Tesla has issued a voluntary recall of 376,000 units of its 2023 Model Y and Model 3 cars. The reason for the recall is that some of these cars are affected by older software that can cause what Tesla characterized as an “overvoltage” situation, where the electronic power-assisted steering (EPAS) may fail to function. In plain English, drivers’ cars will default to only manual steering, which, considering the weight of a 3,500-4,500-pound Model 3 or Model Y, is quite a challenge.
What Tesla Says — And What The Feds Say
Tesla’s recall is voluntary, meaning that the government didn’t initiate it. In fact, Tesla said in a note to NHTSA that due to an investigation by a non-U.S. regulator they didn’t identify, “Tesla made a voluntary determination to recall vehicles in all markets that were affected by this condition to avoid confusion for our customers,” and went on to say that the fault could prove hazardous to Tesla owners.
The challenge is that NHTSA still has an ongoing investigation into Tesla steering faults that dates to 2023. In a letter to Tesla from last May, NHTSA cited customers complaining of error messages and steering that becomes “stuck,” “locked,” or “immovable,” and that feels “notchy” or “clicky.” At least tacitly, Tesla has acknowledged that the current recall, which they claim will be addressed in an over-the-air software update, involves similar issues.
Tesla Explains The Problem
Tesla’s own language explains that the fault occurs at slow or zero speeds, meaning when your Model Y is at a stoplight, for instance. Then, when you hit the throttle to go forward, the steering system binds. Per the recall, Tesla said it had identified 3,012 warranty claims and 570 “field reports” for U.S. vehicles that are related to or may be related to the condition. Meanwhile, an earlier statement from NHTSA identified one crash related to the steering issue, “Where a driver was unable to complete a right-hand turn in the intersection and hit a vehicle.”
TopSpeed’s Take
This isn’t Tesla’s first recall by a long shot. And the Big T is hardly alone in the industry in having recalls. EVs are still new technology, which we tend to forget, because cars are not. But as cars have become rolling computers, their complexity is dragging down quality. At issue in this case is that Tesla’s had a fairly long track record with recalls impacting a great number of cars. And in early January, NHTSA began a probe into a whopping 2.6 million cars when customers were using the self-parking feature. According to the probe, drivers using the feature experienced crashes “where the operator does not have enough time to react due to vehicle proximity or line of sight,” resulting in at least four crashes. And a month ago, Tesla recalled 239,000 Model 3, Model S, Model X and Model Y cars sold in 2024 and 2025 model years for having backup cameras that failed.
At least in the case of a steering system failure, over-the-air updates should work, and Tesla owners will get a warning on the giant tablet that serves as the infotainment screen and instrument cluster saying, “Steering assist reduced. Steering may require increased effort.” The fix, if you don’t want to wait for the official March 25th letter from Tesla, is to call their customer service at 877-798-3752 and tell them you’re asking about recall number SB-25-00-004.
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