Tesla preliminary evaluation PE23003
Steering Wheel Detachment. NHTSA’s Office of Defects Investigation opened this preliminary evaluation about the critical fasteners on 1 model year (2023). Opened Mar 4, 2023, closed Apr 24, 2026 after 3.1 years without a recall. closed
What NHTSA says
Source: Office of Defects Investigation, as filedOn March 4, 2023, the Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) opened PE23003 to investigate two reports of steering loss on model year (MY) 2023 Tesla Model Y vehicles due to the detachment of the steering wheel from the steering column while the vehicle was in motion. ODI confirmed from Tesla that in both cases, the vehicles were delivered to the owners missing the retaining bolt (P/N 1036655-00-A) used to secure the steering wheel to a splined shaft on the steering column. Tesla repaired both vehicles under warranty. ODI further learned that both 2023 MY Model Y vehicles had been manufactured in the first week of January 2023 at Tesla’s Austin, TX and Fremont, CA manufacturing facilities, respectively. Both vehicles had received end of production line repairs (rectification) requiring removal and reinstallation of the steering wheel before release from the factory. End of line rectification is an offline process manufacturers use to repair any defects found prior to vehicle release from the factory. It often requires removing and reinstalling unrelated components to access and correct the issue detected during inspections. This service process usually takes place outside the assembly line’s standard quality-control safeguards, introducing the risk of an incomplete or incorrect repair. On April 28, 2023, ODI sent an Information Request letter to Tesla requesting production data and steering wheel detachment reports for all MY 2022 – 2023 Tesla models; numbers of vehicles undergoing end of line steering wheel removals / reinstallations; information about Tesla’s procedures and process controls pertaining to this activity; and Tesla’s assessment of the alleged defect. ODI sent three sets of follow-up questions to Tesla in April, May, and June of 2025 to request a field data update, fleet mileage data, and further information concerning Tesla’s rectification processes and its 2023 internal assessments. ODI’s analysis of Tesla’s submissions and other relevant data revealed that: - No additional related incidents have occurred in either the subject or peer vehicles. - The subject vehicles suffered their steering wheel detachments below 400 miles of service, indicating that any other vehicles experiencing this issue would have already experienced a steering wheel detachment. - ODI identified additional circumstances indicating that rectification taking place outside of January 2023 do not exhibit missing steering wheel fasteners. - After the recognition of both failures, Tesla applied additional controls on vehicles receiving end of line rectification. Since this investigation’s opening, the subject and peer fleet have accumulated an average of 33,000 miles of service with three vehicles reporting under 500 miles and six reporting no mileage, making the likelihoodof any undiscovered missing steering wheel fasteners extremely low. Accordingly, no evidence has been identified to indicate that the alleged defect exists outside the two 2023 incidents that prompted the opening of PE23003, and this PE is closed. The closing of this investigation does not constitute a finding by NHTSA that a safety-related defect does not exist. The Agency reserves the right to take additional action if warranted by future circumstances. To review the ODI reports cited in the Closing Resume ODI Report Identification Number document, go to NHTSA.gov.
A Preliminary Evaluation is the first formal stage: NHTSA has decided the complaints and other information it screened are worth a closer look, and asks the manufacturer for its own data on the condition. The summary is the agency’s own text from its investigation file, unedited; the opening and closing resumes with the full reasoning are on NHTSA’s site under this number.
What this means for an owner
Source: and what happens nextAn investigation is not a finding that a defect exists, and it puts no duty on anyone. NHTSA opens a Preliminary Evaluation when complaints and other reports suggest a condition worth asking the manufacturer about; it upgrades to an Engineering Analysis when the answers warrant testing; it closes either when it recommends a recall, when the manufacturer recalls on its own, or when no defect trend is found. The agency’s own goals are about four months for a petition, eight for a Preliminary Evaluation or a Recall Query and eighteen for an Engineering Analysis; many run longer.
This one closed without a recall. That means NHTSA found no defect trend it chose to act on at the time, or the manufacturer addressed the condition another way (a service campaign or a bulletin, which have their own pages). A closed file can be reopened if new reports arrive.
Model years it names
Source: as NHTSA filed themA vehicle page’s investigation list carries the same action; a name here is the scope NHTSA opened, not a list of affected VINs.
Common questions
Source: NHTSA Office of Defects InvestigationIs PE23003 a recall?
No. A preliminary evaluation is NHTSA asking questions, not a recall. A safety recall carries an NHTSA campaign number and a duty to repair for free; this one closed without one. Whether one particular vehicle has an open recall is a VIN question at nhtsa.gov/recalls.
Is PE23003 still open?
No. It closed on Apr 24, 2026 without a recall.
Which vehicles does PE23003 cover?
NHTSA opened it on 1 model year: 2023 Tesla Model Y. That is the scope of the inquiry, not a list of affected vehicles; a recall, if one follows, defines its own population by VIN.