Musk says calling NHTSA Tesla action a recall ‘flat wrong’

Tesla CEO Elon Musk on Thursday criticized the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration (NHTSA) for labeling a recent Tesla software update as a recall.

“The word ‘recall’ for an over-the-air software update is anachronistic and just flat wrong!” Musk said on Twitter.

The NHTSA issued a notice on Wednesday that Tesla was recalling more than 360,000 cars that are equipped with or pending installation of its Full Self-Driving Beta software over a crash risk.

The software reportedly may not respond sufficiently to posted speed limits and may cause cars to drive through intersections in an “unlawful or unpredictable manner.” 

The NHTSA noted that the software may cause Tesla owners to travel straight through an intersection in a turn-only lane, fail to come to a complete stop at a stop sign or drive through a yellow light “without due caution.”

Musk seemed to take exception to the “recall” label, given that Tesla is expected to release an over-the-air software update to address the issue.

However, the NHTSA noted on its website that a recall is issued when the agency or the manufacturer determine that “a vehicle, equipment, car seat, or tire creates an unreasonable safety risk or fails to meet minimum safety standards” and requires manufacturers to repurchase the vehicle from owners only in “rare cases.” 

Instead, manufacturers typically are required to repair or replace the problem feature or offer a refund, according to the NHTSA website.