Tesla has confirmed it is releasing a batteries software update to all its Model S and X cars in the wake of recent high-profile fires.
A Tesla spokesperson told BEST Battery Briefing the company was “revising charge and thermal management settings via an over-the-air software update to help further protect the battery and improve battery longevity”.
The roll-out, which began on 22 May, was being done “out of an abundance of caution” as a probe continues into the root cause of the fires, the spokesperson said.
“We currently have well over half-a-million vehicles on the road, which is more than double the number that we had at the beginning of last year, and Tesla’s team of battery experts uses that data to thoroughly investigate incidents that occur and understand the root cause. Although fire incidents involving Tesla vehicles are already extremely rare and our cars are 10 times less likely to experience a fire than a gas car, we believe the right number of incidents to aspire to is zero.”
Tesla did not say whether the fix would have any impact on the range or performance of the batteries.
Earlier this year, a lawsuit was filed against Tesla in the US alleging that a “defective battery pack” led to a fatal car accident in 2018.
On 16 May, Tesla said it had completed its acquisition of California-based ultracapacitor firm Maxwell Technologies.
