation summon mode, violating federal regulations, this feature is obviously still possible. Affected vehicles will receive (or may have received) another free OTA software update to resolve the issue.
Tesla was unaware of any collisions, injuries, or deaths caused by the feature. Relevant owners can call Tesla Customer Service at 877-798-3752 for more information.
The rise of OTA update fixes for such issues suggests that the federal government may need new, explicit terminology for such software-based virtual "recalls" — at least in cases where the vehicle isn't needed to be repaired in person and no actual mechanical fixes are required.
Tesla did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the issue.
