A Chinese family involved in a Tesla crash was ordered to pay the carmaker over $23,000 after losing a legal battle. Zhang Yazhou and her father crashed their Model 3 in 2021 when he allegedly shouted, “The brakes don’t work!” before colliding with other cars. Traffic police ruled her father was at fault for not maintaining a safe distance.
Zhang protested publicly, displaying a banner reading “Tesla brake failure” and climbing onto a car at an auto show wearing a “brakes fail” shirt. Tesla accused her of spreading false information and demanded $684,000 in damages.
Under pressure, Tesla released crash data showing the brakes worked and the car was speeding at 120 km/h. Zhang’s family received online threats afterward. She sued Tesla for defamation and privacy invasion but lost both cases.
A Shanghai court ruled her claims damaged Tesla’s reputation. Zhang was ordered to apologize and pay damages. She appealed, stating, “Even if I said something wrong, I have the right to comment and criticize.” Tesla’s legal success is common in China, with car owners winning only 9 out of 81 lawsuits.
