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Tesla has recalled more than 7,000 of its Model Y cars in Australia after regulators identified a software fault that could cause the driver’s side window to close with excessive force and risk injuring occupants.
Australia’s Department of Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development, Communications, Sport and the Arts confirmed the recall on Friday, saying the defect affected 7,301 of the 2025 Model Y vehicles sold in the country.
“Due to a software issue, the driver’s side window’s automatic protection system may not operate as intended and result in the window closing with excessive force on any obstruction, such as a body part,” the department said in a statement.
“If a body part is in the window space when the driver’s side window is closing, it can increase the risk of injury to a vehicle occupant.”
Tesla will notify owners directly, with the defect fixed through an over-the-air software update. Vehicles running software version 2025.26.6 or later are not affected.
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The fault has also prompted action in New Zealand, where the transport authority issued a similar recall last week on 26 August. The Model Y is currently the country’s top-selling electric car, with about 740 units registered so far this year.
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The problem mirrors a 2022 recall in the US that covered almost 1.1 million Teslas, including Model 3 and Model S cars. America’s National Highway Traffic Safety Administration at the time said the automatic windows “may not react correctly after detecting an obstruction”.
This marks the second Tesla recall in Australia this year, after almost 300 Model Y and Model 3 cars were called back in March due to a potential loss of power steering. Since 2021, the company has issued 17 recalls in the country, most of them related to software issues rather than mechanical faults.
Vehicle recalls are routine in Australia and affect a wide range of carmakers, with brands that sell numerous models typically appearing more often on recall lists. Tesla, however, does not feature among the 20 most frequently recalled marques in 2025.
Unlike many recalls, which arise from mechanical faults or quality-control problems that may worsen if left unresolved, the majority of Tesla’s call-backs have stemmed from software flaws, according to the Sydney Morning Herald.
In 2022, a glitch affecting around 1,600 cars caused tail lights to malfunction. A year later, nearly 35,000 vehicles were found to allow drivers to operate them with the bonnet unlatched, without the required warning alert.
Earlier this year, a separate software fault in several hundred cars created the risk of losing power steering. Each of these issues was fixed remotely through over-the-air updates.