Canada opens probe into Tesla's heating system following consumer complaints

By Hyunjoo Jin

San Francisco (Reuters) - Canada's auto safety regulator said on Thursday it has opened an investigation into the heating system of Tesla Model 3 and Model Y vehicles following 16 consumer complaints about its performance during cold weather.

Transport Canada said it is concerned that a malfunctioning heating and air-conditioning system "may affect windshield defogging/defrosting and therefore driver visibility."

"A company is required to notify Transport Canada and all current owners when they become aware of a defect that could affect the safety of a person. ... These notices are commonly referred to as ‘safety recalls,’" it said.

The regulator said it has informed Tesla of the investigation.

Tesla did not respond to a Reuters request for comment. In 2020, Tesla CEO Elon Musk tweeted, "Model Y heat pump is some of the best engineering I’ve seen in a while."

A number of Tesla owners complained that the heat pumps are failing in extreme cold temperatures, according to Drive Tesla Canada, a Tesla news provider. The report said the heating problems happened even after Tesla early last year replaced faulty sensors in heat pumps in some 2020-2021 Model 3 and Model Y vehicles to address the issue.

The U.S. safety regulator, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, did not have an immediate comment on the issue.

(Reporting by Hyunjoo Jin; Additional reporting by David Shepardson; Editing by Leslie Adler)

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