Tesla's Latest Recall Goes Beyond a Simple Software Update

Issuing recalls on particular makes and models is something virtually every automaker experiences. For Tesla, many of their recent recall announcements have been able to be rectified by a software update. It’s not ideal, but it’s also a lot less painless for drivers than having to bring a car in to have a piece of hardware removed and replaced. Unfortunately for Tesla, the automaker’s latest recall goes a little deeper than that — and will require a bit more effort to rectify.

As Electrek’s Fred Lambert reports, a recall notice issued by Tesla this week focuses on one element of a larger issue. The recall specifically cites issues with the rearview camera display. The issue affects, as per Tesla, “certain model year 2024 – 2025 Model 3 vehicles, model year 2023-2025 Model Y vehicles, model year 2024-2025 Model S vehicles and model year 2023-2025 Model X vehicles that were equipped with certain car computers and operating a software release that was prior to 2024.44.25.3 or 2024.45.25.6.”

The issue can cause the rear camera to cease operations under some conditions, which can increase the likelihood of an accident. And, for some Teslas, an over-the-air software upgrade will suffice to deal with this issue. According to Electrek’s reporting, a total of 239,382 vehicles could be affected.

For a subset of the affected vehicles, repairs will be a lot more intensive than a software update. Tesla writes that “[i]f a vehicle was impacted by this condition prior to installing software release 2024.44.25.3, 2024.45.25.6 or a later release, Tesla will replace the vehicle’s car computer at no cost to the customer.”

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In reporting on this latest development in a larger issue, Lambert writes that certain Tesla drivers affected by this issue have had to “wait for months” in order to get a new onboard computer. It’s not surprising that this is a time-intensive process, but as recalls go, this is an especially significant one.