Tesla Model S - Problems, Statistics, and Analysis

Tesla Model S owners have reported a total of 4,494 problems for their cars built in the 15 model years listed in the chart below. The chart shows the number of problems reported across all service years for each given model year of the Tesla Model S. The 2015 Tesla Model S cars have the most problems reported (907 problems).

Table 1. Total number of problems by model year for Tesla Model S

🔍 Common problems of Tesla Model S

The following chart shows the 26 most common problems for Tesla Model S cars. The number one most common problem is related to the vehicle's electrical system (930 problems). The second most common problem is related to the vehicle's equipment (815 problems).

Table 2. Common problems of Tesla Model S

Problem Category Number of Problems
  Electrical System
930
  Equipment
815
  Suspension
535
  Forward Collision Avoidance
328
  Steering
265
  Vehicle Speed Control
206
  Exterior Lighting
190
  Visibility
171
  Service Brakes
159
  Structure
142
   
  Power Train
133
  Lane Departure
113
  Other Fuel System
98
  Back Over Prevention
78
  Air Bag
74
  Wheel
71
  Engine And Engine Cooling
54
  Electronic Stability Control
43
  Latches/locks/linkage
24
  Tire
23
  Seat Belt
20
  Seats
14
  Parking Brake
5
  Gasoline Fuel System
1
  Equipment Adaptive/mobility
1
 
1

📉 Compare Reliability Across Model Years Using PPMY Index

It would not be fair to compare the Tesla Model S of an older model year to newer model years since older vehicles have been in service longer and thus are expected to have more problems. In order to compare the reliability across Model S model years, we use the PPMY index which is defined as the problems reported per thousand vehicles per Year. A smaller PPMY index indicates greater reliability of the given model year cars.

    PPMY = P / S / Y * 1000,

where P = total problems reported during the life of a Tesla Model S model year; S = total units sold of the model year; Y = years since the debut of the model year (the age of the vehicle).

The results are shown in Table 3.

Table 3. Use PPMY Index to Compare Reliability Across Model S Model Years

Model S
Model Year
Problems Sales [1] Vehicle
Age
PPMY Index
  2020 11214,0146    
1.33
  2019 658,9577    
1.04

📊 Number of Problems Reported During the First Year

Another way to measure the reliability across the model years of the Tesla Model S is to use the total number of problems reported during the vehicle's first year in service, as shown in the Table 4.

Table 4. Number of problems in vehicle's; first service year

Model YearProblems Reported
  2025 Model S
5
  2024 Model S
37
  2023 Model S
38
  2022 Model S
77
  2021 Model S
32
  2020 Model S
29
  2019 Model S
11
  2018 Model S
15
  2017 Model S
29
  2016 Model S
2
  2013 Model S
1


Model S Service Bulletins
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