159,000 Teslas At Risk Of Infotainment System And Cameras Dying Due To Worn Out Memory Chips

While Tesla is sorting out a litany of problems, not the least of which is Consumer Reports slamming their vehicle’s reliability and a Chinese recall over Model S and Model X suspensions, while at the same time trying to figure out how to come up with another “profitable” quarter, the quality control issues keep stacking up.

Tesla owners could also been in for worn-out NAND memory chips causing “a whole host of problems with some Tesla cars, ranging from the failure of the rearview camera to an absence of turn signal chimes and other audio alerts”, according to The Register. 

The NHTSA recently found that “at least 30%” of the infotainment systems made in “certain build months” are failing due to the deterioration – typically after “three to four years in service”, the report found.

The problem could affect 159,000 Model S and Model X vehicles built between 2012 and 2018. These vehicles “all use an infotainment system powered by Nvidia’s Tegra 3 system-on-chips that include 8GB of eMMC NAND storage.”

The problem is that these chips wear out, hitting program-erase cycle limits, and become unable to reliably store data. This results in glitches or failure. 

That can then “result in loss of rearview/backup camera, loss of HVAC (defogging) setting controls (if the HVAC status was OFF status prior to failure.) There is also an impact on the advanced driver assistance support (ADAS), Autopilot system, and turn signal functionality due to the possible loss of audible chimes, driver sensing, and alerts associated with these vehicle functions,” the NHTSA said.

The agency took on the investigation after 16,000 complaints were submitted by Tesla owners. 

“An engineering analysis has been opened to further assess the scope, frequency, and safety-related consequences of the alleged defect,” the NHTSA’s Office of Defect Investigation said. 

You can read the full NHTSA report here.