South Korea’s antitrust regulator is investigating U.S. electric car maker Tesla Inc (TSLA.O) over allegations the company exaggerated the specifications of its batteries, an official at the Korea Fair Trade Commission (KFTC) said on Tuesday.
Yonhap news agency on late Monday reported the KFTC had sent a report to the electric vehicle (EV) maker stating that it had exaggerated the mileage of some of its models, including Model 3, in violation of the Act on Fair Labeling and Advertising.
“We plan to hold a meeting to decide the level of sanctions against the automaker,” an official at the KFTC told Reuters.
“Tesla, on its website, says its Model 3 can travel 528km on a single charge. The KFTC says however that the range may fall short of that should the temperature drop below freezing.”
So Tesla adds a disclaimer? Solved. All others should follow.$tsla https://t.co/sxPNFFWUa9
— Christopher (@ChrisLoveless_) February 15, 2022
Tesla, on its website, says its Model 3 can travel 528 km (328 miles) on a single charge. The KFTC says however that the range may fall short of that should the temperature drop below freezing.
Analysts said most electric vehicles could generally experience some loss of driving range in cold weather.
Tesla was not immediately available for comment when contacted by Reuters.
Tesla recalls 54k vehicles
Tesla Inc (TSLA.O) will recall 53,822 U.S. vehicles with the company’s Full Self-Driving (Beta) software that may allow some models to conduct “rolling stops” and not come to a complete stop at some intersections posing a safety risk.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) said the recall covers some 2016-2022 Model S and Model X, 2017-2022 Model 3, and 2020-2022 Model Y vehicles. NHTSA said the feature also known as FSD Beta may allow vehicles to travel through an all-way stop intersection without first coming to a stop.
Read more: Tesla sales 2x as Elon Musk delivers 1 mn cars
Tesla will perform an over-the-air software update that disables the “rolling stop” functionality, NHTSA said. The agency added it “maintains regular discussions with all manufacturers to discuss potential safety concerns of these types of systems.”
Tesla Chief Executive Officer Elon Musk said on Twitter “there were no safety issues” with the function. “The car simply slowed to ~2 mph & continued forward if clear view with no cars or pedestrians,” Musk wrote.
Reuters with additional input by GVS News Desk