A tweet liked by more than 5,000 Twitter profiles this week claimed that the steering wheel of a Tesla Model Y fell off suddenly while on the highway.
“Family was excited to receive Tesla Y delivery on 1/24/2023,” said the tweet. “Was driving on highway and all the sudden steering wheel fall off, was lucky enough there was no car behind and I was able to pull,” over.
“We were lucky enough,” said Prerak Patel, identified as the poster of the tweet by NJ Advance Media. “Thank God I was able to make it off.
If there was a truck or a car...”
Insideevs also reported on the tweet. According to the outlet, a similar incident happened to a Tesla Model 3 owner in 2020.
NJ Advance Media said the “Woodbridge Police Department [in New Jersey] confirmed it called for a tow for the Tesla on Route 1 South in Woodbridge near the Garden State Parkway on Jan. 29,” and “the incident report said the driver said ‘their steering wheel detached from steering column.’”
Additionally, the outlet said “Tesla’s corporate office did not immediately respond to inquiries,” and that its efforts to reach a local Tesla dealership by phone and email were unsuccessful. Patel later posted screenshots of a text conversation with the service department at the Lawrence Township/Princeton Tesla and an invoice for $103.96.
“Am I responsible for manufacturing defect? It’s not even week and getting bill for faulty steering wheel. Isn’t it company’s responsibility to fix it? I would greatly appreciate refund and keep the car as we lost trust and family is not feeling safe driving it back,” Patel said in a tweet. He later asked fellow Twitter users how he should move forward in a poll.
He said that he will keep his followers posted, and NJ Advance Media said he planned to get a loaner car while deciding what to do next.
“Safety is the most important part of every Tesla,” reads a description of the Model Y on Telsa’s website. “We design our vehicles to exceed safety standards.” Last September, the company announced that the Model Y had received top marks from the European New Car Assessment Programme.
This is just one of a number of Tesla-related safety incidents reported recently.
Audacy reported Monday that “officials in Sacramento shared that a Tesla traveling at ‘freeway speeds’ had its battery compartment ‘spontaneously’ catch fire on the highway,” last Saturday. Per a December Audacy report, a driver told authorities that the software in their Tesla caused the vehicle to break unexpectedly, which resulted in an eight-car pile-up.
In September, Tesla announced it would recall 1.1 million cars due to flaw that could result in the windows pinching occupants while closing. Tesla’s website also lists recall information. As of Thursday afternoon, the Model Y was not on the list.
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