Late last week Consumer Reports (CR) tested out several Tesla Model 3 electric vehicles, with the company finding significant faults with the car's brakes. In particular there appeared to be a serious discrepancy in the braking capacity between different Model 3 vehicles tested by Consumer Reports.

Quick to address the problem, Elon Musk took to Twitter to note that an update to the braking system of the Model 3 would be rolled out from 25 May onwards. Now the co-founder has added that the firmware update should reduce the braking distance by 20 feet (6.09 metres) when used for repeated heavy braking incidents.

Also, firmware fix for upgraded brake performance on standard Model 3 started rolling out yesterday. Should improve braking distance by ~20 ft for repeated heavy braking events. Thanks @ConsumerReports for excellent critical feedback!

— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) May 27, 2018

In its initial review, Consumer Reports added that it would be willing to take another look at the Model 3 once Tesla issued an update for the cars. As such, we'll now have to wait and see whether the update results in a more positive review for the Model 3, to get the CR recommendation.

What's perhaps more interesting though, is the fact that the braking capacity of the vehicles can be updated remotely, which is helpful when manufacturers wish to make significant changes to the line-up, but don't wish to perform a fully fledged recall. It also raises an important question of whether the safety of the vehicle can be compromised if hacked.