2021 Tesla Model S Complaint Log

Tesla Service Center canceling appointments to repair driver airbag recall. Numerous attempts to have recall accomplished with Tesla Service Center in Palm Springs, CA. Unsuccessful since November 2021 (3 months).

On Nov 14 at 09:01 AM while driving on the freeway with clear weather and autopilot is on for at least 15 min and and i am fully attentive and no traffic the tesla auto pilot decided to turn left and hit the cement barrier of the freeway damaging my left rear wheel then it tried to correct it fault by turning right to the right lane abruptly luckily there was no traffic coming on my right side too otherwise it would have been fatal I have the incident recorded by the sentry mode cameras and exact time and sec and the logs of the car black box proves that the tesla auto pilot was engaged at that time when it hit the cement barrier I reported this to tesla so they would take responsibility of their risky autopilot software but they dont care and told me i can report it to NHTSA it doesnt matter to them even with all the documented proof i have

The horn on the Model S PLAID is a small button on the right side of the airbag. On two occasions, I needed to use the horn to warn another driver of danger to us both and on both occasions, I failed to find the horn button in time to use it. I am not troubled by the yoke at all, but the horn is an important safety issue in my view which must be rectified. Tesla has not provided me with any opportunity to provide feedback despite many attempts locally and via their online interfaces. They have not responded to two emails...thus my request that you inquire urgently on this issue with them. Consumer stated Tesla Plaid horn button being dangerously difficult to find in an emergency.

There have been 4 instances of the instrument cluster screen and main information touch screen shutting down while driving the vehicle. First 2 episodes were in Aug of 2021 then twice in Oct of 2021. Episodes were separated by 1-2 weeks. Both screens are blank for approx 20-40 seconds. Subsequently no information such as speed, brake light indicators, radar/hazards, turn signals or any other information is displayed or can be used. Unknown if the turns signals or brake lights work when this happens as there is no way to see them on the blank screen. No clicking sound for the turns signal is audible either. Car continues to operate otherwise. Both screens then come back on without intervention and all functions return to normal. I have spoken with Tesla service and they state they are aware of this problem but they don't have a fix. They ran remote diagnostics but did not see any abnormalities. They also suggested that my USB drive to record the vehicles security/driving cameras was corrupted and may be causing the problem however I have not set up the USB drive in this car yet.

This was a Autodrive malfunction event on a brand new Tesla Model S. I was in standstill traffic when my car, which had been engaged in Autodrive, lurched forward and suddenly accelerated at a high rate of speed into the car in front of us, without any driver prompts. The problem was immediately reported to Tesla who has been delaying in providing the data logs and engineering analysis for over two months. Tesla did what they called a "safety inspection" after the crash and says the car is fine. They have refused to try and replicate the malfunction because they maintain the car is fine. Luckily, no one was injured, and there was only property damage to my car and the car in front of me, but there is something wrong with the software, the cameras, and/or the front end sensors and their calibration for the car to have done that.

The Steering yoke is extremely poorly designed. It is very tiring to use, and doubtful that car could be controlled in an emergency. The directionals have no tactile feel. The switches for the horn, directionals, and wipers are flat, with no feel, and easily activated by error when my hand crosses their location. This is a very amateurish design. The standard directionals and shift lever need to be installed. I have been driving this car, with difficult, since 13 September and I hate it more each day.

UNKNOWN

The main computer of the car and all the screens frequently and intermittently stop working. The screens and computer is essential for safe operation of the car, as they are required to control functions like the windshield wipers, lights, turn signals, HVAC, and open the glove box. I have repeatedly requested that Tesla repair the problem, but their service department has been very difficult to work with. They are trying to invoice me for "troubleshooting", when the problem is clearly a defect, covered under lemon laws and the car's warranty. I have another appointment with the Tesla service department to repair the issue on Nov 23, however I wanted to document the problem with the NHTSA so that the issue is known. Here's a link to a video of the problem: https://www.icloud.com/iclouddrive/0ruzo24K7zIWGSkH35cIsF_ow#Tesla_no_work Additionally a photo of the car not working from Nov 3 is attached.

The steering yoke is extremely difficult to use on congested city streets, or in an emergency maneuver. The yoke requires that you must cross your hands in a hard turn-a physically difficult action. It appears that Tesla did little or no human factors engineering, nor test driving in anything but highway driving. This vehicle should be recalled to fix this problem. The dealer personnel confirm a rash of complaints about the steering yoke.

This year, 2021, Tesla has made quite a few changes in the Model S which I recently took delivery of. I am writing to you about a safety concern I have that I think is significant: Specifically, Tesla in THIS new model has changed the design of the sterring wheel and steering column controls. My concern is that the turn signal activation is NO LONGER on a stalk but rather is located within the altered design of the stearing wheel which Tesla refers to as a YOKE. The right/left turn signals are switches within the left side of the yoke wheel, they are non raised. I find them extremely difficult to activate reliably, ESPECIALLY IF THE WHEEL IS IN ANY POSITION OTHER THAN HORIZONTAL. YOU HAVE TO TAKE YOUR EYES OFF THE ROAD FREQUENTLY TO MAKE SURE YOU HAVE ACTIVATED THE TURN SIGNAL AND THERE IS A RISK THAT THE WRONG DIRECTION WILL BE ACTIVATED. Use of turn signals is an important safety feature and I am concerned about activating the wrong turn signal or not activating the signal at all and risking a collision

The horn button is not safe. The manual says it will honk if you use a flat hand, but it doesn't. Much more importantly, if you are in the middle of a turn, THERE IS NO WAY TO HIT THE HORN. It's unbelievably dangerous. If there wheel is turned around, you actually can't access the horn.

Driver side rear door opened while driving despite being locked. This has happened on more than one occasion.

I’ve reported a continually present rack and pinion issue.. FOUR times. Tesla techs claim they don’t experience it or that it is ‘normal’ for this car. The car emits an audible grinding sound plus a visible wheel skipping when turned hard left or right. Today, the right front wheel began to emit a loud whirring sound in addition to the steering issue. Tesla refuses to investigate the issue beyond test drives. The situation could deteriorate quickly resulting in my inability to control the car while driving. It is a very SERIOUS matter.

My 2021 Tesla S has on multiple occasions hard braked when in cruise control when there were no vehicles in view. All occurrences were on four lane interstate highways with no surrounding vehicles.

My car has a « yoke » steering wheel that feels unsafe and should be illegal along with the touch turn signals and horn. I almost crashed today when I had to swerve to avoid a mother crossing the road with her child. I tapped on the honk, but unfortunately, it’s not in the middle of the steering wheel as one one would expect, but it’s a small touch button right next to the cruise control touch button. each time i need to engage it, I have to take my arms off the road and find this button. It’s very distracting, especially in emergency situations. The turn signals are also « touch » only and there’s no way to really know if you have them or not. When turning in a roundabout, the yoke steering wheel is almost upside down and trying to signal is nearly impossible. I think the yoke steering wheel and touch buttons are marketing gimmicks used to get people to talk about Tesla at the expense of the safety of the owners and other innocent users of the road. This is extremely dangerous in my opinion and I’m now officially scared to be driving my car. Please make Tesla recall these cars and retrofit a normal steering wheel with a regular horn and stalks for the turn signals. Thank you for reading you are our only hope. See more feedback from Tesla owners here: https://teslamotorsclub.com/tmc/threads/model-s-plaid-delivery-and-first-impressions.235117/ Excuse typos I’m on mobile.

On at least nine occasions the car has very suddenly and with no input from driver braked hard during passing another vehicle, when assuming the original lane after passing a vehicle, and, on one occasion when no other vehicle was close by. I have brought all incidents to Tesla's attention. They tell me the problem resides in the software of the car and that they "are working on it". This is a very serious problem, which has been going on for over a year in my case. A totally unacceptable and extremely dangerous situation! Occurred in December 21, 2020; Several times during the summer of 2021, other sporadic times, and most recently on September 6 and 8, 2022

I recently took delivery of a Tesla Model S with the new steering "yoke" and lack of directional stalk. After having used this system for some time, I believe it to be extremely dangerous and ill-advised. First, Tesla eliminated the fixed-position directional stalk and moved directionals, wiper functions, high-beam functions and even the horn to small, poorly-defined "buttons" on the steering yoke. This change makes variable what should be fixed positioning for very important vehicle functions. In other words, these buttons become moving targets on an awkwardly-shaped spinning control surface that often requires the driver to take their eyes off the road in order to attempt even the most basic operations like signaling or using the horn. This is *extremely* difficult and *extremely* dangerous. For example, trying to signal when exiting a roundabout. In that maneuver, the yoke is nearly upside down and the buttons are backwards AND in the wrong hand. Or, operating the horn in an emergency situation. Rather than pressing the large center portion of a steering wheel, the driver must take their attention from the road in order to hunt for a small button in a random position on the yoke. Less critical but still important, the yoke itself is problematic in that it provides a reduced and awkwardly-shaped control surface, especially at low speed and in emergency situations.

This has to do with Tesla's new yoke steering wheel. I find myself awkwardly trying to make simple 90 degree turns. However, a more significant turn, such as a legal U turn, is altogether more dangerous. First you must twist your arms upside down to execute the turn, or you need to rotate grips but the wheel is only designed to be gripped while straight/upright. This causes a very real threat of missing your hold on the wheel. Then as you try to controllably/slowly straighten the vehicle the steering wheel rips through your hands before you can complete the turn. God forbid anyone attempts a hasty 3 point turn with a car approaching. In addition, I am a six foot tall male and my knees actually come in contact with the wheel as the lower outside corners of the trapezoidal shape protrude down and out. If I am gripping the outside of the wheel, at 9 and 3, my hands can also contact my knees. This is with the wheel tilted/moved up to its highest position. Then there's the turn signals which are much too easy to engage accidentally or engage incorrectly (touch left when you mean to touch right). The roll wheel which controls radio volume and track fwd is mm from the turn signals which are activated simply by touch, not depressing a button, which means inadvertently activating them happens commonly. To see if the turn signals are activated your eyes must find small blinking arrows at the bottom of Teslas 'videogame' display - what the car's cameras are detecting such as other cars, trucks, stop signs etc - the needlessly distracting display cannot be turned off. All of this made worse on a temptingly fast car. This wheel design is made for a track, not for consumer driving. People will die from this design, all in the name of "cool". Tesla has made other flashy design errors while trying to attract attention such as the model x's falcon wing doors, but they didn't pose danger. This one most certainly does.

The contact owns a 2021 Tesla Model S. The contact stated that on several occasions while the vehicle was stationary or while driving at various speeds, the instrument cluster screen went blank and was unable to control the vehicle. The contact experienced the failure approximately twenty times. The contact called the local dealer and made them aware of the failure. The vehicle was not diagnosed nor repaired. The manufacturer had been informed of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 45.

WHILE I WAS DRIVING MY NEW TESLA S (APPROXIMATELY 1000 MILES) ON A COUNTY ROAD, THE LEFT FRONT TIRE SUDDENLY CAME OFF MY CAR, WENT ACROSS A ROAD WITH ONCOMING TRAFFIC AND HIT A FENCE AT A LOCAL RESIDENCE. THERE WAS SUBSTANTIAL DAMAGE TO THE LEFT FRONT AREA OF THE CAR WHICH CAN BE SEEN FROM THE ATTACHED PHOTOS.FORTUNATELY, I HAD JUST EXITED THE GARDEN STATE PARKWAY WHERE I WAS DOING 65 MPH. I HAVE LITTLE DOUBT THAT IF THE ACCIDENT HAD OCCURRED 10 MINUTES EARLIER, THERE WOULD HAVE BEEN SEVERAL FATALITIES INCLUDING ME. ALTHOUGH TESLA CLAIMS TO PRODUCE LUXURY VEHICLES, IT LEASED ME A CAR THAT WAS INHERENTLY DANGEROUS AND COULD HAVE CAUSED A FATAL ACCIDENT.

REAR PARKING SAFETY CAMERA FAILING WITH GREEN LINE, BRAND NEW CAR.HAPPENS IN MOTION AND STATIONARY, IN STREET AND IN DRIVEWAY. HAPPENS MULTIPLE TIMES, HAVE CAUGHT ON VIDEO. LONG KNOWN ISSUE DATING BACK ON SAME MODEL AT LEAST TO 2018, SEE HTTPS://TESLAMOTORSCLUB.COM/TMC/THREADS/GREEN-LINE-ON-SCREEN-WHEN-CAMERA-IS-ON-AT-DARK.129223/ FOR IDENTICAL ISSUE. MULTIPLE SERVICE TRIPS, MORE TIME IN SERVICE THAN IN MY GARAGE, SERVICE CENTER SAYS THEY CANT FIX IT. QUOTE FROM SERVICE TICKET "UNFORTUNATELY THIS IS A KNOWN CONCERN AND IS UNDER INVESTIGATION AND THERE IS NOTHING WE CAN DO AT THIS TIME." SEE ITEM 5 IN SERVICE DOC. THIS PROBLEM MAKES IT MORE DIFFICULT TO SAFELY PARK OF BACKUP.

DRIVING ON HIGHWAY AT 65-70 MPH WITH AUTO PILOT AND SPEED CONTROL ENGAGED. WENT TO CHANGE LANES FROM LEFT TO RIGHT. PUT ON TURN SIGNAL, CANCELLED AUTO PILOT BY TURNING STEERING WHEEL TO RIGHT AND MOVED TO OPEN RIGHT LANE. THERE WERE NO VEHICLES AROUND US AT ALL. THE CAR SUDDENLY, UNEXPECTEDLY, AND VERY SHOCKINGLY SLAMMED ON THE BRAKES CAUSING ITEMS TO BE TOSSED AROUND IN THE CAR, ENGAGING ALL OF OUR SEAT BELTS WITH SOME DISCOMFORT, AND SENDING SOME LOUD ALARM OR WARNING SOUND TO GO OFF IN THE CAR. IT SCARED ME, MY WIFE AND DAUGHTER VERY MUCH. IF THERE HAD BEEN A VEHICLE IN THE LAND BEHIND US, THERE'S NO WAY THEY COULD HAVE AVOIDED HITTING US VERY VIOLENTLY AND CAUSING INJURY AND PROPERTY DAMAGE. THIS HAPPENED 2 OR 3 TIMES IN MY FORMER 2016 MODEL S, BUT I NEVER EXPECTED IT IN THIS 2021 MODEL. A GOOGLE SEARCH WILL REVEAL THE VAST NUMBER OF TESLA DRIVERS WHO HAVE HAD THE SAME OR SIMILAR EXPERIENCES.