Tesla, the electric vehicle manufacturing company, has been under fire lately after a Reuters investigation exposed how it has blamed drivers for frequent failures of components it has long known were defective. This alarming revelation prompted two U.S. senators to write to Elon Musk, Tesla’s top executive, calling for a recall of any steering and suspension parts that pose a safety risk.

The senators’ letter pointed towards the Reuters report, revealing numerous safety flaws in Tesla’s vehicles that the automaker’s engineers have been tracking for years. The safety flaws refer to frequent failures of suspension, steering, and axle parts, often on relatively new cars.

According to the documents reviewed by Reuters, Tesla blamed drivers for these failures, citing “abuse,” and refused to recall the parts despite having warned the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). The NHTSA is an independent government agency responsible for vehicle safety and recalls. The senators called on Musk to correct any false and misleading representations to the safety agency and recall any parts posing safety risks swiftly.

“We are disturbed that you would blame your customers for these failures,” stated the letter from Blumenthal and Markey, both Democrats. “It is unacceptable that Tesla would not only attempt to shift the responsibility for the substandard quality of its vehicles to the people purchasing them, but also make that same flawed argument to NHTSA.”

According to the Reuters report, Tesla recalled a suspension part called the aft link in China but not in the United States, despite knowing that the part was defective. This behavior raised concerns among safety experts and prompted the senators to intervene.

Moreover, the report revealed that Tesla had also delayed recalls for both the Model S and Model X vehicles. The company faced intense scrutiny from the NHTSA and was fined over $130 million in 2018 for failing to report safety defects related to the Model S car.

Tesla’s response to the senators urged that the company takes safety very seriously and is ready to work with the NHTSA on anything it wishes.

However, the senators remain skeptical about the company’s intentions as Tesla has been deferring and pushing back on recalls for years. The senators see it as a matter of public safety and insist that Tesla recalls any parts posing safety risks swiftly.

The controversy surrounding Tesla’s safety flaws has sparked a debate about whether the company has been transparent enough about its faulty parts. Safety experts believe that Tesla is taking risks with public safety in its ongoing refusal to recall parts that are at risk of failing. The dispute risks putting Tesla’s reputation as a trailblazer in electric cars in peril.

There have been numerous other incidents concerning the safety of Tesla cars. In Texas in April, two men lost their lives, and another man was seriously injured after the Tesla car they were in slammed into a tree. Investigators are still trying to determine if the vehicle’s autopilot system was involved in the crash.

Another accident in California claimed a life when a Tesla car collided with a parked fire truck. The Tesla driver was using the autopilot system while playing a game on their phone at the time of the accident.

Senator Richard Blumenthal of Connecticut and Senator Edward J. Markey of Massachusetts have called on Elon Musk, Tesla’s top executive, to swiftly recall any steering and suspension parts that pose a safety risk. The senators’ concern follows a Reuters report that showed Tesla has blamed drivers for the failures of defective parts, despite being aware that the parts were faulty for years.

Musk on Tesla Recalls

Musk has bristled at Tesla recalls in the past. Earlier this year, Tesla CEO Elon Musk stirred controversy with his criticism of the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration’s decision to label a Tesla software update as a recall. The NHTSA had identified an issue with the Tesla Model S and Model X touchscreen that caused it to fail. While the software update fixed the issue, the NHTSA called it a recall. In response, Musk took to Twitter and called the term “recall” anachronistic and flat wrong.

Whether Tesla will recall the parts or not remains to be seen, but public safety must remain a top priority for the company. Transparency, honesty, and accountability are essential values that Tesla must embrace to restore its reputation as a trailblazer in electric cars. Public safety must always come first.