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Electrical systemPart report

2016 Tesla Model S Electrical system Problems

Complaints
149about this part
Share
23%of 649 total for the year
Median mileage
50,574miles
Trend
FallingComplaints filed in the last 3 full calendar years are at least 25% lower than in the 3 years before.

NHTSA recorded 149 complaints about the electrical system of the 2016 Tesla Model S, 23% of the 649 complaints for this model year. Where a mileage was given, the median is 50,574 miles. 8 of these say a crash was involved and 5 a fire, according to the filers. 2 recall campaigns on record are filed under a similar system.

Example complaints

Selected from NHTSA records; personal details are removed. They are consumer reports, not findings.

“The center console on our car died 4 years and one month after purchase (one month out of warranty). The car cannot be driven. Fortunately the car is in the garage; we have had the console die previously during driving, which is super scary. The mcu unit is bad. Our car only has 25k miles on it. Many other older teslas have had this problem.”

NHTSA complaint #11338212, filed 2020-07, 25,700 miles

“The main screen on my 2016 Tesla Model S has gone out and I am being told in his a known bad mcu issue. My car is 52 months old with 50,361 miles. This needs to be declared a defect so Tesla is responsible for fixing this issue. I have been told the repair is over $2,000. Consumer stated telsa refuses to repair the vehicle under warranty.”

NHTSA complaint #11341898, filed 2020-07, 50,361 miles

“Main control unit (mcu)has shut down several times. The screen has gone black and navigation functions and maps disappeared. Inconvenience more than anything there. I have lost the backup camera and defrost functions. The car has remained pretty much drivable though I don't think I had turn signals (or at least the indication on dash). The car has been both stationary and moving when these things happened.”

NHTSA complaint #11375097, filed 2020-11, 120,000 miles

“My main display is slower to start up, randomly freezes, reboots, or just goes black when I'm driving. This is the display that controls lights, the radio, the climate control system, and rearview camera. This happens at random times, including while driving.”

NHTSA complaint #11373996, filed 2020-11, 39,300 miles

“Failure of touchscreen of 2016 Tesla Model S #128735 (march 2016 build). Was told by Tesla mcu (media control unit) needed to be replaced because flash drive was filled. I had the mcu repaired by a 3rd party repair facility specializing in Tesla's where the flash drive was replaced with a larger chip. I would hope that owners whom had to have this part replaced either by Tesla or 3rd party would be compensated for their out of pocket expenses. …”

NHTSA complaint #11330487, filed 2020-06, 59,000 miles

Related recalls

Related service bulletins

Electrical system: other model years

YearComplaintsShare of year
2024718%
202398%
20221712%
20212514%
202079%
2019511%
20183521%
201711427%
201614923%
201526640%
201413336%
201319542%
20123761%

Other parts of the 2016 Tesla Model S

Suspension
211 complaintsOther or unknown
150 complaintsSteering
87 complaintsVehicle speed control
81 complaintsBrakes
55 complaintsExterior lighting
49 complaintsForward collision avoidance
39 complaintsVisibility (wipers, defrost, mirrors)
39 complaintsBody and structure
30 complaintsBack-over prevention (rear camera)
21 complaintsTransmission and drivetrain
18 complaintsFuel system
15 complaints

← All problems reported for the 2016 Tesla Model S

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.

To check a specific vehicle for open recalls, use its VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls. Methodology