Home · 2018 Tesla Model S 60 · Complaints

What 129 owners told NHTSA about the 2018 Tesla Model S 60

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 (129)Crash / fire / injury (32)Electrical system (32)Driver assistance (23)Speed control (20)Suspension (20)Brakes (11)Steering (10)Body & structure (8)Lane Departure (8)Lights (7)Latches & locks (5)

11 of 129 complaints match · Brakes · clear filters

Dec 27, 2024Electrical systemBrakesFire

•I’m not sure what component was responsble for either the braking issue or the fire. It is available for inspection. •When driving the brake pedal had a frightening delay that almost caused 2 accidents and unfortunately my car was charging on the 24th of October which could have something to do with arching that led to my garage catching fire rendering the car unable to move or turn on after the incident. I’ve insisted Tesla insurance to look into possible causes because the Fire dept. mandated the a LADWP (power company) to install new transformers to our power supply a couple of days after the fire, which they did. Tesla insurance seems uninterested in finding the cause and wants to compensate me for the vehicle but I believe it’s in their best interest to find a cause and document it. The car had no issues prior, in fact the service center sent a mobile tech to replace the 12volt battery on the car not even 10 months ago. After the fire the car died and has a bunch of codes that make it inoperable. • Service center rejected looking at it because of the risk. They said since it was possible salvage they could not look at it which is understandable but they worked on it before in decem •Insurance has been unwilling to look at any of this they just want pictures of the car to settle the issue. In my opinion they are ignoring a bigger problem. Tesla is my insurer. •The car had no issues prior to the fire and none during the near misses were the brake delayed.

NHTSA ODI 11632733

Oct 14, 2024AirbagsBrakes

I pulled into a driveway on a one lane road (due to construction) to allow a car traveling downhill to pass so they would not have to back up. I had come to a complete stop in the driveway with the car in drive. As I started to put the car in reverse it surged forward at a high rate of speed crashing into my neighbor's garage, tearing the door completely down pushing the door into the garage and my car entering the garage at least 15 feet hitting the car that was parked inside and pushing it with such force that the front end of the vehicle struck the garage cabinets tearing them down. My air bag did not deploy nor did the automatic braking system engage, it just sped up as it was doing the damage. The car has been deemed a total loss by my insurance company but i don't want this report to go unnoticed. To my knowledge the insurance company has not inspected the computer on the vehicle. I'm not sure how they will investigate this occurrence. I feel strongly that this was a malfunction with my car. The message that showed immediately was "driver assist unavailable", I have NEVER used driver assist.

NHTSA ODI 11619723

Jul 25, 2023BrakesDriver assistance

I was using the Enhanced Cruise Control and the car just slammed on brakes out of nowhere. There was not any cars ahead or beside me at the time. This has happened about 5-6 times since I purchased the vehicle on March 10, 2023

NHTSA ODI 11534345

Mar 19, 2023BrakesDriver assistance

On March 17, 2023 at approximately 4:00 pm MT, I was traveling at approximately 75 MPH with adaptive cruise control and auto pilot engaged when the car suddenly applied brakes with no obstruction ahead or behind or on the side. The car quickly slowed down to approximately 55 MPH, released the brakes and began to accelerate back to the speed limit of 75 MPH.

NHTSA ODI 11512646

Dec 16, 2022Brakes

I was travelling on the highway at high speeds when the traffic suddenly comes to a halt. My tires were screeching without any signs of ABS kicking in whatsoever. My car slid 20-30 feet since i braked.

NHTSA ODI 11497797

Feb 20, 2022BrakesDriver assistance

I have experienced many times "phantom braking". When I reported that to a Tesla service center 2 years ago, they did not know of this problem. It is scary and dangerous especially for the cars following me It only happens to me on the freeway when in ADAS mode. There is a exact place on the 5 freeway SB near Disneyland, that each time I drive there, phantom braking happens. Further also random without noticing any reason for it.

NHTSA ODI 11453139

Feb 5, 2022Speed controlBrakesDriver assistance

This incident happened some time ago but I read recently about complaints related to "phantom braking" which I also experienced. I was driving on the highway at speed with my cruise control activated. There was no traffic close in front of me, but a large semi was in the lane to my right. This vehicle triggered sharp braking of my car. It was very scary, but I immediately overroad the braking to avoid being hit by a vehicle behind me. I have never used my cruise control since that incident.

NHTSA ODI 11450584

Nov 1, 2021Transmission & drivetrainBrakesCrash

The contact owns a Tesla Model S. The contact stated while parking into a parking space, the vehicle started shuddering inadvertently. The contact stated the braking panel button was depressed but failed to respond, causing the vehicle to continue to move forward, hit the sidewall, and inadvertently accelerate on its own crashing into a wall. There were no warning lights illuminated. The air bags failed to deploy. The contact did not sustain any injuries. A police report was filed. The vehicle was towed to the dealer. The contact stated the vehicle was diagnosed however, Tesla had not informed her of the diagnosis. The vehicle was repaired. The approximate failure mileage was 20,000.

NHTSA ODI 11438910

Jan 17, 2020AirbagsBody & structureBrakes

IT WAS ON FRIDAY MORNING ON JANUARY 11TH 2020 AT 8.30AM. I WAS SLOWLY PULLING INTO A PARKING SPACE IN FRONT OF MY MEDICAL OFFICE WHERE I HAVE PRACTICED FOR 21 YEARS. I WAS IN AN OUTDOOR PARKING DECK. I TOUCHED THE BRAKES TO STOP THE CAR AND THE CAR SUDDENLY ACCELERATED FORWARDS AND HIT A CONCRETE WALL IN FRONT OF IT. I KNOW THAT I DID NOT HIT THE ACCELERATOR. I WAS SLAMMED INTO MY STEERING WHEEL. MY AIRBAG DID NOT DEPLOY. I HAVE BEEN DRIVING FOR 30 YEARS AND HAVE DRIVEN A TESLA FOR 5 YEARS. I KNOW THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THE ACCELERATOR AND THE BRAKE. TESLA CLAIMS THAT I PUT MY FOOT ON THE ACCELERATOR AND DROVE INTO THE CONCRETE WALL. THAT IS NOT WHAT HAPPENED. I HAVE SERIOUS SAFETY CONCERNS ABOUT WHAT HAPPENED. THE CAR WAS OUT OF MY CONTROL.

NHTSA ODI 11300152

Jul 1, 2019Speed controlElectronic Stability Control (esc)BrakesCrash

I DROVE TO WORK ON MAY 2, 2019, AND WAS TRYING TO PARK IN MY ALLOTTED PARKING STALL ON THE 3RD LEVEL OF MY OFFICE PARKING GARAGE. MY PARKING STALL WAS ALONG THE OUTER EDGE OF THE GARAGE AND THE ONLY BARRIER TO THE OUTSIDE WAS A SET OF THREE (ABOUT " DIAMETER) CABLES STRUNG BETWEEN OUTSIDE COLUMNS OF THE GARAGE, BESIDES A THIN PERFORATED CORRUGATED METAL SHEET OUTSIDE THE CABLES, ACTING AS A RAIN STOP. I WAS TRYING TO SLOWLY TURN RIGHT FROM THE PARKING AISLE TO PARK BETWEEN TWO PICKUP TRUCKS ON EITHER SIDE OF MY STALL. WHEN I HAD TURNED PARTWAY INTO MY STALL, MY TESLA SUDDENLY ACCELERATED INTO MY PARKING STALL AT HIGH SPEED, HIT THE OUTSIDE CABLES, REBOUNDED BACKWARDS AND STOPPED ABOUT 10 FEET FROM THE OUTSIDE CABLES. THE CABLES SAVED ME FROM PLUNGING 3 FLOORS DOWN FROM THE GARAGE. THERE WAS EXTENSIVE DAMAGE TO THE HOOD AND FRONT PORTIONS OF MY TESLA. THERE WAS ALSO SOME DAMAGE TO THE METAL CORRUGATED SHEETS OUTSIDE THE CABLES AND A SLIGHT DENT ON THE CORNER OF THE VEHICLE PARKED TO MY RIGHT. I HAVE BEEN PARKING IN MY OFFICE PARKING STALL FOR ABOUT THE PAST SIX MONTHS WITHOUT ANY ISSUE LIKE THIS. I WANT TO KNOW WHY MY CAR ACCELERATED LIKE THAT WITHOUT WARNING AND WHY THE COLLISION WARNING SYSTEM WAS NOT TRIGGERED BY THE OUTSIDE CORRUGATED METAL SHEET. ALSO, THERE WAS AN ISSUE WITH MY TESLA THE PREVIOUS EVENING. WHEN I TRIED TO START MY TESLA AFTER WORK, I GOT THE 'SYSTEMS ARE POWERING..' MESSAGE ON THE SCREEN AND MY CAR WOULD NOT START EVEN AFTER A LONG WAIT. THEN, I HAD TO GOOGLE TO FIND A WAY TO REBOOT THE CAR COMPUTER, BY PRESSING TWO BUTTONS ON THE STEERING WHEEL. ON THE DAY OF THE ACCIDENT, I USED THE INTERMITTENT RAIN SENSING WIPERS FOR THE FIRST TIME, AS THERE WAS A LIGHT RAIN. MY CAR IS STILL IN THE BODY SHOP WAITING FOR SOME BACK ORDERED PARTS. I HAVE ASKED TESLA TO DO A DIAGNOSTICS TO SEE IF THERE WERE ANY SOFTWARE BUGS IN THE SYSTEM.

NHTSA ODI 11228597

Jun 18, 2018Electrical systemSpeed controlBrakesCrash1 injury

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2018 TESLA MODEL S. WHILE APPROACHING A RED LIGHT, THE SPEED INCREASED AND THE VEHICLE FAILED TO RESPOND WHEN THE BRAKE PEDAL WAS DEPRESSED. THE VEHICLE DROVE THROUGH THE TRAFFIC LIGHT AND CRASHED INTO A VEHICLE THAT WAS MAKING A LEFT TURN. THE FRONT DRIVER'S AIR BAG AND KNEE AIR BAGS DEPLOYED. THE FRONT DRIVER'S SIDE CURTAIN AIR BAGS HAD NOT DEPLOYED. THE DRIVER SUSTAINED SHOULDER AND BACK INJURIES THAT REQUIRED MEDICAL ATTENTION. A POLICE REPORT WAS FILED. THE INSURANCE COMPANY TOWED THE VEHICLE TO A COLLISION REPAIR FACILITY. THE DEALER (SAN DIEGO MIRAMAR TESLA, 9250 TRADE PL, SAN DIEGO, CA 92121, (858) 271-5100) WAS NOTIFIED OF THE CRASH AND THE CONTACT WAS WAITING FOR FEEDBACK FROM THE INSURANCE COMPANY. THE DEALER AND THE MANUFACTURER WERE WAITING TO RETRIEVE THE INFORMATION FROM THE ELECTRONIC DATA RECORDER TO INVESTIGATE THE CAUSE OF THE FAILURE. THE APPROXIMATE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 49. *BF*JB

NHTSA ODI 11102347

Working with the data? Download all 129 complaints as CSV · fetched from NHTSA July 25, 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 2018 Tesla Model S 60 verdict →