NHTSA Rejects Tesla Exemption, Orders Recall of Nearly 20,000 Model 3 and Model Y for Excessive Low-Beam

The U. S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) recently rejected Tesla's exemption request and ordered the recall of nearly 20,000 Model 3 and Model Y vehicles because the low-beam headlight brightness exceeded the standard. During a self-inspection in 2024, Tesla discovered that some vehicles produced between 2017 and 2023 had headlamp parameters that did not comply with regulations. Specifically, the maximum light intensity of the low beams in the 10-degree to 90-degree elevation angle region was 230.1 candela, nearly double the standard of 125 candela. Regulators determined that Tesla's appeal was insufficient because the company tested only 25 left and 25 right headlamps in its submission, with a defect rate close to 100%, and only tested one driving scenario—straight-line meeting—while U. Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard No. 108 specifies eight scenarios, including meeting, following in the same direction, and turning.

Light in the 10-degree to 90-degree elevation angle region is commonly referred to as glare.

Automotive low-beam headlights typically require an "asymmetric cut-off line," meaning the left-side light is lower to avoid blinding oncoming drivers, and the right-side light is higher to illuminate the road further ahead. This design has been widely used since the 1950s. However, older Tesla models had a default headlight cut-off line that was horizontal, with two raised structures. The newer Tesla Model Y has fixed this issue, with the low-beam headlights moved below the position lights and the cut-off line now meeting the "lower on the left, higher on the right" regulatory requirement.