Tesla Dodges 2-Million-Car Recall – Jalopnik

Happy Friday! It’s March 20, 2026, and that is The Morning Shift — your every day roundup of the highest automotive headlines from world wide, in a single place. This is the place you will discover an important tales which might be shaping the way in which Americans drive and get round.

In this morning’s version, we’re taking a look at Tesla avoiding a multi-million-car recall, and Chrysler’s new boss needing to really do one thing with the nameplate. We’ll additionally have a look at Xiaomi buyers’ response to a value hike, and Hyundai’s Palisade recall. 

Back in 2023, a contingent of Tesla homeowners requested the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration to recall each Tesla made since 2013. The reasoning needed to do with one-pedal driving, nevertheless it appears it wasn’t sufficient to sway NHTSA — the administration has determined to not pursue a recall of over two million automobiles. From Reuters: 

The U.S. auto security regulator on Friday rejected a petition in search of a ‌sweeping recall of about 2.26 million Tesla autos, saying it had discovered no proof of a safety-related defect.

The resolution removes the quick danger of a large-scale recall for Tesla, however regulatory overhang stays as ​authorities proceed to scrutinize its Full Self-Driving driver-assistance system.

A petition in March 2023 ​alleged Tesla autos might enhance the danger of pedal misapplication, probably main ⁠to unintended acceleration attributable to variations in controls resembling one-pedal driving.

NHTSA mentioned it ​discovered no proof of a defect or security danger, citing only a few related incidents and ​information displaying autos responded as supposed.

I’m no Tesla fan, however one-pedal driving being too complicated is not actually the automobile’s fault. That’s consumer error. Skill problem, git gud, et cetera. Tesla nonetheless faces loads of investigations and lawsuits into its hit-or-miss Level 2 driving system and doorhandles that appear to entice proprietor inside burning autos.

Chrysler has a brand new dad, within the type of former Dodge head Matt McAlear. His job? Do one thing with Chrysler. Anything, actually. Just make it a midway viable model, one with maybe even two automobiles. From Automotive News: 

Four years in the past, Chrysler unveiled an electrical crossover idea, the Airflow, on the CES tech showcase and declared plans to drop gasoline engines by 2028.

Chrysler father or mother Stellantis had simply introduced in Chris Feuell to steer the model in a brand new path after years with little product: the getting old 300 sedan and a minivan offered below two totally different names.

The Airflow was alleged to recommend greater issues on the horizon for Chrysler, as Feuell labored to clear away the murkiness that had clouded its future.

But Chrysler’s first EV, set to debut in 2025, by no means arrived, and Feuell is now out because the model’s CEO. Stellantis is remodeling its broader technique below new management, and Chrysler is again in a well-known place — surrounded by questions on its identification and product timeline.

Dodge chief Matt McAlear this month took cost of Chrysler, which has dropped its all-EV technique and let its lineup dwindle to nothing past the Pacifica.

Stellantis CEO Antonio Filosa instructed reporters on the Detroit Auto Show in January that the corporate will put money into Chrysler. What these investments will yield stays to be seen, however sellers have concepts about what the model could be.

McAlear instructed Automotive News that Stellantis’ investor day on May 21 can have extra details about Chrysler’s path. It would form of be powerful to have much less info, so we’ll see what comes up by then. 

Xiaomi just lately refreshed its SU7 EV, and included a small value bump as a part of the change. Investors aren’t comfortable, however the value enhance itself is not the problem — they do not assume the value elevated sufficient to cowl the brand new options. From Bloomberg: 

Xiaomi Corp.’s Hong Kong-listed shares fell in Hong Kong buying and selling amid concern the corporate’s freshly up to date electrical automobile will hit profitability after an solely minor value enhance.

The inventory dropped 8.6% on Friday, making it the worst performer on the Hang Seng Tech Index. The shares worst plunge since April got here after a 9% rally earlier this week in anticipation of the debut, with sentiment additionally buoyed by Xiaomi’s rollout of recent AI fashions.

Xiaomi’s refreshed SU7 sedan, which comes with {hardware} and security upgrades, will begin from 219,900 yuan ($31,869) — about 1.9% greater than the primary technology model, Xiaomi Chief Executive Officer Lei Jun mentioned throughout a live-streamed launch occasion in Beijing on Thursday. The slim value enhance is not sufficient to offset rising enter prices, in line with market watchers.

“Lei commented after the event that with all the upgrades, the material costs for the second-generation SU7 increased by 20,000 yuan, while the price only increased 4,000 yuan,” mentioned Eugene Hsiao, strategist at Macquarie Capital Ltd. “This essentially implies a potential margin decline for the newer version.”

Cutting revenue margins is not nice for a corporation’s profitability — stunning, I do know — however maintaining costs low as client shopping for energy wanes will help an organization stay aggressive. Would you reasonably make extra revenue on the few automobiles you do promote, or much less revenue however transfer extra models? 

Earlier this week, Hyundai issued a cease sale for the Palisade after its seats crushed a two-year-old lady to loss of life. We knew the corporate could be issuing a recall then, and now it is formally come out: 61,093 Palisades are headed again to Hyundai for restore. From Reuters: 

Hyundai Motor is recalling 61,093 Palisade SUVs within the U.S. ​following a deadly accident linked ‌to an influence seat problem, the U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) ​mentioned on Friday.

Hyundai mentioned final week ​that it might cease gross sales of ⁠some new Palisade SUVs in ​the U.S. and Canada, and ​would recall them over the problem with energy seats following an incident wherein ​a two-year-old lady was killed ​in Ohio on March 7.

Hopefully, this recall permits Hyundai to make the automobiles secure for youngsters once more. Losing your child to a automobile seat seems like an unimaginable ache to bear. 

State cops nonetheless assault protestors to at the present time, however the feds defending protesters appears to be a long-abandoned custom. 

I’ve been studying a brand new kind of mountain climbing (sport climbing) just lately, and I’m on a run of consecutive days going laborious on the gymnasium. I’m feeling quite a bit like broken-down previous Bull Ramos this morning. I ought to work out some higher methods to get better after climbing.