US asks Tesla to recall 158,000 cars over safety issues

The US Department of Transportation has asked Tesla to recall 158,000 of its electric cars off the roads over safety issues, National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) said in a statement late Wednesday.

NHTSA has been investigating a safety-related defect in media control units in certain Tesla vehicle models, which cause loss of rear-view camera, loss in defogging and defrosting controls, failure in autopilot and alert functions that all impact motor vehicle safety.

As a result, NHTSA asked Tesla to initiate a recall to notify all owners, purchasers, and dealers of vehicles with these safety defects and also provide a remedy.

The models include Tesla Model S manufactured between 2012 through 2018 and Tesla Model X from 2016 through 2018.

Despite the recall, NHTSA said its formal investigation into the issues is still ongoing, which it opened last June.

It is yet unclear whether Tesla will comply with the decision since it did not made any statements about the issues as of early Thursday.