Tesla is forcing its Chinese customers to apologize to the Elon Musk business after taking them to court
A Tesla customer in China was forced to publicly apologize and pay out $23,000 after the car giant took her to court.
Zhang Yazhou claimed the brakes of her Model 3 stopped working while her father was driving, causing a crash that injured her family members.
She went on to publicly protest against Tesla, gaining attention on social media before being detained by authorities for five days.
The Elon Musk-owned automaker went on to sue Zhang for defamation - and won.
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And it's the not first time the electric car company, worth $1.06 trillion, has successfully taken Chinese customers to court, as AP reports.
The Tesla Model 3 crash
Zhang was sat in the passenger seat of her vehicle in February 2021 when she alleges her father shouted: "The brakes don't work!," as reported by AP.
The car failed to stop at a red light, crashing into an SUV and a sedan before hitting a large concrete barrier.
Traffic police determined the crash was the driver's fault for 'not maintaining a safe distance between vehicles,' AP reports.
However, Zhang alleged it was the failed brakes that caused the crash.
She asked Tesla to provide her vehicle's pre-crash data in hopes of determining the cause, but the company initially refused.
Zhang's protests
Zhang claimed Tesla employees were 'arrogant' and difficult to deal with.
Angry, and with no sign of pre-crash info, she embarked on the first of a handful of protests by draping a banner over her banged-up vehicle which read 'Tesla brake failure' and parking it in front of a Tesla dealership.
During another protest - which went viral on Chinese social media - Zhang and her heavily pregnant friend attended an auto show in Shanghai wearing shirts that said 'brakes fail.'
Her friend shouted 'Tesla brakes fail!' as Zhang clambered on top of a red display model and began shouting too.
This went viral online and saw Zhang escorted out by security guards and detained for five days.
Speculation that Zhang had protested on behalf of a competitor or the Chinese government, hoping to pressure Tesla to conform with its regulations, grew.
A top Tesla executive suggested to Chinese media that Zhang 'had someone behind her', accusing her of wanting 'higher compensation,' AP reports.
Zhang insisted she acted on her own — and out of anguish.
Court battle
Zhang sued Tesla for defamation following the executive's comments. She lost the case.
But the company went on to sue her, demanding $684,000 in damages and claiming she had 'deliberately spread false information that damaged the brand,' AP wrote.
Pressure mounted on the business and Tesla, eventually, publicly released Zhang's pre-crash data - including her vehicle ID number.
It reportedly showed the car had been traveling at 120 km per hour and 'that the brakes had functioned to reduce the magnitude of the collision.'
Zhang claimed the public release of her data saw her family be doxxed and threatened online, while she questioned the authenticity of the pre-crash report.
She sued Tesla for invasion of privacy - but lost that case too.
Back in court as a defendant, Zhang couldn't actually prove the brakes on her Tesla had failed.
In May 2024, a Shanghai court ruled that Zhang’s public complaints 'went beyond what magistrates considered reasonable, factual criticism'.
She was ordered to publicly apologize and pay $23,000 to cover Tesla's damages and legal costs.
Zhang has appealed the ruling.
She told AP: “I refuse to accept it. As a consumer, even if I said something wrong, I have the right to comment and criticize.
"I spoke about my feelings as a user of the car. It has nothing to do with damaging their reputation."
Other Tesla defamation cases in China
AP reported that Tesla has pursued 14 and won at least 11 defamation cases in China against customers who either complained or criticized its products.
In the last four years, six car owners who issued complaints - including about malfunctions and and accidents - were sued by Tesla.
As of now, Tesla has won 11 cases, with two under appeal, including Zhang's case, and one case settled out of court.
UNILAD has contacted Tesla for comment.
Topics: Business, China, Elon Musk, Tesla, Electric Cars, Social Media, Viral
Ellie Kemp