What 459 owners told NHTSA about the 2013 Tesla Model S 75

WHILE SLOWLY BACKING CAR UP IN DRIVEWAY, THE LEFT REAR LOWER CONTROL ARM UNEXPECTEDLY FAILED AND THE SUSPENSION COLLAPSED WITH THE WHEEL CAMBERED OUTWARD AT 30 DEGREES OR SO. THE WHEEL WAS TRAPPED IN THE WHEEL WELL AND UNABLE TO ROTATE, AND RELATED SUSPENSION PARTS INCLUDING A BRAKE LINE AND THE AIR SPRING MODULE WERE DAMAGED. IF THIS HAD HAPPENED AT SPEED THE LOCKED-UP REAR WHEEL WOULD HAVE CAUSED LOSS OF CONTROL WITH SERIOUS CONSEQUENCES. THERE IS AN EXISTING TESLA SERVICE BULLETIN, SB 19-31-001, WHICH STATES: "ON CERTAIN MODEL S VEHICLES, EITHER LOWER REAR CONTROL ARM MIGHT CRACK, CAUSING EXCESSIVE NEGATIVE CAMBER OF THE REAR SUSPENSION." IT STATES THAT THE CORRECTION IS: REPLACE BOTH LH AND RH LOWER REAR CONTROL ARM ASSEMBLIES WITH UPDATED PARTS." THIS DESCRIBES EXACTLY WHAT HAPPENED WITH MY VEHICLE. THE CIRCULAR, CAST ALUMINUM PART OF THE ARM WHICH CONTAINS A LARGE BUSHING AT THE OUTBOARD END OF THE CONTROL ARM CRACKED AND FAILED SO THAT THE BUSHING WAS NO LONGER HELD BY THE ARM. UNDER THE VEHICLE TWO PIECES OF THE CAST ALUMINUM PART WERE FOUND. THESE BROKEN PARTS WERE THE RESULT OF TWO CRACKS IN THE ASSEMBLY. ONE CRACK HAS EVIDENCE OF CORROSION, SUGGESTING THAT IT OCCURRED MONTHS BEFORE THE UNIT FAILED; THE OTHER CRACK SHOWS BARE METAL INDICATING THAT IT JUST OCCURRED. THE TESLA SB STATES THAT THIS DEFECT IS A "KNOWN NON-SAFETY-RELATED CONDITION." I CANNOT POSSIBLY SEE HOW THIS IS A "NON-SAFETY-RELATED" ISSUE -- IF THIS FAILURE HAD OCCURRED AT SPEED IT COULD HAVE BEEN CATASTROPHIC. TESLA SERVICE HAS QUOTED ALMOST $4000 FOR REPAIR, BUT THIS DOES NOT INCLUDE REPLACEMENT OF THE CONTROL ARM ON THE OTHER SIDE OF THE VEHICLE PER THE SERVICE BULLETIN -- IN OTHER WORDS, THEY ARE IGNORING THE BULLETIN. OTHERS ON THE TESLA FORUMS ARE HAVING EXACTLY THE SAME CONTROL ARM FAILURES. THE SITUATION IS UNNERVING AND DISCOURAGING.

NHTSA ODI 11351926

MY TESLA HAS THE WELL KNOW 'BLACK SCREEN OF DEATH' DUE TO EMMC FAILURE. WITHOUT THIS, MOST FUNCTIONS OF THE VEHICLE DO NOT WORK. THIS INCLUDES SUSPENSION ADJUSTMENTS, AC/HEAT, BACKUP CAMERA, RADIO, NAVIGATION, ETC. TESLA HAS BEEN A NIGHTMARE TO GET A LIVE PERSON ON THE PHONE, UNLESS IT'S FOR NEW CAR SALES. THEY SCHEDULED AN APPOINTMENT FOR US BUT IT'S 3 WEEKS AWAY AND WE CANNOT WAIT THAT LONG TO HAVE THE CAR MOBILE AGAIN. I WILL LIKELY TAKE THE EMMC OUT MYSELF, MAIL IT TO SOMEONE FOR REPLACEMENT, AND PAY ABOUT 700.00.

NHTSA ODI 11351959

MCU DIED.

NHTSA ODI 11351432

THE DISPLAY SCREEN, WHICH ALLOWS YOU TO CONTROL THE ENTIRE VEHICLE, FAILS OVER TIME. IT IS A BIG PROBLEM SINCE THE CAR HAS NO BUTTONS AND EVERYTHING MUST BE DONE ON THE SCREEN. THE PROBLEM IS THIS ONE, AS MANY OTHER TESLA OWNERS HAVE HAD. HTTPS://TESLAMOTORSCLUB.COM/TMC/THREADS/MODEL-S-BLACK-HORIZONTAL-LINE-IN-MCU-SCREEN.193133/ THIS APPEARED ALL OF A SUDDEN, AND EVENTUALLY THE SCREEN WILL COMPLETELY FAIL MAKING THE CAR NOT USABLE.

NHTSA ODI 11351157

THE MCU (MAIN TOUCHSCREEN COMPUTER) FAILED ON MY 2013 TESLA MODEL S AROUND JUNE 10TH 2020, WITH ~45K MILES. THE MCU PREVIOUSLY HAD SOME REBOOT ISSUES BUT THIS TIME WAS DIFFERENT BECAUSE THE COMPUTER WAS CONSTANTLY REBOOTING AND WOULDN'T STOP. THIS WAS AFTER THE CAR WAS LEFT IN THE GARAGE AND NOT DRIVEN FOR ABOUT A WEEK. I HAD TESLA REPLACE THE MCU ON MY CAR WHICH COST ~$1700+. WHEN THE TESLA MODEL S MCU GOES OUT, THE CAR CAN STILL BE DRIVEN BUT THIS COMPUTER IS CENTRAL TO OPERATING MOST FUNCTIONS OF THE CAR. MANY VEHICLE FUNCTIONS NO LONGER WORK WITH A FAILED MCU INCLUDING THE AC/HEATER; BACKUP CAMERA DISPLAY; NAVIGATION INSTRUCTIONS, GPS, AND MAPS; INSIDE MANUAL DOOR LOCKS AND SUNROOF CONTROL; GARAGE DOOR OPENER; RADIO AND ALL MUSIC PLAY FUNCTIONALITY; ENERGY CONSUMPTION DISPLAYS; PHONE; VEHICLE CHARGE SETTINGS AND CHARGE STATUS DISPLAY; SELECTION OF AUTOMATIC PERSONAL POSITIONING FOR STEERING WHEEL, SEAT, AND MIRROR; MANY LIGHTING CONTROLS; OTHER VEHICLE SETTINGS; ON-SCREEN GAMES; AND MORE. THERE IS A NEWER VERSION OF MCU THAT I PLEADED WITH TESLA TO OBTAIN AND INSTALL IN MY CAR BUT THEY SAID THEY COULDN'T GET IT. THE MCU FAILURES ARE APPARENTLY RELATED TO OVERUSED COMPUTER MEMORY CHIPS AND THE MCU REPLACEMENT WAS ACTUALLY A REMANUFACTURED COMPUTER AND WASN'T NEW. THE REPLACEMENT DID HAVE A NEW TOUCHSCREEN AND UPGRADED LET MODEM BUT LATER HAD NEW 'LOW DISK SPACE' ERROR MESSAGES AND REBOOTED REPEATEDLY WITHIN WEEKS OF THE MCU REPLACEMENT.

NHTSA ODI 11350170

SCREEN WENT COMPLETELY BLACK AND HAD TO PAY TO HAVE IT REPLACED. WAS TOLD THAT THERE WAS NO FIX FOR IT.

NHTSA ODI 11349746

MCU HAS BEEN MALFUNCTIONING. WITHOUT IT I CANNOT CONTROL CLIMATE, BACKUP CAMERA, RADIO, TURN SIGNALS, CHARGING, NAVIGATION, AND A NUMBER OF OTHER IMPORTANT FEATURES. THIS PROBLEM HAS BEEN ONGOING AND INTERMITTENT, BUT RECENTLY HAS BECOME MORE COMMON.

NHTSA ODI 11349542

MCU 1 FAILED. DISPLAY SCREEN DEAD. NO CONTROLS FOR CLIMATE, BACKUP CAMERA, AUDIO SYSTEM, NAVIGATION, ETC

NHTSA ODI 11349620

THE MCU ON THESE CARS ARE A KNOWN ISSUE FOR ALL TESLA'S WITH MCU VERSION 1. THE MCU IS AN INTEGRAL PART OF OPERATION, DRIVING ALL NECESSARY CHANGES ON THE CAR SUCH AS: ADJUSTING DRIVING LIGHTS, ADJUSTING TRACTION CONTROL SETTINGS, ACCESSING THE SAFETY & SECURITY FEATURES (REQUIRED FOR SAFELY JACKING THE CAR, ETC) AS WELL AS PLACING THE CAR IN TOW MODE TO SAFETY TOW THE CAR. THE MCU IS ALSO THE MAIN DRIVING COMPUTER FOR THE SECONDARY DISPLAY WHICH SHOWS DRIVING SPEED. FOLLOWING AN ISSUE WITH MY MCU, THE CAR WAS NOT ABLE TO BE PROPERLY DRIVEN AND WAS NOT ABLE TO ACCESS THE TESLA NETWORK TO RECEIVE SOFTWARE UPDATES, THE NAVIGATION AND MAPS DID NOT WORK AND THE RADIO WAS DISABLED. THE CLIMATE CONTROL WAS ALSO NON-FUNCTIONAL DUE TO THE FAILURE.

NHTSA ODI 11349279

ON 8/6/2020 AT APPROXIMATELY 3:50 PM [XXX], I [XXX] WAS PARKING MY 2013 MODEL S 85 TESLA IN MY CARPORT. I HAVE LIVED AT THIS ADDRESS FOR 7 MONTHS AND HAD PARKED MY CAR THERE WITHOUT INCIDENT NUMEROUS TIMES. I WAS NOT DISTRACTED NOR INTOXICATED IN ANY WAY; I WAS SIMPLY PARKING MY CAR. AS I WAS ABOUT TO PUSH THE PARK BUTTON ON THE TESLA, SUDDENLY THE CAR UNINTENTIONALLY ACCELERATED, OUT OF CONTROL, THE BRAKE DIDN'T WORK, AND CONTINUED TO LEAP FORWARD AT FULL SPEED, CAUSING ME TO CRASH THROUGH THE GATE, AND BACK OF MY CARPORT, BOUNCING ONE TRASHCAN OFF MY SHED DOOR AND PUSHING ANOTHER ONE, AS I VEERED AROUND THE SHED CORNER KNOCKING THE CARPORT SUPPORTS OUT AS I WENT. CRASHING THROUGH MY NEIGHBORS BACK FENCE, I PLOWED OVER MY NEIGHBOR'S GARDEN AND BACK YARD WITH MY GARBAGE CAN AND CAR ACTING AS A BATTERING RAM. THE TESLA EVENTUALLY CAREENED INTO NEIGHBORS BACK CARPORT PLOWED OVER A GAS MAIN, POWER MAIN PANEL, WATER MAIN, AND SEWER DRAIN LINE. BASICALLY, ALL THE UTILITIES WHICH FED HER HOUSE, AND FINALLY STOPPED AFTER HITTING THE SIDE OF SPACE# 46 HOUSE. I SAW AND SMELLED GAS ENTERING THE CAR FROM THE BROKEN GAS PIPE. FORTUNATELY, THE POWER TO MY HOUSE ALONG WITH 40 OF THE SURROUNDING HOUSES HAD BEEN SHUT OFF THE PREVIOUS DAY DUE TO A TOTALLY UNRELATED INCIDENT. A POWER TRANSFORMER WHICH FED THE COMMUNITY HAD BEEN MIS-WIRED AND DESTROYED ALL THE ELECTRICAL APPLIANCES AND ELECTRONICS IN THE 40 HOUSES THE TRANSFORMER FED. IF THE POWER HAD BEEN ON, THERE WOULD HAVE BEEN SPARKS AND AN EXPLOSION UNDER MY TESLA BATTERY PACK; WHICH WOULD HAVE CAUSED A SECONDARY EXPLOSION. I WOULD HAVE BEEN KILLED INSTANTLY ACCORDING TO THE FIREMEN AND PGE GAS REPAIR MAN WHO SHOWED UP AFTER THE INCIDENT. ANYONE PRESENT WITHIN THE VICINITY AROUND MY CAR WOULD MOST LIKELY HAVE BEEN KILLED TOO OR INJURED. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6). *TR

NHTSA ODI 11348946

THE MAIN SCREEN IN OUR 2013 TESLA MODEL S STARTED REQUIRING REGULAR REBOOTS JUST TO RUN. THEN IT DIED COMPLETELY, LEAVING US WITHOUT ACCESS TO HVAC CONTROLS (THEY WERE STUCK ON THE LAST SETTING WHICH DID NOT ALLOW FOR DEFROST/DEFOG FOR THE WINDSHIELD OR REAR WINDOW). WE ALSO DID NOT HAVE FUNCTIONING TURN SIGNALS, HAZARDS OR A BACKUP CAMERA, AND CHARGING WAS LIMITED TO A RIDICULOUSLY SLOW RATE (THE CAR WAS IN "LIMP MODE" PER OUR TECHNICIAN). WE WERE FORCED TO REPLACE THE MAIN COMPUTER (MCU1). WE WERE GIVEN A CHOICE OF ANOTHER MCU1 (WHICH WE WERE TOLD MAY HAVE THE SAME PROBLEM EVENTUALLY) OR AN MCU2 WHICH WOULD NOT. WE CHOSE THE MCU2.

NHTSA ODI 11344147

CENTER CONSOLE (MCU) FAILED AFTER UPDATING SOFTWARE. BLACK SCREEN. UNABLE TO USE, CANNOT CHARGE. CANNOT CONTROL ANYTHING. THIS SEEMS EXTREMELY DANGEROUS , AS ALL THE VEHICLE CONTROLS ARE THROUGH THE CENTER CONSOLE. HAD TO GET IT TOWED TO TESLA SERVICE. TESLA SAID IT WAS INFAMOUS EMMC FAILURE AND HAD TO REPLACE THE MCU OUT OF POCKET, TOTALING $2,738.67. THEY REPLACED IT WITH THE SAME EXACT VERSION, BASICALLY SAYING ITS A KNOWN ISSUE AND THAT THIS WILL FAIL AGAIN EVENTUALLY. THIS ALSO ENCOURAGES PEOPLE *NOT* TO UPDATE THEIR SOFTWARE ANYMORE, AS ANY WRITES TO THAT EMMC MODULE IS JUST ONE STEP CLOSER TO FAILURE AGAIN.

NHTSA ODI 11343915

MAIN SCREEN MALFUNCTION. TURNED COMPLETELY BLACK. TURN SIGNALS NO LONGER WORK AND CAR WILL NOT CHARGE. BACKUP CAMERA NOT USABLE. CAR IS UNDRIVABLE DUE TO SAFETY ISSUES. I'VE BEEN WAITING FOR A REPLACEMENT UNIT OVER A MONTH ALREADY.

NHTSA ODI 11343652

MCU CHIP FAILED. SCREEN WENT BLANK. ALL FUNCTIONS OF CAR WERE INACCESSIBLE. WAS UNABLE TO CHARGE CAR. THIS HAPPENED WHILE DRIVING MUTIPLE TIMES. TOTALLY UNSAFE. CURRENTLY PASSENGER SIDE DOOR HANDLE DOES NOT WORK. THIS IS THE 2ND TIME THIS HAS HAPPENED ALONG WITH ANOTHER DOOR HANDLE.

NHTSA ODI 11343797

I HAVE HAD NUMEROUS "BLACKOUTS" OF THE MAIN SCREEN WHEREBY I AM UNABLE TO CONTROL ANYTHING SUCH AS A/C, MAPS, CHARGING, MPH, ETC. FREQUENTLY I HAVE NO CONNECTIVITY DESPITE BEING IN AREAS WITH STRONG CELLULAR RECEPTION OR EVEN IN MY OWN GARAGE WITH WIFI. WHEN THIS OCCURS, NO MONITORING SYSTEM FOR THE CAR IS AVAILABLE. IT TYPICALLY OCCURS UPON START UP AND THE CAR WILL TURN ON BUT NOTHING SHOWS UP ON THE DASH OR SCREEN. MY CAR CAN SOMETIMES TAKE SEVERAL MINUTES TO START UP - SOMETIMES I HAVE LEFT MY CAR BEHIND AND TAKEN ANOTHER MODE OF TRANSPORTATION DUE TO THE ISSUE.

NHTSA ODI 11343381

MY ELECTRIC DOOR HANDLES. WHICH PRESENT UPON APPROACH OR WHEN ACTIVATED, REMAIN IN THE CLOSED/LOCKED POSITION, WHICH PREVENTS ME FROM BEING ABLE TO USE THE DOOR. I HAVE HAD 3 DIFFERENT HANDLES ON MY VEHICLE REPLACED. TWO OF THEM HAVE BEEN REPLACED TWICE. I HAVE COMPLAINED THAT THIS SHOULD NOT BE AN ISSUE THAT A CONSUMER SHOULD HAVE TO PAY FOR AS IT SEEMS TO BE A "LEMON" ISSUE, HAVING OCCURRED MULTIPLE TIMES. THE FIRST TIME IT OCCURRED WAS WITHIN 6 MONTHS OF PURCHASE IN 2013. THE LAST TIME IT OCCURRED WAS MAY OF 2020. AND THREE TIMES IN BETWEEN.

NHTSA ODI 11343382

THE CENTER DISPLAY IS BLANK AND UNAVAILABLE, WHICH DISABLES MANY VEHICLE FEATURES INCLUDING THE BACKUP CAMERA SYSTEM, AIR SUSPENSION CONTROL, AND HVAC. THE CENTER DISPLAY WAS WORKING NORMALLY ON AUGUST 1ST, 2020. IT SEEMS TO HAVE FAILED OVERNIGHT, BECAUSE IT HAS NOT WORKED SINCE AUGUST 2ND.

NHTSA ODI 11343227

UMC FAILURE WHICH IS THE ONLY WAY TO CONTROL ALL IN THE CAR. NO BACK UP CAMERA, NO REMOTE CONTROL, NO PERFORMANCE CONTROLS. BASICALLY THE ONLY THING WORKING ON THE CAR IS THE BLINKERS. I SAW THAT OTHER TESLA CARS ARE HAVING THE SAME ISSUE. COST IS 3,000 WHICH IS AN ACCEPTABLE SINCE THE CAR ONLY HAS 70,000 MILES. 'EMMC FAILURE' PROBLEM.

NHTSA ODI 11343265

I HAVE THE MCU1, THE DASH SCREEN IN THE CENTER. OFTEN THE MCU IS DEAD AND THE CAN'T BE DRIVEN. SOMETIMES IT GOES OUT WHILE I'M DRIVING MAKING NOT SAFE TO DRIVE. THE CAR IS OUT OF WARRANTY, BUT THE MCU IS WHAT CONTROLS EVERYTHING IN THE CAR. HAD IT REPLACED UNDER WARRANTY BUT STILL HAVE THE SAME PROBLEMS. MCU CONTROLS THE AC/HEATING, BACK UP CAMERA, LIGHTS, TURN SIGNALS, NAVIGATION, MUSIC, SUSPENSION AND VSC, SUNROOF, ETC... THIS HAPPENS WHEN DRIVING ON THE HIGHWAY, STREET OR WHEN PARKED

NHTSA ODI 11343078

MCU-1 DIED, AS IN TOUCH SCREEN DID NOT WORK, THEREFORE MOST OF THE CAR DOES NOT WORK. IT DIED OVERNIGHT, GOT IN THE CAR THE NEXT MORNING AND THE CAR WAS OFF, COULD NOT TURN IT ON

NHTSA ODI 11343098

SAME ISSUE AS OTHER OPEN COMPLAINTS WITH EMMC DEVICE FAILING CAUSING BLACK SCREEN, NO REAR VIEW CAMERA, NO ABILITY TO CHARGE THE CAR, TURN SIGNALS INOPERABLE, ETC.. BASED ON THE KNOWN SOFTWARE BUG IN THIS SYSTEM IT IS REASONABLE TO CONCLUDE THAT ALL MODELS WITH THIS VERSION OF MCU/EMMC SOFTWARE WILL EVENTUALLY FAIL. SEE CURRENT NHTSA ACTION NUMBER : PE20010

NHTSA ODI 11342798

CORROSION TO THE LOWER STEERING SHAFT WITH U-JOINT CAUSED POWER STEERING TO FAIL.

NHTSA ODI 11342817

VEHICLE COMPLETELY STATIONARY. CENTER CONSOLE (MCU) UNIT FAILURE DUE TO THE EMMC STORAGE FILLING DUE TO EXCESSIVE LOG DATA. WELL-KNOWN AND DOCUMENTED ISSUE WITH THESE CARS. CAUSES A/C CONTROL, MEDIA, MEDIA CONTROLS, NAVIGATION, LIGHTING CONTROL, AND AUDIBLE TURN SIGNAL FUNCTIONS TO NO LONGER WORK.

NHTSA ODI 11342732

MY ECU HAS DIED. THE MAIN CONTROL SCREEN DOES NOT WORK AT ALL, DOES NOT COME ON AND FUNCTIONALITY IS UNUSABLE. I HAVE REBOOTED THE SYSTEM SEVERAL TIMES WHICH DOES NOT WORK. HAPPENS DURING INITIAL START UP AND WHILE DRIVING. I HAVE NOW TAKEN MY CAR INTO THE SERVICE CENTER TO HAVE IT REPLACED. MY UNDERSTANDING IS THAT IT IS A CHRONIC PROBLEM BUT, OF COURSE, I AM OUT OF WARRANTY AND HAVE BEEN QUOTED $1500 TO REPLACE.

NHTSA ODI 11342357

HI I BEEN HAVING ISSUES WITH THE TESLA MAIN TOUCH SCREEN CONTROL , MCU . THE SCREEN WAS RECENTLY OFFLINE LIMITING THE VEHICLE TO DRIVE NOT CONTROL AND 12V IT LET AND SIGNALS DOES NOT WORK I'LL TAKE IT TO SERVICE CENTER THEY WERE ABLE TO RESTORE IT . BUT IF NOT I WILL NEED TO PAY FROM $1500 /2500 TO GET A REPLACEMENT THAT'S NOT FAIR BECAUSE THAT MCU WAS REPLACE BY WARRANTY LESS THEN 3 YEARS AGO . PREVIOUS SCREEN HAVES MEMORY ISSUES AND BUBBLES ON SCREEN . REBOOTING ISSUES WAS HAPPENING WHEN DRIVING THE CAR , ONE DAY PARK CAR ON GARAGE NEXT DAY CONTROL SCREEN DOES NOT POWER ON NOT EVEN POSIBLE TO REBOOT WITH THE INSTRUCTIONS. IT THIS CAN BE A RECALL WILL HELP A LOT OF COMSUMERS I HEAR LOT PEOPLE ARE DEALING WITH THIS ISSUE

NHTSA ODI 11342376