The US National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) said Tuesday it has opened a preliminary evaluation into Tesla Inc.’s Model Y vehicles from the 2021 model year after reports of electronic door handles becoming inoperative.
The regulator said the malfunction could leave occupants trapped inside, as the electronic handles can lose power and fail.
“NHTSA’s investigation is focused on the operability of the electronic door locks from outside of the vehicle as that circumstance is the only one in which there is no manual way to open the door. The agency will continue to monitor any reports of entrapment involving opening doors from inside of the vehicle, and ODI will take further action as needed,” it said in a statement.
The probe follows a Bloomberg investigation that detailed several incidents in which people were injured or died after being unable to open doors when power was lost, especially after crashes.
NHTSA’s other probe of Tesla
NHTSA has separately raised concerns over Tesla’s reporting of crash incidents.
In a filing last month, the agency said it had identified multiple cases where Tesla submitted reports months after accidents occurred, despite requirements for manufacturers to report such events within one to five days of learning of them.
Tesla attributed the lapses to a data collection issue, which it said has since been resolved.
NHTSA’s Office of Defects Investigation has launched an audit query to examine the cause of the delays and to determine whether prior incidents remain unreported.
“As part of this review, NHTSA will assess whether any reports of prior incidents remain outstanding and whether the reports that were submitted include all of the required and available data,” the agency said.
Musk buys $1 billion in Tesla stock
The regulatory scrutiny comes as Tesla Chief Executive Officer Elon Musk made headlines with a significant personal investment in the company.
According to a regulatory filing, Musk purchased about $1 billion worth of Tesla shares through a trust, marking one of the largest insider buys in the company’s history.
The move arrives amid intense debate over Musk’s potential compensation package, which could be valued at more than $1 trillion if Tesla meets ambitious growth and performance benchmarks.
The market reaction was immediate, with Tesla shares climbing as much as 7.3% in premarket trading on Tuesday.
The Tesla stock, which has been under pressure since the start of the year, has made a comeback over the past few months.
In the last 30 days, the stock has been up over 22%.
Insider purchases of this scale are often interpreted as a signal of confidence in a company’s trajectory.
The post US regulators probe Tesla Model Y door handle issues appeared first on Invezz