Tesla has only days to respond to a federal investigation into the safety of the electric automaker's door handles.
What's happening?
In September, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration launched an investigation into Tesla after receiving complaints related to the company's door handles. As part of the investigation, Tesla is required to provide documents and records to the NHTSA, with a deadline of Dec. 10 to respond, as reported by CNBC.
The investigation stems from numerous complaints that Tesla's door handles, which lie flush against the body of their cars, don't operate properly when the car has no power. This has allegedly caused children to get trapped inside hot cars or for people to be unable to escape their car after an accident.
Tesla must submit to the NHTSA all records about its Model 3 and Model Y vehicles from model years 2017 to 2022, along with all records about components such as door handles, latches, and software.
Why is this important?
To many people, Tesla is synonymous with electric vehicles, and any bad news for the company could be viewed as a reflection on EVs as a whole. And this year has seen plenty of troubling news come Tesla's way.
Despite maintaining its spot as the United States' top-selling electric automaker, the company has seen a number of models disappoint, particularly the Cybertruck.
And in other parts of the world, the overall sales news is even worse. In China, which is the world's largest EV market, October was Tesla's worst month of the year, with sales down 36% year over year.
What's next for Tesla?
Tesla can request an extension on providing records to the NHTSA. But without that extension, it could face fines up to $139 million if it doesn't "respond completely, accurately, or in a timely manner," the agency wrote in a letter to Tesla.
But the company may already be considering changes to its door handles.
China is expected to enact new regulations in 2027, which would eliminate door handles that are flush with a car's body and require all handles to have a mechanical release that can work without any tools after an accident. Tesla's chief designer has also said redesigning door handles to make them open more easily "makes a lot of sense."
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