Son Ji Chang

According to Mr. Son's Facebook,^[1] on September 10, 2016, his all electric Sport Utility Vehicle Tesla Model X crashed into his garage.

He has been requesting Tesla Inc. to investigate the accident. Tesla has stated that logs downloaded from the car show that the driver pressed the accelerator instead of the brake. Tesla's press statement to Reuters^[2] states,

"We take the safety of our customers very seriously and conducted a thorough investigation following Mr. Son's claims. The evidence, including data from the car, conclusively shows that the crash was the result of Mr. Son pressing the accelerator pedal all the way to 100%."

It also asserts that the actor threatened to use his celebrity to damage Tesla,

"Before filing his class action lawsuit against Tesla, Mr. Son had threatened to use his celebrity status in Korea to hurt Tesla unless we agreed to make a financial payment and acknowledge that the vehicle accelerated on its own. However, the evidence clearly shows the vehicle was not at fault. Our policy is to stand by the evidence and not to give in to ultimatums."^[3]

According to the NHTSA, there have been about 16,000 preventable pedal error automobile collisions in the U.S. every year.^[4]

Nevertheless, Son filed a lawsuit^[5] to claim damages.

On Friday, March 31, 2017, Tesla submitted a motion for an order to dismiss 13 of the 27 causes of action in Plaintiffs' First Amended Complaint ("FAC") citing that they are not relevant to the laws.^[6]

The plaintiff now has 15 days as of April 15, 2019 to amend the complaint or the lawsuit is dismissed by U.S. District Judge James V. Selna. The slander and defamation filing is outside of the one-year statute of limitations. For the false advertising and breach of warranty claims, the Judge ruled that Tesla's designs are for safety enhancement and not to prevent the plaintiff's claims of sudden unintended acceleration.^[7]

1. "Ji Chang Son – 지난 9월10일 저녁 8시에 일어난 일입니다. 저희 둘째 아들 경민이를... | Facebook". www.facebook.com. Retrieved January 1, 2017.
2. "UPDATE 1-Tesla owner files lawsuit in California claiming sudden acceleration". Reuters India. Archived from the original on December 31, 2016. Retrieved January 3, 2017.
3. Lambert, Fred (December 31, 2016). "Tesla is being sued by a S.Korean celebrity claiming his Model X accelerated on its own into his garage, logs show user mistake". Electrek. Retrieved January 3, 2017.
4. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (May 29, 2015). "NHTSA Safety Advisory: Reducing crashes caused by pedal error". National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). Retrieved January 27, 2020.
5. "Telsa Lawsuit | Tesla Motors | Airbag". Retrieved January 2, 2017 – via Scribd.
6. Tesla, Inc (March 31, 2017). "NOTICE OF MOTION AND MOTION; DEFENDANT TESLA, INC.'S MEMORANDUM OF POINTS AND AUTHORITIES IN SUPPORT OF MOTION TO DISMISS AND/OR STRIKE" (PDF). UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT CENTRAL DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA SOUTHERN DIVISION. Retrieved April 4, 2017.
7. "Korean Star's Defamation Suit Over Tesla Crash Tossed". April 16, 2019. Retrieved April 17, 2019.