What 379 owners told NHTSA about the 2017 Tesla Model S 75d

While merging onto the highway an error message showed up on the dash stating "Steering Assist May be Reduced" upon immediately after the steering froze and could only be moved slightly using significant force. Approx. 75lbs. I am athletic and work out and had trouble moving the car to the side. If my wife or daughter had driven the car they would not have been able to steer and this could have caused a significant accident, injury or death. Upon pulling over, I rebooted both computers on the Tesla Model S 75 D and the problem went away. I immediately drove to the Tesla dealer in Chesterfield, MO. There they seemed unconcerned, and advised me it was likely just a firmware issue and wouldn't be able to look at the car until the next week. I was shocked. Since the systems seemed to work I drove home and parked the car. On the driveway, the same error showed up and steering seemed again to lock up. After rebooting problem went away. Looking at the Tesla forums this seems to have happened before and poses a serious danger to the driver, occupants and fellow drivers on the road. I no longer feel safe driving the car.

NHTSA ODI 11665990

Using software version 2025.14.1 with FSD (Full Self Driving) version 12.6.4. About 50% of the time the vehicle attempts and fails to change lanes when using FSD. It will: 1. Turn on signal and not change lanes, confusing cars around me. Or more often 2. Swerve between lanes indefinitely. See example at [XXX] It drives like a drunk driver. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

NHTSA ODI 11658804

I received a safety recall dated 2/8/2024, recall no 23V-838. Tesla has failed to remedy the defect & claims a remedy is not necessary. Specifically, I took my vehicle to Tesla on 3/18/2024 to update vehicle software to incorporate additional autosteer controls. See attachment: "Repair notes: "No update necessary", despite the vehicle running a software version less than 2023.44.30 as specified in the Recall Notice.

NHTSA ODI 11583059

Autopilot drove me off the road during turning right on Hwy 183 on April 4, 2023. 9:04 pm. My tesla Model S was on Autopilot and Car went off the road during right turn and about to hit the red light pole.

NHTSA ODI 11581251

Recall 23V-838; TC2023-657. Tesla not providing software update for recall from last year. I can't get an update for this recall unless I pay $2000 for MCU2.

NHTSA ODI 11576312

1. Previously listed Recall has been erroneously removed from Recall history for my VIN. I had tried to escalate this via Email and Twitter with no response from NHTSA, Sources: https://www.tesla.com/support/recall-fsd-beta-driving-operations Note: The remedy is not yet available for vehicles with NVIDIA Tegra and will deploy OTA once the software is available. 2. The car continues to make unsafe lane changes during left or right turns and struggles to make a smooth turn and is hazard for vehicles behind the car when making such turns as it makes suddent stops.

NHTSA ODI 11535632

The car, which was equipped by Tesla's Full Self-Driving Beta software v11.3.3, attempted to make a premature left lane change in preparation for a left turn at the light, which almost put me in front of a pickup truck waiting in the center turn lane. Please find the attached dash cam video on this link: https://share.icloud.com/photos/0e9EMY-_AQSWXtCRe9YedeE7A

NHTSA ODI 11514925

I have a video taken from the front camera of my Tesla S showing the entire incident that I can upload. On Dec 26, 2022 my beta FSD was engaged. The Tesla made a left hand turn onto the highway and then erratically ran off the road jumping the curb on a university sidewalk damaging wheels and tires. I suffered a right knee contusion from the impact of the hit.

NHTSA ODI 11507760

On December 26, 2022 I was driving my Tesla S 2017. Full self driving was engaged. I have a video of the car footage showing the incident in full detail. The car took a left onto a 2 lane road and then without warning ran off the road hitting the curb and a metal drain. The force was so great that I suffered a contusion to my right knee from hitting the under side of the dash.

NHTSA ODI 11506058

I was driving north on I-5 in San Diego, in the right hand lane at 11:37pm, at 70mph with the FSD autopilot engaged. Approaching a gentle left hand bend in the road I spotted a disabled vehicle in the right shoulder with its hazard lights on and the driver door open. The car was fully off the road and was not a hazard. My car suddenly applied the brakes and did a weird “shimmy” as if it was trying to decide to make a turn. The autopilot did not disengage. My hands were on the wheel the whole time so I immediately took control and disconnected the autopilot by pulling up on the bottom-left control column stalk. The autopilot relinquished control as expected. I have not experienced any previous incidents of random autopilot braking on the freeway. This particular incident did not create an unsafe situation but the sudden braking did startle me. I tried to use the vehicle’s voice recognition system to file a “bug report” right after but it didn’t work.

NHTSA ODI 11471472

The 2017 Tesla Model S we purchased has a known issue with the MCU. The MCU rewrites information in a log chip repeatedly and has been known to burn itself out after short periods of time. Tesla has agreed to replace the MCU owners when it malfunctions, but they will only do so when the chip has completely destroyed itself and will no longer boot. Ours was malfunctioning every ~40 mins...all of our screens would black out while driving. Tesla refused to replace it. Additionally, we purchased Full Self Driving from Tesla with a contract that stated "all needed equipment and software included." This was not a true statement. Those of us with the malfunctioning MCU1 were not included in the FSD program and were forced to bribe Tesla with $2500 to update our MCUs even when they were under warranty and should have been included under the FSD contract.

NHTSA ODI 11464939

My 2017 Tesla S 75D has been having issues with the eMMC/daughterboard main computer/screen/control panel blanking out, where basically the screen that has the majority of controls goes black for a few hours. On one occasion the steering wheel was affected--it locked up. To temporarily remedy the issue, I have to reboot the software/car, but I have to be parked and stopped for 30 minutes to an hour, to go through this procedure. This is a reoccurring problem that started in 2020 and it seems other issues, have stemmed from this. For example, the system has a delay of 1-2 minutes to start up--at every start up; other sporadic issues such as no sound (as in there are no sounds, music, alarms or otherwise, working, at all); the key FOB is delayed in being detected (even after replacing the battery).

NHTSA ODI 11424762

THE INSTRUMENT PANEL GOES DARK AND INOPERABLE AT TIMES WHEN DRIVING. ALERTS ARE NOTED THAT VEHICLE SAFETY WARNINGS ARE DISABLED. WE’VE TRIED TO REMEDY WITH THE DEALER NOW ON SEVERAL OCCASIONS AND WE’VE BEEN CHARGED FOR APPOINTMENTS ONLY TO FIND OUT THAT THIS IS A VEHICLE RECALL. DESPITE ALL THESE ATTEMPTS TESLA PALM SPRINGS DEALER KEEPS SAYING THEY WILL LET US KNOW WHEN PARTS TO REPAIR BECOME AVAILABLE. OTHER RATTLING REPAIRS IN CENTER COUNSEL ARE DELAYED PENDING THIS RECALL CORRECTION. BUT WE NEVER HEAR BACK FROM THE DEALER ABOUT THIS CORRECTION. IT SEEMS EXCESSIVE ON THE TIME WAITING TO GET THE COMPONENT/PART TO CORRECT THIS ISSUE. WHAT CAN BE DONE? IT SEEMS LIKE A SAFETY ISSUE TO KEEP DRIVING THE CAR WITHOUT THIS CORRECTION.

NHTSA ODI 11418116

MY TESLA MODEL S HAS THE V1 HARDWARE, ALSO KNOWN AS MCUV1, WITH THE DAUGHTERBOARD EMMC REPLACEMENT FROM THE PREVIOUS RECALL RUNNING ON FIRMWARE 2020.48.37.1. THE SOUND FOR THE ENTIRE CAR WILL CUT OUT. IT MIGHT COME BACK, BUT EVEN A REBOOT OF THE CAR DOES NOT SOLVE ANYTHING. THESE SOUNDS MAY INCLUDE BLINKER NOISE, SPEED LIMIT CHIMES, LANE DEPARTURE WARNING, AUTOPILOT ENGAGE/DIS-ENGAGE CHIMES, GEAR WARNINGS, COLLISION SAFETY CHIMES, EARLY BRAKING WARNING, AND A LOT MORE SAFETY-RELATED SOUNDS. THIS HAPPENS EVERY TIME I DRIVE THE CAR, NOT JUST THE REPORTED DATE. I HAVE BROUGHT IT IN FOR REPAIRS NUMEROUS TIMES, BUT THIS HAS NEVER BEEN ADDRESSED. I AM ONLY TOLD TO WAIT FOR A NEW FIRMWARE UPGRADE, WHICH I HAVE BEEN FOR YEARS NOW SINCE I FIRST REPORTED THE ISSUE TO TESLA. THIS ONLY HAPPENS WITH MCUV1 CARS AND THEY HAVE REFUSED TO PROVIDE A FREE HARDWARE UPGRADE EVEN AFTER MY INCESSANT REPORTS AND APPOINTMENTS STATING THAT IT IS UNSAFE.

NHTSA ODI 11416171

MY SCREEN KEEPS FREEZING AND IS BLACK CAUSING A SAFETY HAZARD AND I CAN'T DRIVE THE CAR ANYMORE. I HAVE TAKEN THE CAR TO TESLA SEVERAL TIMES BUT THEY WON'T FIX IT. THE COMPUTER IS BROKEN AND THE CHIP HAS FAILED. THE AC DOESN'T WORK, I CAN'T CONTROL MY RADIO, MY BACK UP CAMERA DOESN'T WORK, TURN SIGNALS DON'T WORK, HANDS FREE SYSTEM DOESN'T WORK, NAV SYSTEM DOESN'T WORK. TESLA NEEDS TO REPLACE MY ENTIRE NAV, ENTERTAINMENT COMPUTER TO RETURN THE CAR TO WHAT I ACTUALLY PAID FOR. THE CLOCK DOESN'T WORK, AND I CAN'T TELL HOW MUCH BATTERY LIFE I HAVE LEFT. THIS IS A DANGEROUS SITUATION AND THEY HAVE REFUSED TO REPAIR THEN COMPUTER. THIS IS AN ELECTRIC CAR AND 100% RELIES ON THE COMPUTER TO CONTROL EVEN THE SMALLEST DETAILS. I CANNOT DRIVE THE CAR AND TRY TO REBOOT THE CAR WHILE I'M DRIVING. NOTHING HAS WORKED. TESLA KNOWS ABOUT THIS SITUATION AND I AM NOT THE ONLY OWNER WHO HAS THIS PROBLEM.

NHTSA ODI 11389337

MY TESLA IS EXPERIENCING THE MCU PROBLEMS OUTLINED IN NHTSA EA20-003 FROM 13 JAN 21 AND PRIOR. WHILE IN MOTION, ON CITY STREETS AND HIGHWAYS, AND REGARDLESS OF SPEED, MY VEHICLE'S MCU WILL SPONTANEOUSLY AND AT RANDOM INTERVALS FREEZE. THIS RESULTS IN LOSS OF HEAT/COOLING, FRONT AND REAR DEFROSTERS, INFOTAINMENT/GPS, ADAS SAFETY FEATURES AND CONVENIENCE, ALL CAMERAS INCLUDING BACKUP CAMERA, AND TURN SIGNAL AUDIO INDICATORS. THE ONLY RESOLUTION IS TO STOP MY VEHICLE, ISSUE A REBOOT COMMAND, AND WAIT UP TO 10 MINUTES FOR SYSTEMS TO RESTORE. TESLA INITIALLY DENIED THE ISSUE, BUT THEN UNDER TESLA'S 9 NOV 2020 "WARRANTY ADJUSTMENT PROGRAM" REPLACED THE MCU DAUGHTERBOARD. THE REPLACEMENT DID NOT RESOLVE THE ISSUE. TESLA NOW STATES THE MCU IS OPERATING NORMALLY BUT ACKNOWLEDGES THAT A FIX IS REQUIRED IN SOFTWARE THAT WILL, AT AN INDETERMINATE TIME, BECOME AVAILABLE AND THAT UNTIL SUCH A FIX IS RELEASED, SYSTEM REBOOTS SHOULD BE PERFORMED AS NEEDED. THE MCU CONTINUES TO FREEZE WHILE DRIVING WITH THE SAME SYMPTOMS AS BEFORE THE DAUGHTERBOARD REPLACEMENT. THE RECOMMENDED SOLUTION TO REBOOT CANNOT BE PERFORMED WHILE DRIVING BUT MUST BE PERFORMED IMMEDIATELY TO RESTORE SAFETY FUNCTIONALITY. TESLA HAS OFFERED A $2,500 MCU REPLACEMENT/UPGRADE THAT PROMISES TO ELIMINATE THE ISSUE SINCE THE NEWER MCU HAS MORE STORAGE AND AN INTEL ATOM CPU INSTEAD OF A SLOWER NVIDIA CPU. TESLA REFUSES TO REPLACE THE EXISTING MCU WITH A SIMILAR PART IN THE MEANTIME, DESPITE INITIALLY ACKNOWLEDGING AN ISSUE AND ATTEMPTING A FIX BY REPLACING THE DAUGHTERBOARD, AND ERASING THE SYSTEM DUE TO POSSIBLE "CORRUPTION" TWICE.

NHTSA ODI 11388822

LARGE MIDDLE SCREEN GOES BLACK WHICH CONTROLS ALL THE USES OF THE CAR. THE CAR RUNS, BUT THERE IS NO NAVIGATION, NO RADIO, NO HEAT OR AIR CONDITIONING. IT IS VERY SCARY!!! IT HAS HAPPENED A NUMBER OF TIMES SINCE 3/2020-1/2021. I HAD THE CAR CHECKED IN NOVEMBER 2020 AND ASKED TO HAVE THE MCU REPLACED, BUT THEY SAID THERE WAS NO RECALL AND IT WASN'T NECESSARY. ALSO THERE IS A YELLOW EDGE ON THE SCREEN. I DIDN'T THINK TO TAKE A PICTURE, BUT WILL THE NEXT TIME IT HAPPENS.

NHTSA ODI 11388543

BROUGHT THE CAR IN FOR SERVICE AT THE MACADAM SERVICE CENTER IN PORTLAND, OREGON ON OCTOBER 29TH DUE TO MCU ISSUES; THIS WAS BEFORE ANY NOTICE HAD GONE OUT! I WAS NOT EVEN AWARE OF THE ISSUE AT THIS TIME. IT WAS REBOOTING, VERY SLUGGISH, GETS 'LOST' IE KEEPS OUTDATED INFORMATION ETC. THIS IS OBVIOUSLY THE 8GB MEMORY DEVICE ISSUE. AFTER A 40 YEAR CAREER AS AN ENGINEER AND VENTURE CAPITALIST IN THE IT INDUSTRY I KNOW WHAT MEMORY FAILURE LOOKS LIKE! I WAS TOLD THERE WAS NO ISSUE AND THAT IT WAS SAFE FOR ME TO DRIVE TO SF THE NEXT WEEK. I HAD MAJOR ISSUES ON THE TRIP. THE SYSTEM REBOOTED A NUMBER OF TIMES, WAS EXTREMELY SLUGGISH AND HAD DATA UPDATE ISSUES. SPECIFICALLY: -DEPART LAKE OSWEGO AT 5:30AM ON 11/23. SOON THEREAFTER THE LEFT FRONT FENDER CAMERA INFORMS ME IT IS NOT WORKING. IT DOES SO REPEATEDLY EVERY MINUTE OR SO FOR A LONG TIME. THEN ALL CAMERAS INFORM ME THEY ARE NOT WORKING. I STOP, TWICE, CLEAN ALL THE CAMERAS AND IT DOES NOT RESOLVE ANYTHING. I GIVE UP ON THE CAMERAS WORKING AND STOP USING CRUISE CONTROL -AT 12:31PM IN THE SHASTA AREA STREAMING FAILS AND THEN THE WHOLE MCU SHUTS DOWN. WHILE DRIVING IN THE RAIN I AM FORCED TO REACT AND OPEN WINDOWS TO KEEP THE WINDOWS FROM FOGGING UP WHILE DRIVING AT 70MPH. OTHIS IS A SERIOUS SAFETY CONCERN. I HAVE UPDATED MY NHTSA COMPLAINT TO INCLUDE THESE SERIOUS SAFETY CONCERNS. -7:48PM 11/23, WHILE SUPERCHARGING IN EMERYVILLE THE MCU COMPLETELY FROZE. I WAS HAD TO FORCE A REBOOT. 2ND REBOOT IN ONE DAY -5:28PM 11/24 MCU CRASHES WHILE DRIVING AGAIN! HOW DO YOU NOT UNDERSTAND THE SAFETY IMPLICATIONS OF THIS?! THIS IS THE 3RD CRASH IN 2 DAYS!. I WILL MAKE AN APPOINTMENT AND EXPECT YOU TO FIX THIS ISSUE. I WILL CONTINUE TO UPDATE MY NHTSA COMPLAINT REGARDING THESE SAFETY ISSUES UNTIL TESLA RESOLVES THEM. SCOTT SCOTT DARLING PRESIDENT | DELL TECHNOLOGIES CAPITAL

NHTSA ODI 11376961

ON 3 OCCASIONS, VEHICLE MADE SUDDEN, SPONTANEOUS ATTEMPTS TO MAKE A LEFT LANE CHANGE. ON TWO OCCASIONS THE VEHICLE WAS IN SELF DRIVE MODE ON A FREEWAY; ON THE 1ST OCCASION, THE VEHICLE WAS IN THE LEFT LANE AND HIT A GUARD RAIL; ON THE 3RD OCCASION THE VEHICLE WAS STOPPED AT A RED LIGHT WHEN IT SUDDENLY ACCELERATED, TURNED SHARPLY LEFT AND RAN UP AN EMBANKMENT INTO TREES AND BUSHES, SUSTAINING SUBSTANTIAL DAMAGE.

NHTSA ODI 11078440