KnownCarProblems2015 Tesla Model S Problems and Recalls
Owners filed 668 complaints with NHTSA about the 2015 Tesla Model S, most often about the electrical (40% of complaints, typically around 56,000 miles). It is the most complained-about Model S model year since 2000 and has 9 recalls.
Most common 2015 Tesla Model S problems
Electrical
266 complaints · 40%Half of these problems showed up before 56,000 miles. Parts named most often: instrument cluster/panel, 12v/24v/48v battery, software, adas.
One of the door handles is not presenting and therefore the door cannot be opened. This happened to a different door handle but it was covered under warranty at that time. Now that my car is out of warranty, they are quoting me $700-$1000 to fix the door handle. This seems to be a manufacturing defect because many…
Tesla removed miles from my battery capacity by over 25 miles by remote downloads the vehicle was stationary in my garage I contacted them and they did a remote test and said the battery was fine and the download was the cause and they would return the miles thru future downloads . It hasn't happened and they won't…
Other or unspecified
189 complaints · 28%Half of these problems showed up before 53,500 miles.
Approximately 5 years after purchasing my Tesla Model S, the media control unit failed while I was driving on a city street (doing a reboot due to some system failures). Much of the functionality of the car became inoperable because of the failure, including climate control, navigation, music and more. A week later…
I understand you are investigating Tesla Model S computer failure. I would like to list the issues I have had since I brought my Model S in march 2015: -april 2015 ? Front trunk would not open. Latch was replaced under warranty. -june 2016 ? Driver door handle stopped working. Replaced under warranty -august 2019 ?…
Suspension
149 complaints · 22%Half of these problems showed up before 12,000 miles. Parts named most often: subframe/mounting bracket.
My Tesla Model S - 2015 - had the left front suspension malfunction. Tesla claims it was damaged - although the car has only been driven 12000 miles - and only on city streets and highways. There has been no off roading and hazardous road conditions. The car was left unable to be driven. The Tesla dealer refuses to…
I was driving my car to work and accidentally scraped the front right wheel on a curb near a roundabout on an old/narrow seattle street (there was oncoming traffic and parked cars so I had very little room on my right and mis-judged). The paint on the wheel was pretty badly scraped up but otherwise the car was fine…
Steering
51 complaints · 8%Half of these problems showed up before 10,000 miles.
Another Tesla in the junkyard. Http://www.copart.com/US/lot/22864206?searchid=[phone] there is no collision damage to the car bur the entire front suspension has snapped off. This is an AWD model and should be expected to have a stronger suspension to cope with the added weight and power. This is clearly not the case…
Earlier today I sent in a complaint about steering rack/power steering qassembly failure. I made an error on the Tesla service bulletin #. It should have read correctly:sb-18-32-002 r3 january 11, 2019 (not sb-18-21-003) my error was in suggesting the tsb last 3 digits changed from 001, 002, and 003. They are actually…
Lights
46 complaints · 7%Half of these problems showed up before 62,000 miles. Parts named most often: turn signal, headlights.
The mcu/screen stopped working and I was able tondrive, but not use any safety features, including blinkers, back-up camera, or navigation. It took over a week to get a service appointment and the item was not covered under warranty, so I had to pay over $1600 out of pocket. The car was not in motion when the failure…
My touchscreen has failed completely and I am unable to use my blinkers or control my lights this is a big safety concern and Tesla has stated that it's normal for computer systems to fail.
Speed control
40 complaints · 6%Half of these problems showed up before 25,000 miles.
As I parked my car in my garage on 1/19/2019, I had placed the car in park and was preparing to exit the vehicle when it suddenly accelerated and hit the front of my garage wall. The car was in park and not moving. I had my hand on the door handle to exit. I immediately slammed the breaks but the car seemed to keep…
Model S floor mats are secured via 4 velcro pads, screwed into the floor on one side, "glued" onto the mats on the other. After 3.5 years of normal use, driver's side floor mat came loose while driving. Pulled into a parking lot and removed mat until I got home. Found two pads completely unstuck from mat, two others…
Visibility and wipers
39 complaints · 6%Half of these problems showed up before 66,500 miles. Parts named most often: defroster/defogger/hvac system.
Touchscreen that controls most vehicle functions including HVAC became disabled because a chip in the touchscreen went bad. The car was unable to charge and would take approx 5 mins to start at times. Unable to clear fogged windows with HVAC
Mcu goes blank; this effects exterior lights; acceleration settings; steering modes; regenerative braking; stopping mode; the entire sound system, including the turn-signal tones; displaying warning notifications; critical gauges; GPS navigation; self-driving mode; rear view camera; ability to charge; suspension…
Driver assistance
38 complaints · 6%Half of these problems showed up before 58,000 miles. Parts named most often: adaptive cruise control, automatic emergency braking, assist, warnings.
My vehicle is subject to the Tesla mcu recall, in which the substandard emmc was killed by excessive logging and rendering the entire mcu inoperative. I had the mcu replaced prior to the recall, and filed the reimbursement claim when it went live. Tesla denied my claim, stating that the replacement was done for…
Touch screen will blank, show unusual characters, not respond, exhibit pixillation, stop rear vision camera from displaying, not play radio or music properly and/or intermittantly, and present navigation information improperly. Media computer was replaced last year, but new computer still has those same and other…
Complaints are owner reports to NHTSA, not verified defects. One complaint can name several components, so shares add up to more than 100%.
2015 Tesla Model S recalls
Seat belts: warning light/devices
Risk: A seat belt warning system that fails to alert occupants of an unbelted seat belt can increase the risk of injury during a crash.
Fix: Tesla will release an over-the-air (OTA) software update. Owner notification letters were mailed july 26, 2024. Owners may contact tesla customer service at 1-877-798-3752. Tesla's number for this recall is sb-24-00-008.
Full defect summary
Tesla, inc. (tesla) is recalling certain 2012-2024 model s, 2015-2024 model x, 2017-2023 model 3, and 2020-2023 model y vehicles. In the event of an unbelted driver, the seat belt warning light and audible chime may not activate as intended. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of federal motor vehicle safety standard number 208, "occupant crash protection."
Electrical: instrument cluster/panel
Risk: Warning lights with a smaller font size can make critical safety information on the instrument panel difficult to read, increasing the risk of a crash.
Fix: Tesla began releasing an over-the-air (OTA) software update, free of charge. Owners may contact tesla customer service at 1-877-798-3752. Tesla's number for this recall is sb-24-00-003.
Full defect summary
Tesla, inc. (tesla) is recalling certain 2012-2023 model s, 2016-2024 model x, 2017-2023 model 3, 2019-2024 model y, and 2024 cybertruck vehicles. An incorrect font size is displayed on the instrument panel for the brake, park, and antilock brake system (ABS) warning lights. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of federal motor vehicle safety standard number 105, "hydraulic and electric brake systems" and 135, "light vehicle brake systems."
Electrical: software
Risk: In certain circumstances when autosteer is engaged, and the driver does not maintain responsibility for vehicle operation and is unprepared to intervene as necessary or fails to recognize when autosteer is canceled or not engaged, there may be an increased risk of a crash.
Fix: Tesla will release an over-the-air (OTA) software update, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed february 10, 2024. Owners may contact tesla customer service at 1-877-798-3752. Tesla's number for this recall is sb-23-00-008.
Full defect summary
Tesla, inc. (tesla) is recalling 2012-2023 model s, 2016-2023 model x, 2017-2023 model 3, and 2020-2023 model y vehicles equipped with all versions of autosteer leading up to the version(s) that contains the recall remedy. In certain circumstances when autosteer is engaged, the prominence and scope of the feature's controls may not be sufficient to prevent driver misuse of the sae level 2 advanced driver-assistance feature.
Doors and locks: latch
Risk: If the primary latch is inadvertently released and the secondary latch is not engaged, the hood could open unexpectedly, obstructing the driver's view and increasing the risk of a crash.
Fix: Tesla service will inspect and reposition the latch assembly as necessary, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed february 18, 2022. Owners may contact tesla customer service at 1-877-798-3752. Tesla's number for this recall is sb-21-11-003.
Full defect summary
Tesla, inc. (tesla) is recalling certain 2014-2021 model s vehicles. The front trunk latch assembly may be misaligned, preventing the secondary hood latch from engaging. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of federal motor vehicle safety standard number 113, "hood latch system."
Visibility and wipers: defroster/defogger/hvac system
Risk: The emmc controller wear-out condition can cause the loss of the rearview camera display, defrost/defog control settings, and exterior turn signal lighting, reducing visibility and increasing the risk of a crash.
Fix: Owners should ensure their vehicles are operating firmware release 2020.48.48.12 or newer, which will alert owners if the emmc is approaching lifetime wear. Tesla will notify owners, and will replace the vcm daughterboard with one containing an enhanced emmc controller, free of charge. The recall began march 29, 2021. Owners may contact tesla customer service at 1-877-798-3752. Tesla's number for this recall is sb-21-21-001.
Full defect summary
Tesla, inc. (tesla) is recalling certain 2012-2018 tesla model s and 2016-2018 model x vehicles with a center display equipped with a nvidia tegra 3 processor and an 8gb emmc nand flash memory device. When the 8gb emmc nand flash memory device for the center display reaches lifetime wear, the emmc controller will no longer be able to maintain the integrity of the filesystem, causing a failure in some of the center display functions.
Air bags: inflator module
Risk: An inflator explosion may result in sharp metal fragments striking the driver or other occupants resulting in serious injury or death.
Fix: Tesla will notify owners, and tesla service centers will replace the passenger frontal air bag modules, free of charge. The recall began may 29, 2019. Owners may contact tesla customer service at 1-877-798-3752. Tesla's number for this recall is sb-19-20-001.
Full defect summary
Tesla, inc. (tesla) is recalling all 2014-2016 model s vehicles equipped with certain air bag inflators assembled as part of the passenger frontal air bag modules used as original equipment or replacement equipment. In the event of a crash necessitating deployment of the passenger frontal air bag, these inflators may explode due to propellant degradation occurring after long-term exposure to absolute humidity and temperature cycling.
Steering: electric power assist system
Risk: Loss of power steering assist would require a higher steering effort, especially at lower speeds, which may increase the risk of a crash.
Fix: Tesla will notify owners, and tesla service centers will replace the steering gear mounting bolts and add a corrosion-preventative sealer, free of charge. The recall began may 7, 2019. Owners may contact tesla customer service at 1-877-798-3752. Tesla's number for this recall is sb-18-32-002.
Full defect summary
Tesla, inc. (tesla) is recalling certain 2012-2016 tesla model s vehicles equipped with bosch steering racks. The aluminum bolts that attach the power steering gear assist motor to the gear housing may corrode and fracture causing a reduction or complete loss of power steering assist.
Brakes: parking brake
Risk: If the gear breaks during parking brake release, the vehicle will not be able to be moved. If the gear breaks during parking brake application, the parking brake may not adequately hold the vehicle, potentially resulting in the vehicle rolling, increasing the risk of a crash.
Fix: Tesla will notify owners, and service centers will replace both the left and right electric parking brake calipers, free of charge. The recall began march 6, 2018. Owners may contact tesla customer service at 1-877-798-3752. Tesla's number for this recall is sb-17-33-002.
Full defect summary
Tesla, inc. (tesla) is recalling certain 2016 model s and model x vehicles. The electric parking brake calipers have an internal gear that may be improperly manufactured, possibly resulting in the gear fracturing during parking brake application or release.
Seat belts: front
Risk: If the seat belt is not correctly attached to the pretensioner, it may not properly restrain the seat occupant in the event of a crash, increasing their risk of injury.
Fix: Tesla will notify owners, and service centers will inspect the driver and front passenger seat belts, correcting their connection, as necessary, free of charge. The recall began on december 14, 2015. Owners may contact tesla customer service at 1-877-798-3752. Tesla's number for this recall is sb-15-20-002.
Full defect summary
Tesla motors, inc. (tesla) is recalling certain model year 2012-2015 model s vehicles manufactured may 31, 2012, to november 12, 2015. The affected vehicles are equipped with driver or front passenger seat belts that may be improperly connected to the outboard lap pretensioner.
Recall repairs are free at any franchised dealer. Enter your VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls to see which recalls are still open on your car.
NHTSA defect investigations
Recall 23v838 remedy effectiveness
Summary
The office of defects investigation (odi) is opening a recall query to assess the remedy adequacy of recall 23v838. On december 12, 2023, tesla filed a defect information report (recall 23v838) applicable to all tesla models produced and equipped with any version of its autopilot system, which tesla described as an sae level 2 (l2) advanced driver assistance system (ADAS). Autopilot is the simultaneous engagement of teslaâs traffic-aware cruise control (tacc) and autosteer. In describing the safety defect, teslaâs defect information report (dir) explained that âthe prominence and scope of the systemâs controls may be insufficient to prevent driver misuse,â and tesla committed to th
Sudden unintended acceleration
Summary
The office of defects investigation (odi) received a petition requesting that odi reevaluate its decision to deny dp20-001 on the basis that intermittent high electrical current demands on the vehicles' 12vdc systems may have caused some or all of the incidents examined by odi in dp20-001. The petitioner bases this information on a review of open-source research and the dp20-001 denial. The petition and related materials can be reviewed at NHTSA.gov under the following odi number: 11528471.
Defect petition interlock request
Summary
On march 21, 2023, the office of defects investigation (odi) received a petition requesting a ârecall of all tesla carsâ produced from 2013 to the date on which the petition was filed due to what petitioner considers to be the increased likelihood of pedal misapplication. Attached to the petition is a paper authored by petitioner. According to petitioner, the differences in the operator controls between the subject tesla vehicles and internal combustion engine powered vehicles promote driver pedal misapplication, leading to sudden unintended acceleration (sua) incidents. To fix this alleged defect, petitioner argues that the subject vehicles should be equipped with measures that require:
Pedestrian alert sounds
Summary
Nhtsa received a petition on or about july 18, 2022, requesting that federal motor vehicle safety standard (fmvss) 141 be applied to all electric and hybrid vehicles operating in the united states. The petition can be reviewed at NHTSA.gov under odi number 11486072. Fmvss 141 establishes performance requirements for pedestrian alert sounds for motor vehicles. The standard applies to hybrid and electric vehicles that have a gross vehicle weight rating of 4,536 kg or less or are defined as low-speed vehicles. The standard became fully applicable to all such vehicles manufactured on or after march 1, 2021.on january 27, 2023, NHTSA opened defect petition (dp) 22-005 to evaluate the subject matt
Autopilot system driver controls
Summary
The office of defects investigation (odi) upgraded pe21020 to ea22002 on june 8, 2022, to extend work and deepen the pe21020 crash analysis, to supplement that analysis with additional data, and to perform vehicle evaluations to understand how teslaâs autopilot system may exacerbate human factors or behavioral safety risks by undermining the effectiveness of the driverâs supervision. To support this work, odi collected additional crash information and assessed vehicle control authority, driver engagement technologies, and related human factors considerations associated with partial automation via analysis of peer vehicle data and hands-on vehicle evaluation, assessments from NHTSA human
Desiccated air bag inflator rupture
Summary
From 2000 through 2017, takata produced millions of air bag inflators using two types of phase-stabilized ammonium nitrate ("psan") propellant -- propellant 2004 and propellant 2004l. After prolonged exposure to high temperature cycles and humidity, inflators using propellant 2004 can degrade, causing the propellant to burn too quickly when ignited. The rapid burning can cause the inflator to rupture during deployment, potentially causing serious or even fatal injury to vehicle occupants. See 2016 blomquist report at www.NHTSA.gov/sites/NHTSA.gov/files/documents/expert_report-hrblomquist.pdf.consequently, all frontal inflators using propellant 2004 that do not contain a "desiccant" (a substa
Autopilot & first responder scenes
Summary
On august 13, 2021, NHTSA?s office of defects investigation (odi) opened a preliminary evaluation (pe21-020) to assess the performance of tesla?s autopilot system (a system characterized by tesla as an sae level 2 driving automation system designed to support and assist the driver in performing the driving task) available in tesla vehicles. The investigation opening was motivated by an accumulation of crashes in which tesla vehicles, operating with autopilot engaged, struck stationary in-road or roadside first responder vehicles tending to pre-existing collision scenes. Upon opening the investigation, NHTSA indicated that the pe would also evaluate additional similar circumstance crashes of
Fore link failure
Summary
The office of defects investigation (odi) opened this preliminary evaluation based on forty-three complaints alleging failure of the left or right front suspension fore links in tesla model year (my) 2015 through 2017 model s and my 2016 through 2017 model x vehicles. The investigation has identified 426 instances of failure on part number 1041570-00-a or 1041575-00-a fore links.none of the instances resulted in any loss of vehicle control. One minor crash with no injuries is associated with the 426 instances fore link failures.a majority of the failures occurred between one to fifteen MPH while parking in driveways or parking lots.in the eight instances where the vehicle was traveling more
Loss of rearview camera
Summary
On november 20, 2020, the office of defects investigation (odi) opened engineering analysis (ea) 20-003 to investigate incidents of media control unit (mcu) failures resulting in loss of rearview camera in model year (my) 2012-18 tesla model s and model year (my) 2016-2018 tesla model x vehicles equipped with the nvidia tegra 3 processor with an integrated 8gb emmc nand flash memory device. During its investigation, odi learned that the expected usage life rating for the 8gb emmc nand flash memory device is approximately 3,000 âp/eâ or program-erase cycles, after which the emmc nand flash memory device would become fully consumed and no longer be operational, leading to a failure of the
Loss of rearview camera
Summary
On june 22, 2020, the office of defects investigations (odi) opened preliminary evaluation pe20-010 to investigate incidents of media control unit (mcu) failures resulting in loss of rearview camera in model year (my) 2012-2015 tesla model s vehicles equipped with the nvidia tegra 3 processor with an integrated 8gb emmc nand flash memory device. Emmc nand flash devices have a finite lifespan based upon the number of program/erase (p/e) cycles. The subject mcu allegedly fails prematurely due to memory wear-out of the emmc nand flash. Tesla used the same mcu with the tegra 3 processor in approximately 159 thousand 2012-2018 model s and 2016-2018 model x vehicles built by tesla through early-20
Questions about the 2015 Tesla Model S
- What are the most common problems with the 2015 Tesla Model S?
- By NHTSA owner complaints: electrical (266 complaints, typically around 56,000 miles); other or unspecified (189 complaints, typically around 53,500 miles); suspension (149 complaints, typically around 12,000 miles).
- How many recalls does the 2015 Tesla Model S have?
- 9 recalls listed by NHTSA, the latest from May 28, 2024 (seat belts). Check your VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls to see which ones are still open on your car.
- Is the 2015 a bad year for the Tesla Model S?
- It is the most complained-about Model S model year since 2000, with 668 complaints. Complaint counts are not adjusted for how many cars were sold, so popular years collect more of them, and the newest years have had less time to.