Home · 2016 Tesla Model S P90d · Complaints

What 604 owners told NHTSA about the 2016 Tesla Model S P90d

These are the actual owner complaints behind this car’s reliability verdict, filed with the federal government, unedited. They’re unverified reports, not confirmed defects: read them as leads for your pre-purchase inspection, not a diagnosis.

All (604)Crash / fire / injury (97)Suspension (204)Electrical system (137)Steering (81)Speed control (74)Brakes (52)Lights (49)Visibility & wipers (37)Body & structure (28)Driver assistance (28)Backup camera & sensors (20)

6 of 604 complaints match · Driver assistance · crash/fire/injury only · clear filters

Sep 17, 2024Driver assistanceCrash

Turned right into garage slowly. Car suddenly accelerated very fast by itself. I swerved and avoided 1 parked vehicle. Was not able to avoid another one. I braked. The car stopped. Airbags had gone off.

NHTSA ODI 11614992

Dec 14, 2023AirbagsBody & structureDriver assistanceCrash

So essentially I stopped for a charge about 30 minutes before, I charged it, then hopped back on the turnpike as I was heading to Outer Banks NC, while I was on the turn pike where I believe at the time I started to go around a curve not a sharp one but a curve right after coming off this bridge. Every 1 minute and 30 seconds you have to put your hands on the wheel and give it a jerk to keep it enable so it had to have popped up within the 1 minute and 30 seconds. As I was changing the album of the artists I was listening too I heard the BEEP BEEP BEEP which means you are approaching something and are about to hit it, As I looked up all I saw was blinking lights and really smacked the rear end of this traffic control truck, anywhere from 65-75 miles per hour with no time to react. If I remember correctly I had my car on 7 lengths away (maximum amount you can have away). As I hit the control I hit my head pretty hard on the steering wheel so the whole memory is blurry following when it happened and my adrenaline was very high but I didn’t wanna go to the Emergency room even though they suggested highly because I have no health insurance and that would have had to come out of my own pocket and I was stuck in Pennsylvania by myself and didn’t wanna get stuck in the hospital too. Thank you so much for taking your time to look at this it means a lot.

NHTSA ODI 11560159

Nov 13, 2023Electrical systemDriver assistanceCrash

Dear NHTSA, I am writing to file a complaint regarding a SUA incident that occurred on October 20, 2023, involving my 2016 Tesla Model S. On the day of the incident, I pulled into my garage and began to park my car. When I pressed the brake pedal, the car suddenly accelerated forward, crashing into the garage wall and totaling the vehicle. The garage wall was severely damaged and will need to be rebuilt. This is not the first time that my Tesla has experienced SUA. In 2017, I filed a complaint with NHTSA regarding a similar incident. In my previous complaint (issue # 11000097 dated June 19, 2017), I described a similar incident that occurred in December 2016. At the time, Tesla denied that the incident was caused by SUA and no further action was taken. I am convinced that the SUA incident on October 25, 2023, was caused by a defect in my Tesla Model S. I am also concerned that other Tesla owners may be at risk of similar incidents. I urge NHTSA to investigate this matter and take appropriate action to protect consumers. I believe that Tesla should be held liable for the damages to my vehicle and my garage wall, and that the company should be required to recall all Tesla Model S vehicles that are at risk of SUA. Thank you for your time and consideration. Sincerely,

NHTSA ODI 11554936

Jul 5, 2023Speed controlBrakesDriver assistanceCrash

The car was on enhanced auto pilot and was moving at about 50 mph, the traffic in front of me slowed down. The car failed to give an alert, it failed to slow down and stop. I applied the breaks, but by then the car crashed into the pick-up truck in front of me. The car came to a complete stop after the crash and the computer system in the car completely shut down. The car had to be towed to the garage. My safety and the safety of the driver in front of me were at risk due to malfunction of the enhanced auto pilot system We immediately filed a service ticket with Tesla and upon repeated requests we were told that car could not be inspected and the breaks or auto pilot system could not be tested as the car was not drivable. Police and car insurance company were notified. Tesla was able to provide us with a EDR There were no warning signs or messages prior to the malfunction.

NHTSA ODI 11530361

Mar 27, 2018SteeringWheelsDriver assistanceCrash

AT APPROXIMATELY 9AM ON THE MORNING OF 1/4/18, I WAS DRIVING IN AUTOPILOT ON THE 405 HEADING NORTH TO MY OFFICE IN SANTA MONICA IN MY TESLA MODEL S AND THE CAR SIMPLY RAN INTO THE BARRIER WALL ON THE LEFT SIDE OF THE CAR POOL LANE AT 75MPH. IT WAS ABSOLUTELY CRAZY! I HAVE CONTACTED TESLA ABOUT THE ACCIDENT SEVERAL TIMES, BUT THEY ARE SIMPLY NOT INTERESTED. I JUST READ ABOUT AN ACCIDENT THAT THE U.S. NATIONAL TRANSPORTATION SAFETY BOARD IS INVESTIGATING WHERE THE SAME THING HAPPENED AND THE DRIVER DIED. I BELIEVE MY ACCIDENT COULD HAVE ENDED THE SAME WAY AND I THINK IT NEEDS TO BE TAKEN VERY SERIOUSLY.

NHTSA ODI 11081565

Oct 30, 2016Electrical systemDriver assistanceCrash1 injury

I PURCHASED THE TESLA MODEL S ON 10/17 WITH 'AUTOPILOT' HARDWARE AND FEATURES I'VE CONSISTENTLY USED AUTOPILOT ON THE HIGHWAY DURING THE FIRST MONTH I'VE HAD THE VEHICLE. THE AUTOPILOT FEATURE USES CAMERAS AND SENSORS TO MAINTAIN SPEED AND LANE AND AVOID COLLISIONS. THIS CAR ALSO FEATURES ANTI-COLLISION FEATURES THAT ARE SUPPOSED TO ENGAGE EVEN WHEN AUTOPILOT IS NOT ENGAGED, TO DETECT BOTH AN OBJECT IN FRONT OF THE CAR AND BRAKE, AS WELL AS DETECT OBJECTS ON EITHER SIDE THAT THE CAR MAY BE HEADED TO COLLIDE WITH AND SWERVE AWAY. THIS FEATURES WERE ALL ENABLED AT TIME OF THE ACCIDENT. AT THE TIME OF ACCIDENT, I HAD AUTOPILOT ENGAGED FOR APPROX 10 MINUTES PRIOR TO ACCIDENT. I WAS STILL WATCHING THE ROAD BUT PERIODICALLY LOOKING AT MY PHONE AS WELL. BEFORE THE ACCIDENT I HAD LOOKED DOWN AT MY PHONE FOR A PERIOD OF TIME I'M NOT SURE ABOUT. I DIDN'T THINK IT WAS LONGER THAN A FEW SECONDS, BUT I CAN'T BE CERTAIN. WHEN I LOOKED UP THE SEMI WAS MERGING IN FRONT OF ME. I WOULD GUESS THAT THE SEMI'S TRAILER WAS PERHAPS 3-4 FEET IN MY LINE, AND I WAS MAYBE 50-100 FEET AWAY. SO IT WAS LESS THAN 1 SECOND PRIOR TO IMPACT. IT WAS SO QUICK THERE WAS NO TIME FOR ME TO EVEN HIT THE BRAKE AND THE CAR WAS NOT BRAKING OR SWERVING TO AVOID COLLISION EITHER. ESSENTIALLY, THE AUTO PILOT DROVE ME RIGHT INTO THE LEFT REAR OF A SEMI TRACTOR TRAILER AT 70 MPH AND THE SENSORS/CAMERAS FOR SOME REASON DID NOT DETECT THIS COLLISION. *TR

NHTSA ODI 10920103

Working with the data? Download all 604 complaints as CSV · fetched from NHTSA July 23, 2026

How to use these: a complaint is one owner’s report, filed voluntarily and published unverified. Patterns matter more than any single story. If several owners describe the same failure at similar mileage, put that system at the top of your pre-purchase inspection list. Back to the full 2016 Tesla Model S P90d verdict →