2021 Tesla Model S
This year drew an ordinary 176 complaints for a Tesla Model S — the model's median is 136. What they were about is the unusual part: 11.9% of them mention cruise, against 3.8% across the model's other years.
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.
NHTSA opened a defect investigation into this model year.
| Complaints filed | 176 |
|---|---|
| Median for this model | 136 |
| Involving a crash | 13 |
| Involving a fire | 2 |
| Recalls | 24 |
| EPA combined | 105.5 mpg |
What the complaints were about
- cruise — 11.9% of this year's complaints, against 3.8% across the model's other years (3.1×). Owners wrote it as: cruise, cruise control, braked, adaptive.
- eyes — 6.3% of this year's complaints, against 1.3% across the model's other years (4.7×). Owners wrote it as: eyes, straight.
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.
What owners wrote
I was driving on I39 north of Madison WI this afternoon, it was a clear day with light traffic and early afternoon on adaptive cruise control when the car on two occasions braked hard for no apparent reason. This braking would be a serious safety concern if a…
Car repeatedly, randomly slams in brakes while cruise control engaged for no apparent reason. Not speeding, no other cars or blockages around, open highway on a bright, clear day.
Verbatim from NHTSA complaint filings, with identifying details removed.
Recalls for this year
- 22V037000 ELECTRICAL SYSTEM Fixed free of charge.
- 21V868000 AIR BAGS Fixed free of charge.
- 22V045000 ELECTRICAL SYSTEM Fixed free of charge.
- 21V00B000 LATCHES/LOCKS/LINKAGES Fixed free of charge.
- 21V846000 FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE Fixed free of charge.
- 22V050000 ELECTRICAL SYSTEM Fixed free of charge.
- 22V063000 ELECTRICAL SYSTEM Fixed free of charge.
- 22V104000 AIR BAGS Fixed free of charge.
Showing 8 of 24. 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 2021 Tesla Model S? What happened to yours?
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