2017 Tesla Model S Problems

What owners report

Owners of the 2017 Model S most often describe the center touchscreen (media control unit) freezing, rebooting or going black, which takes away climate, defrost, backup camera and turn-signal chime while the car is in motion. A second large group describes front suspension noises and broken suspension arms, sometimes leaving the wheel contacting the tire liner. Together these two account for most of the sampled complaints, with many reports filed at relatively low mileage.

1. 1
   Electrical system

   Center screen freezes, reboots or goes black (MCU)

   • 107 complaints (25%)
   • median 35,000 mi at 4.1 yrs old (74 state mileage)
   • 2 mention a crash, fire or injury
   • owner-quoted repair $2,500 (median of 11 quotes)
   • filed 2018–2026

   Owners describe the large center display freezing, restarting on its own or going completely black, sometimes while parked and sometimes at speed. When it happens, they report losing climate and defrost control, the backup camera image, turn-signal and warning chimes, audio and navigation, and on some cars the instrument cluster too. Several say a reset sometimes restores it and sometimes does not, and that service visits produced reflashing of software or a recommendation to pay for an upgraded media control unit; some report the screen still misbehaved afterwards. Mostly reported between roughly 20,000 and 70,000 miles, with many complaints filed in 2020 and early 2021.

   Recall 21V035000Recall 24V051000

   What to check: Turn the car on cold and watch whether the screen boots promptly and stays up; ask whether the media control unit has been replaced or upgraded and whether any related service campaign was performed.

   2 excerpts from owner complaints in NHTSA records

   “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 miles

   “My main screen would completely go black randomly and when that happens my instrument cluster in front of me would also go black and as a result I can't see how fast I'm going or my blind spots or anything really. It's the mcu that continues to have this problem and Tesla won't replace it.”

   NHTSA complaint #11330708, filed 2020-06, 35,000 miles
2. 2
   Suspension

   Front suspension noise and broken suspension arms

   • 107 complaints (25%)
   • median 15,142 mi at 2.8 yrs old (64 state mileage)
   • 14 mention a crash, fire or injury
   • filed 2017–2026

   Owners describe clunking or popping noises from the front of the car over uneven pavement, followed in some cases by a suspension arm breaking so the tire contacts the wheel liner and the car cannot be driven. Reports also describe a wheel detaching while driving and, on air-suspension cars, a suspension-disabled message with the car dropping low. Several say the dealer replaced a control or caster arm; others report being told the noise could not be reproduced. Reported from very low mileage up to about 100,000 miles, with many under 25,000 miles.

   What to check: Listen for clunks or pops from the front end over bumps and turning at low speed, look for a wheel sitting off-center in the arch, and ask for service records showing any control-arm or air-suspension work.

   2 excerpts from owner complaints in NHTSA records

   “Left front suspension part broke allowing the tire to jamb into the wheel cowling. It happened on a city street then was unable to move, needed to be towed. I found a small cracked aluminum part under the car. It sounds like the recall that is now being discussed, at first they said it was my fault but they were talked into fixing it for free, thought you should know.”

   NHTSA complaint #11377042, filed 2020-11, 19,000 miles

   “Driving on highway on autopilot when another car cut into my lane immediately in front of me. I slammed on the brakes to avoid hitting him and heard a horrific noise. After the brakes stopped my car I had difficulty steering & still heard a terrible grinding noise underneath the car, but was able to limp off the highway to a safe place. I discovered that the suspension had broken. …”

   NHTSA complaint #11375236, filed 2020-11, 45,000 miles
3. 3
   Forward collision avoidance

   Forward collision warning or automatic braking activates

   • 63 complaints (15%)
   • median 33,000 mi at 4.2 yrs old (14 state mileage)
   • 5 mention a crash, fire or injury
   • owner-quoted repair $2,000 (median of 7 quotes)
   • filed 2020–2026

   Owners describe the forward collision warning firing with no obstacle present, and in some cases automatic emergency braking engaging on its own at highway speed. Others report the opposite: the forward collision system going quiet and failing to react, with no warning light, and a radar unit found at fault. A few connect the behavior to the car being on Autopilot or to a recent software version. Spread across the mileage range, from a few thousand to over 90,000 miles.

   Recall 21V846000Recall 23V838000

   What to check: Ask whether the software version covered by the forward-collision-avoidance recall has been installed, and have the front radar and its bracket checked if warnings seem absent or erratic.

   2 excerpts from owner complaints in NHTSA records

   “This was issued a full recall by nhsta. The vendor, Tesla indicted only a couple of weeks before a chip replacement was available. To date no repair has been made and the vendor is non responsive. Your help need to effect this recall”

   NHTSA complaint #11404471, filed 2021-03, 24,000 miles

   “A phantom emergency braking event occurred twice on monday, december 21, 2020 while driving from dallas to houston between the hours of 12pm - 4pm cst. I also experienced three blank screen events during this same trip. The media control unit (mcu) controlling the map, radio, air conditioning, blinker sounds also ceased operating. The second occurrence of both the phantom emergency braking and black screen event occurred on saturday, january 9, 2021 shortly after 10am cst. …”

   NHTSA complaint #11388316, filed 2021-01, 22,500 miles
4. 4
   Vehicle speed control

   Sudden unintended acceleration or braking complaints

   • 70 complaints (16%)
   • median 15,750 mi at 2.3 yrs old (36 state mileage)
   • 26 mention a crash, fire or injury
   • filed 2017–2026

   Owners describe the car surging forward on its own while maneuvering slowly in a parking area or while braking toward a stop, in some cases crossing a curb and hitting a building or another vehicle. Others describe brakes seizing or the emergency brake applying while the car was on Autopilot. In several accounts owners state no warning light appeared beforehand. Reported between roughly 11,000 and 74,000 miles across model years of ownership.

   Recall 23V838000Recall 23V085000Recall 22V037000

   What to check: Ask whether the Autosteer and Full Self-Driving recall software has been installed, and test that the brake pedal and pedal-position feel normal on a slow, low-speed drive.

   2 excerpts from owner complaints in NHTSA records

   “On 12/03/20 at around 9:57am, after I slowly turned left into a parking near a white truck and just about to back up into my company's EV charging parking lot then the car suddenly sped forward climbing over the curb of the median separating the parking area and a driveway on the side of another company's building then running thru the median and heading fast toward the building before I slammed the brake in time to stop the car ~15 feet away from hitting the building. …”

   NHTSA complaint #11378458, filed 2020-12, 21,500 miles

   “On 1/19/20 at 1623 phoenix time while coming to a stop on a surface street the car suddenly accelerated. Prompt application of the breaks prevented an accident. This is the first time this has happened.”

   NHTSA complaint #11301179, filed 2020-01, 37,300 miles

Buying note. Check that the open recalls for this model year — center-display eMMC, power steering assist, forward-collision software and Autosteer — have been completed, and ask directly whether the media control unit has been replaced. Have a pre-purchase inspection listen for front suspension noise and check the front radar and steering feel.

Summary written with AI from a sample of 60 NHTSA complaints for this model year (picked at random, with complaints that state a mileage and recent ones taken first), then checked automatically against the source records. Where a problem shows a complaint count, every complaint for this model year was matched with fixed keyword rules (written with AI and tested against the sample), and the mileage, age and repair figures are calculated from those complaints; owners' figures are as stated, not verified. Other counts refer to the sample. The excerpts come from NHTSA's public complaint records and are unverified; capitalisation is normalised, NHTSA staff notes are removed, and shortened text ends with “…”. Something wrong? Request a correction.