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Report: Tesla Settles Model X Lawsuit

Tesla Motors apparently took back one of its Model X SUVs after its owner filed a lawsuit about numerous problems with the vehicle.

Tesla Motors apparently took back one of its Model X SUVs after its owner filed a lawsuit about numerous problems with the vehicle.

Fortune reports that the electric vehicle maker quietly settled the case with tech entrepreneur Barrett Lyon.

Lyon alleged that the Model X's gull-wing doors operated unpredictably and that some autonomous features, including its "auto-pilot" and self-parking capabilities, didn't work properly.

His lawsuit further suggested that the vehicle, Tesla's debut SUV, was "rushed" into production and that a Tesla service center gave him the "runaround" when he raised those issues.

Lyon and Tesla said that the automaker took the car back; no other details of the settlement were disclosed.

"As a principle, we are always willing to buy back a car in the rare event that a customer isn’t completely happy," the company wrote in an email to Fortune.

Tesla previously recalled the Model X over concerns about the stability of a seating hinge, and a Consumer Reports article referenced additional owner complaints about the SUV's doors and software.

Tesla said that the problems were not widespread, but the company also sued a former supplier over the door design and said that new software updates should fix the door issues.

Fortune noted that other Model X owners also received refunds. Lyons, meanwhile, reportedly continues to own two other Teslas.

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