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Tesla Inc. stock fell on Tuesday following news that the electric-car maker is recalling nearly 54,000 vehicles to fix a software feature that allows for a “rolling stop” at intersections under certain conditions.
Tesla shares were down more than 1% at last check, after ending up nearly 11% on Monday, up for two straight sessions. U.S. auto-maker stocks traded higher on Tuesday, outperforming the broader indexes.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said that Tesla is recalling 53,822 vehicles built between 2016 and this year as a “rolling stop” feature can be activated as part of Tesla’s Full Self-Driving beta software.
That would allow the vehicle to go through an all-way stop without first coming to a full stop if it does not detect moving cars, pedestrians or bike riders near the intersection, among other conditions, NHTSA said.
Tesla did not immediately return a request for further comment. It told NHTSA it was not aware of any collisions, injuries or deaths related to the feature.
The recall would be done through an over-the-air software update that disables the “rolling stop” feature, free of charge. Tesla owners affected would receive letters in late March.
Tesla has released FSD in a beta mode to some owners, and Chief Executive Elon Musk said last week that the software’s “pace of improvement is fast.” He said that “profound improvements” in the software are still to come in the next few months.
In the long term, Musk said, every Tesla will have FSD, and a potential fleet of robotaxi Teslas would open up a new revenue stream for the company.
The CEO said that his “personal guess” was that Tesla’s “full self-driving” capabilities would be available at the end of the year.
Being safer than a human “is a low standard, not a high standard,” Musk said on a call with analysts after Tesla’s fourth-quarter earnings last week. “I would be shocked that we do not achieve full self-driving, safer than a human, this year.”
NHTSA in December opened an investigation into a complaint that some Teslas allow people to play video games on the car’s touch screen while driving. That probe covers nearly 600,000 cars from model years starting in 2017.
Tesla shares are up 10% in the past 12 months, underperforming the S&P 500 index
SPX,
which has gained 19% in the same period.
