Tesla is recalling 2,740,642 vehicles in China to strengthen driver monitoring on its assisted-driving system, after regulators determined that steering wheel torque checks alone cannot ensure drivers keep their eyes on the road.
The recall, filed with China’s State Administration for Market Regulation on August 21, covers domestically built Model 3 and Model Y vehicles produced between March 2019 and December 2025. The defect centers on Autosteer and what Chinese regulators call “combination driving assistance” – their classification for Level 2 driver-assistance systems.
What the Fix Requires
Per Tesla’s own recall notice, the software update will add “cabin-camera monitoring on the basis of the existing steering-wheel torque monitoring.” In practical terms, the cars will switch from checking whether a driver’s hands are on the wheel to also verifying that their eyes are on the road – using the vehicle’s interior camera to track the driver’s gaze.
The irony is that Chinese drivers were recently caught defeating camera-based monitoring systems using $20 plastic doll heads positioned to trick the cabin camera. Tesla had already rolled out cabin-camera monitoring in North America following a December 2023 NHTSA Autopilot recall of roughly 2 million vehicles.
Second Recall Covers Door Safety
The driver-monitoring recall is one of two Tesla filed in China on the same day. The other, larger action covers nearly 3 million vehicles over an interior emergency door release mechanism that regulators say is too difficult to locate after a crash. Both fixes will be delivered via over-the-air software updates.
China’s regulatory push mirrors a global trend toward stricter oversight of driver-assistance systems. Earlier this month, Tesla recalled over 20,000 vehicles in the U.S. over headlight beam issues.
Tesla Faces Intensifying China Competition
The recalls come at a difficult moment for Tesla in China. BYD led China’s NEV market with a 23.5% share in July, while Tesla fell out of the top 10 automakers. The company has been under pressure to maintain market share amid fierce competition from domestic EV makers including BYD, NIO, and Xpeng.
While the recalls involve software fixes deployable via OTA updates rather than physical repairs, the sheer volume – over 2.7 million vehicles for the monitoring issue alone – highlights the regulatory scrutiny Tesla faces as its autopilot technology expands globally.
Sources: CNBC; Electrek; China State Administration for Market Regulation (SAMR); CnEVPost
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