Tesla recalls over 400,000 vehicles in China for rear light issue

BEIJING -- Electric carmaker Tesla will recall 435,132 vehicles in China as a software glitch may cause tail lights to fail to illuminate, China's top quality watchdog said.

The recall involves 142,277 Model 3 vehicles manufactured between Dec 27, 2020 and Nov 7, 2022, and nearly 300,000 Model Y vehicles produced between Jan 1, 2021 and Nov 11, 2022, according to a statement from the State Administration for Market Regulation.

Tail lamps on one or both sides of the vehicle may fail to illuminate as a firmware anomaly may cause false fault detections during the vehicle wake-up process. Such failure may increase the risk of a collision in dark conditions, said the statement.

Tesla will deploy an over-the-air software update to address the issue, according to the statement.