2017 Tesla Model S
Complaints about this year name mcu far more often than the model's other years — 11% of them, about 26× the usual rate of 0.4%.
Generation 1 of the Tesla Model S, which began in 2012. Everything below compares this year against the others in that generation, not against a different car wearing the same name.
| Complaints filed | 1,895 |
|---|---|
| Median for this model | 136 |
| Involving a crash | 230 |
| Involving a fire | 20 |
| Recalls | 9 |
| EPA combined | 102.5 mpg |
What the complaints were about
- link — 9.5% of this year's complaints, against 1.6% across the model's other years (6.1×). Owners wrote it as: link, fore, fore link, heard loud.
- wheel well — 8.2% of this year's complaints, against 2.3% across the model's other years (3.6×). Owners wrote it as: wheel well, against, grinding noise, rubbing.
- upgrade — 6.6% of this year's complaints, against 2.2% across the model's other years (3×). Owners wrote it as: upgrade, infotainment.
Words owners used for the same problem are counted together, so a fault written four different ways is measured once. Grouped by which complaints they appear in, not by a list anyone wrote in advance.
Also unusual this year
- please — 15% of complaints, 3× usual
- control arm — 7% of complaints, 16× usual
- fore — 7% of complaints, 16× usual
What owners wrote
MY MCU IS CONTINUING TO POWER OFF WHILE I'M DRIVING AND THE SMALL SCREEN TAKES LONGER TO BOOT UP. THIS ALSO HAPPENS WHEN SURFING STILL BEFORE I START OUT OF MY GARAGE.
FRONT DRIVER SIDE CONTROL ARM/FORE LINK ASSEMBLY SNAPPED AND BROKE WHILE PULLING OUT OF A PARKING SPOT. LOW SPEED, STANDARD PAVEMENT. FELT LIKE I HAD RUN OVER A NAIL WHERE THE FRONT OF THE CAR LIFTED UP SLIGHTLY, POPPED, SOUNDED LIKE A TIRE POP, BUT THEN WOULD…
Verbatim from NHTSA complaint filings, with identifying details removed.
Recalls for this year
- 22V037000 ELECTRICAL SYSTEM Fixed free of charge.
- 21V035000 BACK OVER PREVENTION Fixed free of charge.
- 21V00B000 LATCHES/LOCKS/LINKAGES Fixed free of charge.
- 21V846000 FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE Fixed free of charge.
- 22V818000 STEERING Fixed free of charge.
- 23V085000 STEERING Fixed free of charge.
- 23V838000 ELECTRICAL SYSTEM Fixed free of charge.
- 24V051000 ELECTRICAL SYSTEM Fixed free of charge.
Showing 8 of 9. The rest are on NHTSA's site.
How this was worked out
Every year of the Tesla Model S was compared against its own history rather than against other cars, which removes popularity and age from the answer — a common car draws more complaints at equal reliability, and an older one has had longer to accumulate them. A year is flagged when it drew at least 2.5× this model's median and at least 50 complaints.
This is a fault record, not a review. Nobody files a federal complaint to say the car was fine, so it shows what tends to go wrong — not whether owners liked it, and not whether it is a good car.
Source: NHTSA complaints, recalls and investigations, retrieved . Look this vehicle up directly on NHTSA's site to check anything here.
Own a 2017 Tesla Model S? What happened to yours?
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