China’s market regulator has ordered a recall of more than 4 million vehicles, including nearly 2.98 million Teslas, because interior emergency door releases blend into the surrounding trim. The remedies are warning labels and software updates, ahead of a 2027 standard banning concealed handles.
China has recalled more than four million cars because a lever is the wrong colour. Its market regulator found that interior emergency door releases blend into the surrounding trim, which makes them hard to find when they matter most.
Tesla accounts for most of it. Nearly 2.98 million imported and locally built Model 3, Model Y, Model S and Model X cars are covered, with the recall starting on 25 September.
Domestic brands are in the same filing. Xiaomi is recalling 390,435 SU7 sedans, Leapmotor 371,200 cars, Xpeng 264,842 and Zeekr 92,658, alongside Chery, Dongfeng, Arcfox and FAW.
The defect is visibility rather than function. The releases work, but in a crash that kills the low-voltage system, occupants and rescuers have to locate a handle that was designed not to be noticed.
