Electric Porsche Macan Recalled for Headlights Too Bright

Porsche is recalling 2,941 electric Macan crossovers because the headlights are too bright, which may reduce visibility for oncoming drivers and increase the risk of a crash.

The recall applies to model year 2024 and 2025 vehicles manufactured between March 15, 2024, and November 4, 2024.According to NHTSA, the headlight control software on this lot of vehicles was programmed to European standards instead of U.S. standards, resulting in the failure to meet Federal Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) number 108, resulting in beams that exceed the brightness levels specified in FMVSS number 108.

Porsche told safety regulators that this error has been corrected in late production vehicles, but that 100% of the recalled vehicles likely have the incorrect software. Even though this is purely a software-related issue, dealers will reprogram the headlight control units free of charge, as it cannot be addressed with a radio update.

Porsche plans to mail owner notification letters on January 24, 2025. Owners may also call Porsche's customer service department at 1-800-767-7243. Porsche's reference number for this recall is ARC5.

The electric Macan was one of the first EVs based on the Premium Platform Electric (PPE) shared with Audi for the 2024 model year. Initial drives showed that the Macan EV was a good way to ease the transition to electric vehicles, but Porsche was limited to the dual-motor Macan 4 and Macan Turbo grades for its first model year.

In 2025, Porsche expanded its electric Macan lineup to include a single-motor base model, which effectively reduced the price of the electric Macan by about $3,000, and the dual-motor Macan 4S, which sits between the Macan 4 and Turbo. Porsche still sells both the previous-generation gasoline Macan and the electric car, but has announced that starting in 2026,