A number of headlines have made a big deal out of Lucid’s recall of 27k vehicles for an apparent fire risk. But the problem had to do with an electronic fuse controlling LED lights, and a software update distributed last month already fixed the overheating issue.
A long as Electrek has existed, media has loved to make a big deal out of any time the word “fire” is mentioned anywhere near an electric car. Despite that gas cars catch fire at a drastically higher rate than EVs, media pays inordinate attention to single anomalous incidents with EVs and completely ignores the 200,000 gas car fires in the US per year.
And so, here we are again, with Lucid issuing a recall, labeled “Fire Risk Warning,” for 27,185 Lucid Air vehicles from model year 2022-2026. The recall is accompanied by a warning for owners to park outside until the fix can be applied. And of course, most headlines are going with that – Lucids have a fire risk, you better park outside because oooh, these newfangled devices are just sooo scawwy.
It’s a problem with exterior lights, nothing EV-related
But the problem probably isn’t what you think it is. What Lucid found is that the software for low-voltage exterior lighting – which is to say, exterior LEDs – didn’t properly protect against overcurrent.
In certain situation, too much current can be sent to the LEDs, which could cause overheating, which could then result in smoldering/smoking or potentially fire.
The lighting current is controlled by an “eFuse,” rather than a traditional automotive fuse, which means that it can be controlled by software. So… you can just fix it with a software update. And since Lucid vehicles are connected to the internet and can update via the internet, most of those vehicles had already been updated before this recall notice was even filed.
The problem was already fixed in July
The fix was applied in the 2.10.0 software update, released in July. The new software reduces amperage to the circuits, and if a fault is detected, doesn’t continually attempt to re-energize the light, which could previously cause overheating.
As of August 20th, 20,719 of the affected vehicles had already had their software updated, and 6,466 still needed to apply the update.
So far, over the course of the last 3 years, Lucid has identified a total of 3 fire events that seem to be connected with this issue, all related to the vehicle’s front lighting. The last was in March 2025. There have also been 4 events involving smoke in the last year, and 33 warranty reports that seem related to wiring harness damage.
So update your software instead of parking outside
While Lucid does recommend owners to park outside until the fix is applied, that’s just a matter of standard recall language. The actual fix is simply to apply an already-available software update. So if I had a choice between those two, I’d just apply the update. But if for some reason you can’t apply the update right now, go ahead and park outside until you find wifi or cellphone service.
Owners who have not applied the update will receive a recall notice in the mail, probably sometime in October. But since that’s plenty of time for you to apply your software update, you might as well go do that now.
Now – we can talk about how great it is that hardware problems can be solved by software fixes, which is pretty cool (we’ve seen Tesla do this many times). But we can also talk about how software-defined vehicles can be sent out onto the road with errors like this, and maybe companies will feel less necessity to ensure that everything is rock-solid bulletproof before releasing the vehicle.
But it’s not like we’ve never seen really dumb, really dangerous issues with really cheap fixes kicked down the road before by traditional automakers before, so maybe everyone just chill out a little and update your software, ok?
Charge your electric vehicle at home using rooftop solar panels. Find a reliable and competitively priced solar installer near you on EnergySage, for free. They have pre-vetted installers competing for your business, ensuring high-quality solutions and 20-30% savings. It’s free, with no sales calls until you choose an installer. Compare personalized solar quotes online and receive guidance from unbiased Energy Advisers. Get started here. – ad*
FTC: We use income earning auto affiliate links. More.
Comments