The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) is probing nearly 1.2 million Tesla vehicles after receiving complaints about a suspension failure that could cause “a loss of vehicle directional control,” as reported earlier by Reuters. The preliminary investigation includes the 2018-2020 Model 3 and 2021-2023 Model Y, according to a filing from the NHTSA’s Office of Defects Investigation.
The NHTSA says it received 156 complaints about the issue, which “involves the detachment of the front lower lateral link.” In most cases reviewed by the NHTSA, failure occurred with “no advance warning,” but some “cite noises occurring prior to failure.” The NHTSA hasn’t recorded any crashes, injuries, or fatalities related to the potential issue.
This isn’t the first time Tesla dealt with suspension issues. In 2021, Tesla recalled 2,791 Model Y and Model 3 vehicles over a potential suspension defect. It later recalled another round of Model 3 vehicles after the NHTSA found that a “loose fastener could cause the lateral link to separate from the sub-frame.” The NHTSA says the complaints linked to its current investigation don’t appear to be related to these issues.