Tesla recalls 20,349 cars after NHTSA rejects its headlight defence

Tesla is recalling 20,349 Model 3 and Model Y vehicles whose low beams exceed the federal photometric limit, after NHTSA rejected its argument that the defect was inconsequential. Tesla says a remedy is still under development, and owners are due to be notified by September 15.

Tesla is recalling 20,349 cars because their headlights are too bright, having spent a year arguing it should not have to. The filing covers 1,614 Model 3s built between 2017 and 2023 and 18,735 Model Ys from 2020 to 2023.

The company had asked the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration to treat the problem as an inconsequential defect. The agency refused in July, and the recall followed. Tesla has form here, having fought a 158,000-car recall before conceding.

The specifics are narrow but measurable. Federal standard FMVSS 108 caps low beam intensity at 125 candela in one upper zone of the beam pattern, and Tesla’s headlamps measured up to 230.1 candela there, roughly 84% over the limit. The parts come from Marelli Automotive Lighting.

Tesla argued the excess light fell outside a driver’s natural line of sight and posed no glare risk, citing adaptive driving beam testing. NHTSA was unpersuaded, noting the tests covered ideal conditions only.

“NHTSA disagrees with Tesla’s conclusion that there is no increased risk of glare for surrounding traffic or the driver of the subject vehicle in any driving conditions,” the agency wrote, pointing out that the photometry limits exist precisely to control veiling glare in rain, snow and fog.

The small vehicle count against a five-year span comes down to when the headlamps were made rather than the cars. Units built after a cutoff date in each year are affected, as are cars that had a headlight component swapped during service.

Tesla says the remedy is still under development. Electrek notes the recall paperwork carries no mention of a software fix, which points toward physically replacing the assemblies, a far more expensive outcome than the over-the-air updates Tesla usually reaches for. Owners are due to be notified by September 15.

It is the second federal problem in a fortnight. NHTSA opened an investigation in late July into lateral link failures on Model 3 and Model Y, covering nearly 1.2 million vehicles after 156 complaints, having already recalled the same part in 2023.

Its record with the agency runs both ways. Tesla was the first carmaker to pass NHTSA’s ADAS tests, even as 3.2 million of its cars sit under a separate investigation into FSD crashes.