SAN CARLOS, CA --- Tesla Motors has launched a safety recall covering all 345 Tesla Roadsters manufactured before April 22, 2009.  

Tesla said it decided to inspect the rear inner hub flange bolts on several Roadsters after one owner reported uncharacteristic handling. After a root-cause analysis, Tesla determined that the rear inner hub flange bolts on a small percentage of Roadster vehicles were improperly torqued during assembly by Lotus, the contract manufacturer of the Roadster chassis. Lotus is conducting a similar recall on some Lotus Elise and Exige vehicles.

No accidents have been reported as a result of this manufacturing issue, which is unrelated to the Roadster's all-electric powertrain.

Tesla will make house calls to service cars at owners' homes or offices or to pick up the car and take it to a repair facility, if necessary. Service will be performed at no cost to the customer and will include a complimentary full-vehicle inspection and software upgrade.

"We plan to do everything we can to address this matter swiftly and keep customers satisfied," said Greg Zanghi, Tesla's director of service and parts operations. 

Tesla Motors designs and sells high-performance electric cars. Last month, Daimler AG acquired an equity stake of nearly 10 percent of Tesla Motors. The two companies have been working closely to integrate Tesla's lithium-ion battery packs and electronics into the first 1,000 units of Daimler's electric smart car.