Tesla Stock Misses Christmas Cheer As Rapid Korea FSD Progress Fails to Offset Car Door Probe

Shares traded lower as investors weighed autonomous driving updates against ongoing regulatory review.

• Tesla reported more than 1 million kilometers of Full Self-Driving use in South Korea within a month of launch.
• U.S. regulators opened a safety investigation into emergency door release controls on certain Model 3 vehicles.
• The company continued to highlight its robotaxi rollout and related website updates despite the stock’s decline.

Shares of Tesla fell on Wednesday, struggling to find momentum ahead of the Christmas holiday, even as the company highlighted rising adoption of its Full Self-Driving (Supervised) (FSD) system in South Korea. 

At the time of writing, the stock fell 0.7% to hit $482.64.

Tesla Flags Rapid Uptake Of FSD In South Korea

Tesla said local owners have driven more than 1 million kilometers using FSD in just one month since the feature launched in the country.

The company’s Korea-focused X account said in a post on X that the distance would be enough to circle South Korea roughly 480 times, based on the country’s official coastline length and northern border.

Tesla’s FSD officially launched in South Korea in late November, with the initial rollout using its v14.1.4 software build. South Korea became the seventh country where Tesla has enabled the driver-assistance system, following the U.S., Puerto Rico, Canada, China, Mexico, Australia and New Zealand.

Additionally, Tesla investor and influencer Sawyer Merritt said in a post on X that the Cybertruck has also received FSD v14 in South Korea, marking the first time Cybertruck owners in the country have access to the feature.

Safety Investigation Weighs On Sentiment

The stock reaction came as Tesla faces a safety investigation by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration into emergency door release controls on Model 3 sedans. The probe follows a petition alleging that the mechanical door release is hidden, unlabeled and not intuitive to locate during an emergency, according to the regulator.

The investigation covers about 179,071 model year 2022 vehicles. 

Tesla’s door handle design has also attracted scrutiny internationally. In October, the Dutch safety authority RDW said it would tighten rules related to emergency exits, while China is reported to be considering a ban on fully retractable door handles by mid-2027. In the U.S., Tesla’s 2021 Model Y vehicles are already under review following incidents involving electronic door handles.

Tesla has previously said its design philosophy favors electronically operated systems. The company is now working on a redesign that combines electronic and manual door-release mechanisms to make them more intuitive, according to design chief Franz von Holzhausen.

Robotaxi Push Remains In Focus

The decline in stock came despite continued attention on Tesla’s autonomous driving ambitions. The company recently updated a webpage dedicated to its robotaxi service, saying autonomous rides are currently being offered in Austin, Texas, starting with the Model Y, and directing users to download the Robotaxi app. 

The page also says Tesla’s purpose-built Cybercab will offer rides in additional areas in the future and highlights accessibility features in its vehicles.

How Did Stocktwits Users React?

On Stocktwits, retail sentiment for Tesla was ‘extremely bullish’ amid ‘extremely high’ message volume.

Tesla’s stock has declined 0.6% so far in 2025.

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