What 647 owners told NHTSA about the 2015 Tesla Model S 60

Car door would not open or get stuck.

NHTSA ODI 11439816

Brake and accelerator pedals are configured such that both are easily pressed together. Other unintended acceleration or loss of brakes complaints here may be the same issue. I was cornering and needed to slow. Pressing the brake pedal did not slow the vehicle. An error that both pedals are pressed was seen in the first occurrence. This time I only heard the chime. I couldn’t look to see the message. No crash, just a scary incident.

NHTSA ODI 11439285

I have developed bubbles in my central LED display. The car was being serviced. They were repairing a recalled eMMC chip. When I receive the car back, the central touchscreen had bubbles. They tell me that I need to replace it for a cost of $797. I am told that this is a safety issue oh, a fact that I can readily believe

NHTSA ODI 11438580

Trunk states it's open, but it's closed. I can't reset it. When I crawled into the area to use the safety pull cord to open it, nothing happened! Well, the pull cord broke. What if I'd been kidnapped and put in there?? I cannot open the hatch and it looks like an expensive repair from what I've read online. Surely this is a safety issue and should be covered under a recall.

NHTSA ODI 11437086

Sometime about a month ago, when driving along the Capitol Expressway going home, the huge Center Console screen suddenly went blank for a few seconds. With the screen off, most vehicle controls as not accessible. Since i was near a Supercharging Station, i parked there and performed reset while proceeding to charge. After a few minutes, screen went back on.

NHTSA ODI 11436996

Left front wheel rubs against wheel well when turning and a rubbing sound is heard at speeds around 55 mph. The dealer inspected and said that the suspension had failed and needed replacement.

NHTSA ODI 11435213

The Contact owns a 2015 Tesla Model S. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 21V035000 (Back Over Prevention, Visibility, Exterior Lighting) however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The dealer was contacted and confirmed that the part was not yet available. The contact stated that the vehicle was exhibiting failure. The failure mileage was not available. The manufacturer was not contacted. Parts distribution disconnect.

NHTSA ODI 11434878

when backing out of my garage, I heard some loud metal breaking sounds from the front of the car on the passenger side. I drove the car a short distance and heard grinding sounds ... at which point I had the car towed. The part that broke was one of the Fore Link Assembly parts (or else the Front Suspension Aft Link Assembly .... the Tesla service department replaced both) .... these are the components that control the direction of the right front wheel when turning. I will upload a picture of the parts that were replaced ... showing the broken part. To the best of my knowledge, there was no apparent precipitating cause for the failure.

NHTSA ODI 11434753

The contact owns a 2015 Tesla Model S. The contact stated that the Media Control Unit eMMC screen was blank and inoperable. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer where it was diagnosed that a chip replacement was needed. The vehicle was repaired however, the failure recurred. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was unknown.

NHTSA ODI 11433693

On September 7, 2021 I was driving in heavy rain conditions. The rain was so heavy I could only drive at speed of 25 mph. My car displayed a message "Car may not restart - service required" I pulled under a canopy of a gas station and put the car in PARK. The car did not restart after that and was towed to Tesla Service Center. The next day I was told that a RAPID MATE vehicle side connector failed due to water ingress and that HV battery needs to be replaced due to same damage. I was presented with a $23622.54 invoice even, though, the battery is covered under existing powertrain warranty. The car was never driven into standing water or a puddle. Water has NOT entered the interior of the car. The battery and other electrical components of the car are poorly insulated / isolated presenting the risk of water damage and or electric shock under ordinary driving conditions.

NHTSA ODI 11433218

Suspension keeps making noises such as knocking roughly in both front wheels. Feels week and in high speeds it might get broken causing loss of control. Took it to service they will charge me even with the repair bulletin I found in NHTSA. Correction: Four Wheel Alignment (Air Suspension) (Adjust Camber Caster Toe) Correction: Links - Front Suspension - Lower - Aft - LH/RH (Remove & Replace)

NHTSA ODI 11431890

I own a 2015 Model S - 85D / Mileage 42967 purchased September 2015. On July 11, 2021, I visited family in IL and returned to my residence. I was heading to the grocery store and backing the car out of the driveway by the garage door going 5-10 mph. As I turned to the left to back out, I immediately heard a squeaky grinding noise by the front left driver-side of the tire area. I moved forward and backwards to straighten the car and heard the grinding noise again. I also felt the left front driver tire rubbing into the wheel well liner around the tire and a little wobbly. I very felt uncomfortable and decided not to drive the vehicle and parked it in the garage until it was towed. I was without my vehicle and drove an alternate vehicle with gas. I called Tesla on 7/12/21 to inquire and was inform I may need a wheel alignment and scheduled appointment for 8/2/2021. There was the risk and danger of having a severe accident as I did not feel safe hearing the grinding noise. On Sunday, 8/1/2021, as I pulled the Tesla out of the garage to be towed this friend noticed the left tire moving from side to side. I updated my Tesla appointment and informed them of this issue. I received a call on 8/3/2021 from the Tesla Repair technician stating the problem was a broken suspension joint with the Front Driver Front Fore Link. My thought was – “What if this had occurred and broke while on the highway driving 65-70 mph?" I immediately went online to google and found the article that Tesla posted a 2017 service bulletin about the fore link suspension. I informed the Tesla repair center about the article and asked if Tesla would cover the repair expense since my vehicle problem has the exact issued addressed by Elon Musk. I had to pay $978.36 repair bill. There was no inspection except the Tesla repair center. There was no warning indication, alert or message for this critical failed nor correspondence from Tesla regarding the critical suspension problem

NHTSA ODI 11429196

The contact owns a 2015 Tesla Model S. The contact stated that while driving at 70 mph, the vehicle went into autopilot and crashed into the median divider. No medical attention was received on the scene but the contact later went to the hospital for injuries sustained. A police report was filed. The vehicle was towed to the contact's girlfriend's residence. The vehicle was not diagnosed nor repaired and will be towed to a body shop to examine if it is totaled. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and informed the contact that they would contact back after their investigation. The failure mileage was 51,720.

NHTSA ODI 11429335

The MCU on my vehicle has failed four separate times while I was driving, causing loss of air conditioning, navigation, rear view mirror and other safety features. It was scary each time it happened and I feared that I would lose control of the vehicle.

NHTSA ODI 11427812

Hello, My driver's side door handle broke back in November/December of 2020. As a result, it prevented me from entering the car on the driver's side. I had it repaired in December 2020. Now, my passenger side door handle has broken as well. My concern here is that if there is an accident where the car is on fire, etc., and the passenger(s) inside my car are unconscious, that someone from outside the car would have a difficult time opening the door to pull them out. they wold need to break the glass and pull them out through the window. Although this is an option/workaround, I believe it puts all passengers in the car at risk of sever injury or death if this type of situation is experiences and time of essence it critical. I'm submitting this information b/c I believe that with the multiple door handle failures that this creates a significant risk to the safety of passengers in my Tesla. As a result, I think a more robust longer term solution is needed for the Tesla Model S. Thanks, Trevor

NHTSA ODI 11427240

The contact owns a 2015 Tesla Model S. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the steering wheel stiffened while turning. There was a loud clanking sound while turning the steering wheel. The eMMC center display screen inadvertently turned off while the contact was driving. The eMMC screen was also slow to start up while starting the vehicle. The contact stated that the failures started after receiving the vehicle back from a collision repair shop. The vehicle was involved in a collision where another vehicle had crashed into the driver’s side door. The dealer and manufacturer were not made aware of the failure. The vehicle was not diagnosed nor repaired. The failure mileage was 115,480.

NHTSA ODI 11426803

Was driving on freeway at approx. 55 mph. Had to brake rapidly (but not emergency type braking) for accident ahead. Passenger side front wheel locked up and could only drive vehicle to exit freeway. A piece of metal from the suspension had broken and was caught between wheel and brake. Car was towed to Tesla where they indicated the front lower fore link had failed.

NHTSA ODI 11426155

Tesla was to rebate the money for the VCM Daughterboard and did NOT. We have been trying to collect this money for over a year!

NHTSA ODI 11425865

The contact owns a 2015 Tesla Model S. The contact stated while driving at various speeds, the main center display failed not allowing the contact to use the rearview camera, the turn signals, and all the electrical functions. There was no warning light illuminated. The vehicle was taken to a local dealer where it was diagnosed with the eMMC flash memory device needing to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired. The contact stated that a couple of days later he received notification of NHTSA campaign number: 21V035000 (Back Over Prevention, Visibility, Exterior lighting). The manufacturer was informed of the failure and referred the contact to the NHTSA for assistance. The failure mileage was approximately 49,274.

NHTSA ODI 11425871

Today, I encountered what I now know to be a common problem with the U Joint in Steering Rack binding heavily at 45 degree, 90 degree, and 180 degree positions. This resulted in my steering wheel being stuck in position while driving and nearly caused me to crash into another vehicle today as a result. Luckily I was able to unbind the steering but it got really stiff. I drove to a safe area with steering continued to show binding/seizing behavior. I got a profession who inspected the U Joint and found a lot of debris. Teflon lubricant was applied and cleaned to their best ability but the part is really hard to reach and requires removal of the front drive unit for the dual motor cars. The binding is still occurring but not as strongly as before. This is already a flagged item and should be considered a recall. This issue could have killed someone today. The U Joint should have a boot over it and not be exposed to the elements. Posted below is a related bulletin for RWD Model S. I have a dual motor Model S so this issue is not only RWD S. https://static.nhtsa.gov/odi/tsbs/2020/MC-10177030-9999.pdf The steering U Joint issue is not something to take light hearted. I did not know the steering could potentially bind until it occurred and it was so sudden. With so many occurrences with other owners, there will be an increased chance someone may crash and cause injury to themselves or others. If this happens during a lane change, it can cause the steering to bind and in the wrong situation, a pedestrian can get killed. I beg for the NHTSA to take a deeper look and announce a recall. Please see other owners who have this issue: https://teslamotorsclub.com/tmc/threads/steering-u-joint-lower-shaft-issue-and-my-solution-so-far.212604/ Thank you. Best Regards, James

NHTSA ODI 11425381

I received an “important safety recall” letter from Tesla, dated July 14, 2021. This is to replace the embedded MultiMediaCard (eMMC) in the media control unit. The instructions were to set up an appointment with Tesla to replace the VCM daughter board with on containing an enhanced eMMC. Yesterday, upon receiving the letter, I created an appointment for this Friday per Tesla’s instructions. I received confirmation of the appointment. Today I received a message from Tesla: “For this recall, unless you are currently experiencing issues with this touchscreen that we are able to verify, we will not be replacing it at this time. Please let us know if you have any other concerns, otherwise we will close this work order.” I wrote back asking for them not to cancel my appointment. I have had the main screen “blank out” with no controls. This also turns off my air conditioner, rear camera, and other controls. This screen has gone out three times over the past year. I’m concerned that they are not going to fulfill their obligation for me and others who have these cars and are experiencing the same problem. I have asked Tesla to remedy the situation and have not heard back.

NHTSA ODI 11425573

I was driving at 30 mph on an empty, flat, straight road when the front passenger wheel popped and the car started wobbling and became uncontrollable. I pulled over and this wheel was tilted sideways off-axis. The car needed to be towed. I was told by Tesla that the front passenger wheel’s “control arm” broke. This happened without warning and without any impact or accident on the vehicle. Had there been traffic, or had I been driving at high speed, the vehicle would certainly have collided with other vehicles.

NHTSA ODI 11424923

While backing out of the driveway I heard a loud crack and grinding noise when turning the wheel to pull out into the street. Upon stopping a checking where the noise was coming I found that the left lower fore link completely sheared/ cracked off and the wheel was up against the back of the wheel well. ***The area where the wheel was backed up against (Completely tore the liner) has the cooling tubing (now leaking) & a high voltage wireline. This could've resulted in serious issues if we were traveling at higher speeds. Tesla has failed to reach out and call back regarding the issue and the vehicle is rendered completely useless/ undrivable. I've owned many vehicles and this is most certainly NOT NORMAL WARE AND TARE! This is a big safety issue and needs to be addressed ASAP. Thank god my family wasn't on the highway or any road above 5MPH when this happened. The damage would've been catastrophic.

NHTSA ODI 11424161

The contact owns a 2015 Tesla Model S. The contact received a recall notification for NHTSA Campaign Number: 21V035000 (Back Over Prevention, Visibility, Exterior Lighting) however, the dealer informed the contact that the vehicle had to experience the failure for the recall repair to be completed. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufacturer was not notified of the issue. The contact had not experienced a failure. Parts distribution disconnect.

NHTSA ODI 11423973

The part that is currently under recall (eMultiMediaCard) has failed for the fourth time. The first three times it failed, it was repaired under warranty and was repaired in a timely manner. This time, it has failed (only a few days after I got my recall letter) and the car is unsafe for me to drive. The turn signals don't even work. Tesla seems to think that is perfectly fine and seems to believe (as they have told me outright) that there is nothing wrong with the car and it is still drivable. However, it is NOT LEGAL for me to drive without working turn signals. They have refused to make a timely appointment for me to get this repair completed. This the FOURTH time I have had to send my car in for THE SAME PROBLEM! They are not taking this issue seriously enough! It is neither legal nor safe for me to drive without turn signals. This is an unacceptable attitude on their part.

NHTSA ODI 11423866