Tesla said on Feb. 10 that it is recalling 578,607 vehicles in the United States because pedestrians may not be able to hear the required Pedestrian Warning System alert of an approaching car due to loud music or other sounds played by its “Boombox” feature.
This is the fourth public recall by Tesla in the last two weeks, as Federal and state safety regulators increase scrutiny of the nation’s largest electric vehicle maker.
Two of the recalls involved features that violated federal motor vehicle safety standards, while the others were software errors.
In total, Tesla has issued 10 nationwide recalls over the last four months.The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) said on its website that the “Boombox” function on Tesla’s cars and SUVs allows drivers to play sounds while the vehicles are moving, violating federal safety standards that require pedestrian warning noises for electric cars, which make little noise when traveling at lower speeds compared with gasoline-powered engines.
Under rules mandated by Congress, automakers must add sounds to electric vehicles when they are moving at speeds of up to 18.6 miles per hour to help prevent injuries among pedestrians, cyclists and the blind.The NHTSA said that Tesla would address the problem with an over-the-air software update that will disable “Boombox” in Drive, Reverse, or Neutral modes.
“The Boombox functionality allows a customer to play preset or custom sounds through the PWS [pedestrian warning system] external speaker when the vehicle is parked or in motion,” said the NHTSA on its website.
“While Boombox and the pedestrian alert sound are mutually exclusive sounds, sounds emitted using Boombox could be construed to obscure or prevent the PWS from complying” with safety standards, said the regulatory agency.
Tesla introduced “Boombox” in December 2020, and in January 2021, the NHTSA issued an information request, according to the automaker.Last September, the NHTSA started an investigation into the feature and held several virtual meetings with Tesla in subsequent months.
Tesla initially defended its tests and rationale used to determine Boombox’s compliance, but ultimately agreed to a recall after two weeks of meetings last month.
Several of the recent recalls have come after the NHTSA raised questions about untested Tesla features or customer complaints.
In 2020, the regulator investigated Tesla’s “Autopilot” driver assistance system and its in-vehicle touchscreen displays that allowed the car to move while playing games.
Tesla attempted to resolve the touchscreen issue with an over-the-air update, but the NHTSA said that the updates could be “procedurally and substantively insufficient.”
A message has been left with Tesla seeking comment.
