Tesla is recalling nearly 3,500 of its 2022-2023 Model Y vehicles due to bolts in the car’s second-row back seat frames not being securely tightened.
In a filing submitted on Feb. 27 and made public on Saturday, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said that 3,470 of the vehicles were recalled.
Approximately 4% of the Model Y cars are affected by the recall, according to the filing.
The loose bolts could cause the seat belts to not work properly in a crash, “which may increase the risk of an injury for occupants seated in affected second-row seating positions,” the National Highway Traffic Administration said. https://t.co/t32BjfLxSX
— CNN International (@cnni) March 4, 2023
The latest recall was filed the same month Tesla recalled more than 362,000 U.S. vehicles because Tesla’s Full Self-Driving software could cause a crash.
The NHTSA said the loose seat frame bolt could reduce the performance of the vehicle’s seat belt system, increasing the risk of injury in the event of a crash, CNBC reported.
On Model Y vehicles, the second-row seat back frames are secured with four bolts each, according to CNN. But during production for certain Model Y cars, one or more of the bolts securing the seat back frames to the lower seat frame “may not have been torqued to specifications,” the filing stated.
According to the recall report, Tesla received five warranty claims regarding the bolts between Dec. 9, 2022, and Feb. 14, 2023.
“Tesla is not aware of any injuries or deaths that may be related to such conditions,” the report stated.
On Dec. 10, 2022, an operator in Tesla’s Fremont, California, found a vehicle with bolts “that were not torqued to specifications,” the filing stated.
Tesla will inspect the bolts and tighten them if necessary free of charge, according to the filing. Owner notification letters also will be mailed.
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