After rumors earlier in the month of an incoming recall for Cybertruck windshield wipers spread online, Tesla issued a formal notice for 11,688 of the vehicles potentially suffering from the problem.
“Excessive electrical current can cause the front windshield wiper motor controller to fail,” noted a document from the U.S. Department of Transportation’s National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) acknowledging the recall by Tesla.
The document warned that windshield failure can lead to reduced visibility, increasing the risk of a crash.
That was one of two recall notices Tesla acknowledged this week, the other involving a piece of trim potentially flying off the car while driving.
A safety recall report from the agency included all Model Year 2024 trucks built between Nov. 13, 2023 and Jun 6, 2024, but said the defect was present in just 2% of the trucks.
According to that report, the problem specifically comes from “electrical overstress to the gate drive component.”
Tesla was aware of the problem as early as Feb. 2, and reported that they weren’t aware of any “collisions, injuries, or deaths relating to this condition.”
Earlier in the month reports of the windshield problem circulated on the Cybertruck Owners Club Forum, alongside posts about delayed delivery times for new vehicles and suggestions for temporary fixes to the problem.
“My wiper has not worked for a while was told to wait for few weeks for a wiper motor,” wrote one poster at the time. “Option was they keep the truck or I reschedule. Took the truck back.. crazy !”
Another user recounted picking the truck up in Florida before getting caught in a downpour and being unable to use the single windshield wiper, which has a unique design that includes a four-foot-long blade.
“[M]ade it 20 miles and it started pouring raining,” posted Cnod on the Cybertruck Owners Club Forum thread. “Had to sit in a Dunkin Donuts for 3.5 hours and call Tesla roadside assistance because i couldn’t see … But it was super dangerous.".”
According to the NHTSA document the company will replace the wiper motor without any additional charge. Letters notifying owners will be mailed out by Aug. 18, 2024.
Ahead of the recall news on Tuesday, posters were still sharing problems with the windshield wiper.
One poster shared a video from a month ago of the wiper starting to shake against the window at speeds over 65 mph.
Another reported that at a Merritt Island, Florida Tesla dealer told them that a problem with the windshield wiper motors meant they were stopping deliveries until they could replace the motors.
But that isn't the only problem with Cybertrucks.
Tesla was also hit with another recall over an "improperly adhered trunk bed trim," which the company acknowledged in NHTSA documents could detach from the truck and potentially cause crashes.
According to the report, customers can hear a detectable noise in the cabin of the car if the cosmetic sail applique meant to be held on by the trim is coming off.
Tesla estimated that the problem could apply to 1% of Model Year 2024 Cybertrucks manufactured from Nov 13, 2023, to May 26, 2025.
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