Tesla Model S Problems by Model Year
NHTSA recorded 3,413 consumer complaints across the 15 model years of the Tesla Model S (2012–2026) that have at least 5 complaints. 2015 has the most, with 668. Across all years, the part named most often is electrical system (999 mentions). Pick a model year below to see its parts, mileage, recalls and service bulletins.
Best and worst Model S years →
All Model S model years
Years with fewer than 5 complaints are not listed. The score compares years of the same model, allowing for the era and for how long each year has collected complaints: 50 is a typical year, lower means fewer complaints. It is not adjusted for sales volume.
| Year | Complaints | Median mi | Recalls | TSBs | Score (50 = typical) | Trend |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 7 | — | 0 | 1 | — | Too new |
| 2025 | 6 | — | 2 | 3 | — | Too new |
| 2024 | 38 | 3,500 | 6 | 52 | Too new to compare | Too new |
| 2023 | 115 | 83,166 | 13 | 73 | 41 · Typical | Too new |
| 2022 | 139 | 6,118 | 20 | 87 | 60 · Typical | Rising |
| 2021 | 179 | 6,000 | 23 | 91 | 78 · More | Stable |
| 2020 | 80 | 2,500 | 11 | 64 | 49 · Typical | Falling |
| 2019 | 44 | 5,100 | 10 | 66 | 0 · Fewer | Falling |
| 2018 | 170 | 16,000 | 11 | 78 | 51 · Typical | Falling |
| 2017 | 429 | 24,236 | 9 | 92 | 72 · More | Falling |
| 2016 | 649 | 26,250 | 10 | 99 | 100 · More | Falling |
| 2015 | 668 | 49,240 | 9 | 97 | 76 · More | Falling |
| 2014 | 367 | 52,425 | 9 | 110 | 41 · Typical | Falling |
| 2013 | 461 | 70,000 | 11 | 102 | 42 · Typical | Falling |
| 2012 | 61 | 68,481 | 8 | 87 | 0 · Fewer | Falling |
Parts named most often, all years
Counts add up complaint mentions across the listed years. A complaint can name several parts.
- Electrical system999 25%
- Other or unknown868 22%
- Suspension734 18%
- Steering347 8.7%
- Forward collision avoidance339 8.5%
- Vehicle speed control277 7.0%
- Brakes209 5.3%
- Exterior lighting197 5.0%
Example complaints
One per model year, chosen for length and detail. Personal details are removed. They are consumer reports, not findings.
2015: “April 21, 2023 me and my daughter was driving from Jacksonville Beach to Fernandina Beach around 6pm. Exiting from 295 to i95, I removed my autopilot to reduce speed, I was very focus driving, not on my cellphone and even sleepy. Then I saw the car in front of me suddenly stopped, i know i have enough distance and confidently press the break hard enough to make it stop. …”
NHTSA complaint #11520539, filed 2023-05, 58,983 miles2017: “The central computer (large screen in the middle) does not perform well and freezes while driving or sometimes wont let me start. Tesla said nothing wrong with it as on their system doesnt show any software issue and so they will not do anything. I am paying telsa to change this to mcu2. The date does not refer to any specific date this problem occured.”
NHTSA complaint #11389582, filed 2021-01, 60,000 miles2018: “My september 2018 build Tesla Model S experiences the same screen failures (both the dash + media control unit) as the recalled versions, but mine falls outside of the recall period. The latest incident occurred while I was driving on a desolate highway traveling at 85 MPH. I lose my speedometer as well as features such GPS which occurred once in an unfamiliar area.”
NHTSA complaint #11399238, filed 2021-03, 14,000 milesOther Tesla models
4,380 complaintsTesla Model Y
4,299 complaintsTesla Model X
1,557 complaintsTesla Cybertruck
213 complaints
About this data. Data from NHTSA (ODI) complaints, recalls, TSBs and investigations, updated Oct 27, 2026. Complaints are unverified consumer reports and may be duplicated or inaccurate. Methodology