Tesla issued yet another recall for thousands of its Model X vehicles following a safety issue report by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). The report found that 54,676 of Tesla’s 2021-2023 Model X cars may fail to detect low brake fluid and will not display a warning light.
The NHTSA recall report dated Oct. 11 stated that the vehicle controller would not display a light informing the driver that the fluid levels were low, and said the result could “reduce braking performance and increase the risk of a crash.” Tesla released a free over-the-air (OTA) software update to fix the brake fluid warning and is expected to mail notification letters to owners of the affected vehicles on Dec. 12.
Several Model X vehicles were first identified as not displaying the light sensor for low brake fluid during production on Sept. 19 of this year, and the Brakes Integration team conducted testing to determine the extent and cause of its failing brake indicator, the report said. The Brakes Integration team found an incorrect setting of the controller’s threshold range that detects low brake fluid levels.
As of Oct. 10, the report says Tesla is not aware of any crashes, injuries, or deaths that resulted from the controller issue. The company released its OTA software on Sept. 18 and said for owners to access the update, they need to install software release 2023.32.7 or later.
Tesla’s latest recall comes after the NHTSA opened an investigation into 280,000 of the company’s 2023 Model 3 and Model Y vehicles in August. The NHTSA received 12 complaints from owners who claimed they lost steering control and power steering; in one case, the owner reported the “car steering felt stuck and slid off the road which resulted in crashing into a tree,” Reuters reported. Another complaint said the Tesla Model Y’s “wheel jerked hard right and made a thud” while driving, and the screen displayed an error code and said “Steering Assist Reduced.”
Earlier this year, Tesla also recalled 362,758 2016-2023 Model S, Model X, Model 3, and Model Y vehicles for reported issues with the full self-driving software. The safety recall report issued in February said vehicles with the software could infringe on break traffic safety laws and cause crashes before the driver could intervene.
Tesla did not immediately respond to Gizmodo’s request for comment.