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

2013 TESLA S P85 MCU WILL NOT BOOT UP AFTER OVER THE AIR SOFTWARE UPDATE BETWEEN OCTOBER 2 T O OCTOBER 9TH WHILE I WAS ON A VACATION. OTA SOFTWARE VERSION 2020.24.6.11

NHTSA ODI 11366786

FAILURE OF EMMC INSIDE MCU (MEDIA CONTROL UNIT). MOST OF THE CAR'S CONTROLS ARE ONLY ACCESSIBLE USING THE TOUCH SCREEN AND WITHOUT HEAT, TURN-SIGNALS AND ABILITY TO CHARGE, THE VEHICLE IS BARELY DRIVEABLE.SINCE I WAS OUT OF TOWN AND IT WAS WINTER, I HAD TO GO TO A LOCAL TESLA SERVICE CENTER. ALTHOUGH EMMC IS REPLACEABLE, I WAS CHARGED FOR A REBUILT MCU (~$1200).

NHTSA ODI 11364216

I HAVE A 2013 TESLA MODEL S AND BOTH OF MY SCREEN ORE PEELING FROM THE INSIDE AND GLUE IS LEAKING (SEE PICS). THIS HAPPENED AFTER A SOFTWARE UPDATE NOT SURE IF ITS A COINCIDENT BUT MY CAR WOULD CONTROL THE TEMP INSIDE THE CAR NOT SURE THIS IS OCCURRING ANYMORE. ANYWAY ITS ABSURD THAT SCREEN GLUE STARTS MELTING INSIDE OF A CAR WITH GLUE RESIDUE LEAKING. I HAVE NO IDEA WHERE THE GLUE IS GOING TO THE MAIN SCREEN WHICH COULD DRIP DOWN TO THE PEDALS. FROM THE CENTRAL SCREEN GLUE IS DRIPPIGN AS CAN BE SEEN IN THE PICTURE.

NHTSA ODI 11361873

AFTER TESLA SENT A SOFTWARE UPDATE OVER THE AIR TO MY CAR ON 09/22/2020, THE MEDIA CONTROL UNIT (MCU) OF MY CAR GOT STUCK IN A CONSTANT BOOT-UP LOOP. THE SOFTWARE WAS 100% DOWNLOADED BUT COULD NOT BE INSTALLED POSSIBLY DUE TO THE FAILURE OF A HIGHLY STRESSED EMMC MEMORY. AS A RESULT, THE MCU KEPT REBOOTING BY ITSELF EVERY 2 MINUTES OR SO, WHICH CAUSED BACK-UP CAMERA, CLIMATE CONTROL ETC. UNACCESSIBLE AND PASSENGER AIRBAG DISABLED. TESLA SUGGESTED A HARD REBOOT BUT THE PROBLEM WON'T GO AWAY. I REPORT THIS MCU PROBLEM AS IT COULD BE CAUSED BY THE MANUFACTURER'S DESIGN DEFECT REGARDING OVER-LOGGING ON THE CHEAP EMBEDDED MULTI-MEDIA-CARD MEMORYE (EMMC). I BELIEVE THAT TESLA SHOULD DO RECALLS TO REMOVE THE SWORD OF DAMOCLES FOR ALL MODEL S PRODUCED BEFORE MARCH, 2018.

NHTSA ODI 11361571

THE MAIN SCREEN THAT CONTROLS EVERYTHING HAS A MASSIVE ISSUE. IT CONTROLS ALL THE FUNCTIONS IN THE CAR, LIKE THE REAR BACK UP CAMERA, ABILITY TO CONTROL AC, ETC. THE SCREEN IS PEELING FROM THE INSIDE, AND MANY PEOPLE HAVE REPORTED THIS ON THE TESLA FORUMS. TESLA WANTS TO CHARGE ME AT LEAST $2500 TO FIX THE PROBLEM, AND I KNOW THIS IS AFFECTING MANY CARS.

NHTSA ODI 11355701

CENTRAL TOUCHSCREEN FAILED MULTIPLE TIMES DURING ROAD TRIP. FAILURES HAPPENED WHILE CHARGING AND STATIONARY, AND WHILE DRIVING. LOSE ACCESS TO VEHICLE SAFETY AND OTHER CONTROLS (HEADLIGHTS, HVAC, NAVIGATION, SUNROOF, ETC.). REPORTED TO TESLA PRIOR TO WARRANTY EXPIRATION AND WAS TOLD IT IS "NORMAL" BEHAVIOR. NOW THAT MY WARRANTY HAS EXPIRED, TESLA HAS DIAGNOSED FAILURE OF MEMORY CHIP AND IS CHARGING ME OUT OF WARRANTY TO REPLACE COMPUTER DAUGHTERBOARD.

NHTSA ODI 11353517

OVER THE LAST 6 MONTHS, MY 2013 TESLA MODEL S BEGAN EXPERIENCING LONG BOOT TIMES, FREQUENT SPONTANEOUSLY REBOOTING, LOSS OF MOBILE CONNECTION AND PROBLEMS WITH THE NAVIGATION SYSTEM. LAST SATURDAY THE CAR BEGAN TO REBOOT CONSTANTLY AND WAS INCAPACITATED ON THE ROAD, REQUIRING A FLAT BED TRUCK ($250). TESLA SERVICE TELLS ME THE ONLY WAY TO MAKE THE CAR FUNCTIONAL AGAIN IS TO PAY OVER $1300 ON A NEW MCU. AS A SOFTWARE DEVELOPER, THIS FEELS SOMETHING TESLA CAUSED THROUGH OVERUSE OF THEIR MEMORY STORAGE SYSTEM AND/OR A PROGRAM BUG ASSOCIATED WITH SAVED NAVIGATION LOCATIONS.

NHTSA ODI 11353231

I OWN A TESLA MODEL S AND I REPORTING ISSUES WITH MY TOUCH SCREEN MCUS. IT HAS COMPLETELY FAILED AFTER 7,000 MILES. PRESENTLY I HAVE ABSOLUTELY NO CONTROL OF MY HEATING,, AIR CONDITIONING, FAN, SAFETY CAMERAS, GARAGE DOOR OPENER, OR ELECTRONIC CONTROLS ON ANY TOUGH SCREEN PORTIONS OF THE CAR. THIS IS A HUGE PUBLIC SAFETY CONCERN THAT IMPACTS ME AND THE PUBLIC AS WELL. I LIVE IN A MOUNTAINSIDE AREA AND WE DEPEND ON THE BACK UP CAMERA TO AVOID ACCIDENTS AS OUR GARAGE BACKS UP INTO A VERY NARROW LANE. AND I CAN NOT SEE THE CHILDREN AND ANIMALS THAT ARE IN BACK OF MY CAR WHEN I EXIT MY GARAGE. NOR CAN I USE ANY OF THE GPS FEATURES FOR GUIDANCE AS WELL. THE TOUCH SCREEN HAS COMPLETE FAILURE IN THE MCU UNIT. I CONTACTED TELSA RE THIS ISSUE AND INFORMED THEM THAT THIS IS A LIABILITY TO ME AND THE BRAND BASED ON THE HUGE SAFETY ISSUES THIS PRESENTS. I TOLD THEM I WAS GLAD THAT THE CALL WAS BEING RECORDED AS I DID WANT THIS ISSUE TO BE UNREPORTED. AND I INFORMED TESLA THAT THIS PROBLEM IS EXIGENT AS WE LIVE IN SOUTHEN CALIFORNIA AND THE TEMPERATE IS NOW OVER 120 DEGREES. THIS COULD CAUSE HEAT STROKE AND ALSO KILL OUR ANIMALS AS WELL. TESLA REPLIED THAT THIS MY MY PROBLEM AND NOT THEIRS. SOME OWNERS BELIEVE THAT IT IS A PROBLEM WITH THE EMBEDDED MULTI-MEDIA-CARD MEMORY (EMMC) IN THE MCU AND THAT IT IS BEING OVERWRITTEN TO THE POINT OF FAILURE. II KNOW NOW THAT IS A RECOGNIZED DEFECT KNOWN AS THE 'EMMC FAILURE' PROBLEM. I UNDERSTAND THAT TESLA NOW HAS INTRODUCED A NEW MCU IN 2018 THAT DOESN'T HAVE THE SAME PROBLEM, BUT OWNERS OF OLDER VEHICLES ARE STILL EXPERIENCING THE PROBLEM IN HAVING TO REPLACE THE UNIT OUT OF WARRANTY, DESPITE SEEING TESLA'S MISTAKE AS THE SOURCE OF THE PROBLEM INSTEAD OF A NORMAL ISSUE THAT OCCURS OVER TIME. I NEED RESOURCES AND REMEDIES TO CORRECT THIS MANUFACTURE INDUCED MALAISE.

NHTSA ODI 11353070

IN EARLY JUNE 2019, THE TOUCHSCREEN IN MY 2013 MODEL S P95+ STARTED TO MALFUNCTION. IT WAS UNRESPONSIVE, GOES BLACK ETC. THEN ONE DAY, A GOOEY SUBSTANCE STARTED TO LEAK FROM INSIDE AND ONTO THE CENTER CONSOLE OF THE VEHICLE. I TOOK IT TO THE DANIA BEACH, FLORIDA DEALERSHIP. I WAS INFORMED THAT THE DISPLAY ADHESIVE WAS LEAKING DUE TO HEAT. THEY REPLACED THE ENTIRE MCU UNIT AT A COST OF $1,200. THIS IS APPARENTLY A KNOWN ISSUE RELATED TO THE SCREEN. LESS THAN A YEAR LATER, THIS PAST 08/31/2020, THE SAME THING STARTED TO HAPPEN TO THE MAIN INSTRUMENT PANEL. BOTH OF THESE ISSUES ARE APPARENTLY KNOWN PROBLEMS AND RENDER THE CAR UNSAFE TO DRIVE.

NHTSA ODI 11352757

THE MAIN TOUCH SCREEN FAILED WITH LIKELY EMMC FAILURE RESULTING IN NO NAVIGATION, NO BACKUP CAMERA, NO TURN SIGNALS OR SOUND, NO AIR OR DEFROSTERS AND NO WAY TO CONTROL HEADLIGHTS OR OTHER SAFETY FEATURES. FAILURE OCCURRED AT HIGHWAY SPEEDS.

NHTSA ODI 11352878

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

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 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

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

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

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

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