Tesla Recalls 13,000 Cars For Bad Battery Contactors

Tesla is recalling nearly 13,000 vehicles in the United States due to a manufacturing defect that could lead to a sudden loss of power while driving, according to a notice filed with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA).

The recall affects 12,963 vehicles built between March 8 and August 15, 2025—7,925 Model Y, and 5,038 Model 3—all equipped with a specific battery pack contactor that may fail without warning. Tesla says the component—manufactured with an InTiCa solenoid—can suffer from a poor coil termination connection. In certain cases, this flaw may cause the contactor to open unexpectedly, cutting off drive power and leaving the driver unable to accelerate.

If the failure occurs, Tesla says there is no prior warning. The automaker has confirmed 36 warranty claims and 26 field reports tied to the issue, but no crashes or injuries have been reported.

Tesla engineers first identified the problem in early August after reviewing service records from vehicles that failed to shift out of park or lost power during operation.

To resolve the issue, Tesla will replace the defective contactors with redesigned units that do not use the InTiCa solenoid and feature a more reliable coil connection. The repairs will be performed free of charge at Tesla service centers or through the automaker’s mobile service program.

Tesla says the affected batch of parts has already been removed from production. Owners of recalled vehicles will receive notifications and can schedule service directly through the Tesla app once replacement parts are available.

[Images: Tesla]

This article was co-written using AI and was then heavily edited and optimized by our editorial team.

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