Tesla and China's product safety regulator announced the action together on Friday. The recall hits almost every passenger vehicle Tesla has delivered in China since early 2019.
Tesla's flat, flush door handles rely on an instant electrical pulse to pop out. In a serious crash, the system that provides that pulse can die. Tesla's notice says a crash can cause "vehicle's low-voltage system to fail" and affect the door handles, possibly leaving riders trapped.
The company says the handles "could make it difficult for people to open their doors and escape in a crash." To fix it, Tesla will add warning labels to the affected vehicles and update the software so that the windows lower automatically right after a crash, giving occupants a second exit route.
The door-handle recall covers the full passenger line-up: Model S, Model X, Model 3 and Model Y, whether imported or built in China. The affected vehicles carry given a date range of March 4, 2019 through April 29, 2026.
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China's regulator stepped in after a series of deaths were linked to doors that wouldn't open after crashes. New rules followed, and the industry quickly changed its attitude.
Nine automakers have now recalled vehicles over flush door handles. Xiaomi and Geely, two EV brands that also use similar rectangular handles, announced their own recalls on Friday as well.
The second Tesla recall covers a different problem in vehicles built in China. It applies to Model Y and Model 3 vehicles from March 4, 2019 to December 7, 2025.
Those cars need a software fix for the driver-attention system. Tesla says it will push a free over-the-air update that uses the interior camera to check whether the driver is still paying you on the road. If a vehicle can't accept the update, Tesla's service team will contact that owner for direct repair.
The real cost here is not the mechanical part. Tesla doesn't need to change each car's door handle in a shop. It can send a software patch to most cars, and the rest can bring by while visiting service centers.
But the announcement comes at a rough time for Tesla in China. In July, Tesla sold 25,158 Model Ys in China, an 18% drop from 30,766 sold in July of the previous year. That the company is already slipping in its largest foreign market.
For investor, the larger point is that regulator attention on "pretty" handle design is not going away. Automakers may have to choose between smooth styling and simple mechanical exits, and that choice usually adds cost. Tesla is large enough to absorb this event, but the event underlines a trend holding back the EV industry: safety rules are tightening just as competition is heating up.
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