Tesla recalls 362,758 cars after warning that the Full Self-Driving Beta software could lead to collisions.

✔ Tesla is voluntarily recalling 362,758 vehicles and has issued a warning that its Full Self-Driving Beta driver assistance software could result in collisions.

✔ The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's website published the recall notification on Thursday.

✔ The recall notification stated that Tesla would fix the problems by sending a software upgrade to vehicles over the air.

According to a recall notice published on Thursday, Tesla voluntarily recalls 362,758 vehicles in the US that are fitted with the company's test driver-assistance software, known as Full Self-Driving Beta or FSD Beta. The recall notification stated that Tesla would fix the problems by sending a software upgrade to vehicles over the air.

According to a safety recall report posted on the website of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, the FSD Beta system may contribute to collisions by enabling the affected vehicles to: "Act unsafely around intersections, such as traveling straight through an intersection while in a turn-only lane, entering a stop sign-controlled intersection without coming to a complete stop, or proceeding into an intersection during a steady yellow traffic signal without due caution."

The FSD Beta system may also have trouble responding appropriately “to changes in posted speed limits,” the notice said.

Models from 2016 to 2023 of the Model S and Model X, from 2017 to 2023 of the Model 3, and from 2020 to 2023 of the Model Y were among the affected vehicles.

Tesla's CEO Elon Musk and supporters have taken issue with the term "recall" being used to refer to safety flaws or problems that can be resolved with a software update distributed via wireless internet. "The word recall for an over-the-air software upgrade is antiquated and just flat wrong," he remarked on Twitter on Thursday.

Using FSD Beta, Tesla allows a large number of drivers in the United States to test out new and unfinished driver-aid capabilities. Despite the brand name, Tesla electric cars are neither autonomous nor safe to drive without a human behind the wheel always prepared to brake or steer.

The FSD Beta program is only open to Tesla owners whose cars have the company's top-of-the-line FSD driver assistance technology installed. It now costs $15,000 upfront or $199 per month in the United States for that option. For access to the FSD Beta, owners must maintain a high driver-safety score that is calculated by Tesla software that tracks their driving behavior.

FSD Beta is best described as a variety of new features that are still being thoroughly tested. The highlight is "autosteer on city streets," which enables a Tesla to imperfectly but automatically maneuver through intricate urban situations.

How many customers or subscribers there are for the expensive FSD option is a secret kept by Tesla. CEO Elon Musk stated on the business's most recent earnings call that "as of now, we've deployed Full Self-Driving Beta to — for city streets — to around 400,000 customers in North America. Since FSD Beta is the sole option for any consumer to evaluate the most recent AI-powered autonomy, this represents a significant advancement for autonomy.

According to Tesla and NHTSA, the system is far simpler than that, and it is an "SAE level 2 driver support function that can give steering and braking/acceleration support to the driver under specified operating constraints."

According to the safety recall report, "the driver is responsible for the operation of the vehicle whenever the feature is engaged and must constantly observe the feature and intervene" (e.g., steer, brake, or accelerate) as necessary to maintain the vehicle's safe operation. 

With the news, shares of Tesla dropped by a little over 1% before swiftly rising again.