In a shocking revelation, a recent Reuters investigation has uncovered that electric vehicle giant Tesla has been aware of inherent faults in certain vehicle components yet attempted to shift the blame onto its drivers, citing "vehicle abuse". The investigation highlights a pattern where Tesla customers were charged for out-of-warranty repairs on defective parts that the company knew were flawed.

One common issue observed in Tesla vehicles is frequent suspension and steering failures. These chronic problems have been plaguing the electric cars for several years. However, instead of acknowledging their fault, Tesla insisted that drivers were responsible for the failures due to their allegedly rough driving habits. This approach allowed Tesla to avoid taking responsibility for these systemic issues and pass on the costs to its paying customers.

The Reuters investigation cited the case of Shreyansh Jain, a Tesla buyer, who experienced a sudden loss of steering control in his brand-new 2023 Model Y after driving just under 200 miles. Despite clear evidence that Tesla was aware of suspension concerns for years, the company blamed "prior external damage to the right-front suspension." As a result, Jain had to shell out a staggering $14,000 to repair his vehicle, shouldering both the blame and the financial burden.

Remarkably, a series of suspension failures reported in China back in 2016 parallels Jain's incident seven years later. According to company records, Tesla's earliest Chinese customers had complained about front wheel collapse during low-speed turns in the Model S luxury sports car, the company's first mass-produced vehicle. Tesla engineers confirmed that the aluminum-alloy suspension arm, known as the front aft link, had snapped.

Over the years, Tesla received around 400 complaints regarding aft-link failures in China between 2016 and 2020. Initially, the automaker addressed these issues under warranty or through goodwill repairs for out-of-warranty vehicles. However, records indicate that Tesla redesigned the part four times due to the initial revisions failing to fully resolve the problem.

While Chinese regulators eventually compelled Tesla to issue an aft-link recall, the situation was handled differently in the United States. Tesla maintained that the failures were a result of "driver abuse" and not due to any inherent faults in the vehicle. Adding insult to injury, service centers were instructed to blame aft-link failures on "vehicle misuse." Consequently, Tesla effectively shifted blame onto its customers in the US, avoiding responsibility for the faulty parts.

The Reuters report raises concerning questions about the ethical practices of Tesla and its approach to customer care. As Tesla continues to enjoy immense popularity in the electric vehicle market, it is crucial for industry regulators to closely scrutinize the company's practices and ensure transparency and accountability when it comes to addressing vehicle faults.