Tesla asked by federal regulator to voluntarily recall 158,000 vehicles over safety-functions-related defect

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has sent a letter to the Silicon Valley electric-vehicle maker Tesla Inc.
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seeking a voluntary recall by the company of some 158,000 Model X units from the 2016, 2017 and 2018 model years over a possible defect impacting safety functions including rear-view-camera operation. The Transportation Department’s Office of Defects Investigation has tentatively concluded that a failure of the media control unit, or MCU — the vehicle’s display screen — ensues in some Model Xs when an integrated 8-gigabyte flash memory device exceeds storage capacity. The result, according to the preliminary conclusion, is a loss of rear-view-camera function and of defogging and defrosting capacities. A vehicle’s Autopilot and turn-signal capabilities, among others, can also be affected, according to the letter, dated Wednesday and addressed to the car manufacturer’s legal department.