Topline

Chinese regulators on Friday ordered Tesla to fix nearly 3 million vehicles amid broader concerns about emergency door releases, marking the largest-ever automotive recall campaign in the market and Tesla’s biggest such action to date.

Key Facts

China’s State Administration for Market Regulation (SAMR) said in a statement Friday that Tesla would recall 973,156 Model 3 vehicles manufactured between March 4, 2019 and April 29, 2026, 1.96 million China-made Model Y cars made between Nov. 16, 2020 and April 30, 2026, as well as more than 35,000 imported Model 3s, 8,000 Model X and 2,000 Model S vehicles.

That recall, involving about 2.98 million vehicles, is Tesla’s largest-ever in any market.

Chinese regulators said the Tesla vehicles had emergency mechanical door releases that may be difficult to identify after a serious crash or after a power failure, and Tesla told SAMR it would install warning labels free of charge to identify the handles.

In a separate recall, SAMR told Tesla to fix 2.74 million China-made Model 3 and Model Y vehicles manufactured between March 2019 and December 2025 over a defect that caused the driver-monitoring system to fail to warn drivers to keep their eyes on the road.

Tesla said it would apply an over-the-air update to remedy the defect.

Surprising Fact

Tesla has issued just five recalls in the U.S. so far this year, including a notice earlier this month for 20,000 vehicles with too-bright headlights. More than 218,000 Model 3, Model Y and Model S/X vehicles were recalled in May over a rear camera issue.

Key Background

Elon Musk’s automaker has faced sustained regulatory pressure for years, though many recalls involving Tesla are often fixed through software updates. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration is reportedly investigating 1.2 million Tesla vehicles over reports of suspension failure that could result in a “loss of vehicle directional control.” Tesla’s self-driving Autopilot system has also been linked to hundreds of crashes and dozens of deaths.

Further Reading

Tesla Recalls 20,000 Cars For Too-Bright Headlights (Forbes)