2013 Tesla Model S Problems and Recalls (455 Complaints)
The most-reported problem on the 2013 Tesla Model S is Electrical (25% of 455 owner reports). There are 11 safety recalls. Check the VIN and inspect Electrical — this is the NHTSA file, not a score.
NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation Snapshot 2026-09-07 455 complaints · 11 recalls
What problems show up on the 2013 Tesla Model S?
112 of 455 filings named Electrical (25% of the file). That is what owners wrote, not a shop diagnosis of the vehicle in the driveway.
Second is Suspension (79 reports).
There are 11 official safety recalls on this year. They were filed about Electrical, Seat belts, Airbags, Steering, and Rear camera / backup safety. Check the VIN at nhtsa.gov — a campaign on this page can still be open on a specific truck.
The 2012 has 61 reports on file; this year has 455. Older years collect more reports just by being on the road longer. If you need a fairer comparison, use the equal-time view.
What owners reported
System named most often: Electrical 112 complaints · 24.6% of the file
Crashes, fires, injuries and deaths in those filings:
- Crashes 41
- Fires 19
- Injuries 24
- Deaths 5
NHTSA Consumer Complaints Snapshot 2026-09-07 Open source record Read our complete data methodology →
Complaint counts reflect self-selected reports and are not normalised for production sales volume. We publish no reliability scores, superlatives, or vehicle rankings.
Which systems owners named
Share of owner complaints filed against each vehicle system. These shares are not adjusted for how many vehicles were sold.
“Unclassified NHTSA leftover” is not a car part. It is a filing bucket and always sits last.
View component data as a table
| System / Component | Complaints | Share of Reports | Safety Reports (Crashes / Fires) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Electrical (ELECTRICAL SYSTEM) | 112 | 24.6% | 4 crashes · 12 fires |
| Suspension (SUSPENSION) | 79 | 17.4% | 10 crashes · 4 fires |
| Transmission / driveline (POWER TRAIN) | 24 | 5.3% | 0 crashes · 0 fires |
| Steering (STEERING) | 18 | 4.0% | 1 crashes · 1 fires |
| Body / frame (STRUCTURE) | 14 | 3.1% | 0 crashes · 0 fires |
| Lights (EXTERIOR LIGHTING) | 13 | 2.9% | 0 crashes · 0 fires |
| Fuel system (FUEL SYSTEM) | 13 | 2.9% | 2 crashes · 0 fires |
| Brakes (SERVICE BRAKES) | 13 | 2.9% | 6 crashes · 0 fires |
| Cruise / speed control (VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL) | 13 | 2.9% | 10 crashes · 0 fires |
| Unclassified NHTSA leftover | 138 | 30.3% | 6 crashes · 3 fires |
NHTSA Consumer Complaints, NHTSA Safety Recalls, and NHTSA Defect Investigations Snapshot 2026-09-07 Open source record
Complaint counts reflect self-selected reports and are not normalised for production sales volume. We publish no reliability scores, superlatives, or vehicle rankings.
When reports and recalls showed up
When owners filed reports, and when recall campaigns showed up.
- Campaign 14V006000 was reported 21 days after the first earlier complaint mapped to its component.
- Campaign 18V031000 was reported 1,277 days after the first earlier complaint mapped to its component.
- Campaign 18V204000 was reported 1,695 days after the first earlier complaint mapped to its component.
- Campaign 21V035000 was reported 50 days after the first earlier complaint mapped to its component.
- Campaign 23V838000 was reported 3,641 days after the first earlier complaint mapped to its component.
- Campaign 24V051000 was reported 3,690 days after the first earlier complaint mapped to its component.
- Campaign 24V153000 was reported 3,718 days after the first earlier complaint mapped to its component.
- Campaign 24V376000 was reported 1,308 days after the first earlier complaint mapped to its component.
View timeline records as a table
| Date | Record type | Count | Record identifier |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2013-Q1 | Owner reports | 1 | |
| 2013-Q3 | Owner reports | 4 | |
| 2013-Q4 | Owner reports | 7 | |
| 2014-Q1 | Owner reports | 7 | |
| 2014-Q3 | Owner reports | 8 | |
| 2014-Q4 | Owner reports | 1 | |
| 2015-Q1 | Owner reports | 1 | |
| 2015-Q2 | Owner reports | 3 | |
| 2015-Q3 | Owner reports | 3 | |
| 2016-Q1 | Owner reports | 1 | |
| 2016-Q2 | Owner reports | 15 | |
| 2016-Q3 | Owner reports | 8 | |
| 2016-Q4 | Owner reports | 9 | |
| 2017-Q1 | Owner reports | 13 | |
| 2017-Q2 | Owner reports | 5 | |
| 2017-Q3 | Owner reports | 8 | |
| 2017-Q4 | Owner reports | 6 | |
| 2018-Q1 | Owner reports | 7 | |
| 2018-Q2 | Owner reports | 5 | |
| 2018-Q4 | Owner reports | 3 | |
| 2019-Q1 | Owner reports | 5 | |
| 2019-Q2 | Owner reports | 4 | |
| 2019-Q3 | Owner reports | 5 | |
| 2019-Q4 | Owner reports | 17 | |
| 2020-Q1 | Owner reports | 13 | |
| 2020-Q2 | Owner reports | 44 | |
| 2020-Q3 | Owner reports | 68 | |
| 2020-Q4 | Owner reports | 33 | |
| 2021-Q1 | Owner reports | 23 | |
| 2021-Q2 | Owner reports | 9 | |
| 2021-Q3 | Owner reports | 14 | |
| 2021-Q4 | Owner reports | 10 | |
| 2022-Q1 | Owner reports | 11 | |
| 2022-Q2 | Owner reports | 15 | |
| 2022-Q3 | Owner reports | 14 | |
| 2022-Q4 | Owner reports | 5 | |
| 2023-Q1 | Owner reports | 5 | |
| 2023-Q2 | Owner reports | 5 | |
| 2023-Q3 | Owner reports | 10 | |
| 2023-Q4 | Owner reports | 3 | |
| 2024-Q1 | Owner reports | 1 | |
| 2024-Q2 | Owner reports | 2 | |
| 2024-Q3 | Owner reports | 1 | |
| 2024-Q4 | Owner reports | 3 | |
| 2025-Q1 | Owner reports | 2 | |
| 2025-Q2 | Owner reports | 2 | |
| 2025-Q3 | Owner reports | 3 | |
| 2025-Q4 | Owner reports | 4 | |
| 2026-Q1 | Owner reports | 5 | |
| 2026-Q2 | Owner reports | 4 | |
| Recall campaign | 1 | 13V249000 | |
| Recall campaign | 1 | 14V006000 | |
| Recall campaign | 1 | 15V780000 | |
| Recall campaign | 1 | 17V260000 | |
| Recall campaign | 1 | 18V031000 | |
| Recall campaign | 1 | 18V204000 | |
| Recall campaign | 1 | 21V035000 | |
| Recall campaign | 1 | 23V838000 | |
| Recall campaign | 1 | 24V051000 | |
| Recall campaign | 1 | 24V153000 | |
| Recall campaign | 1 | 24V376000 | |
| Defect investigation | 1 | PE13037 | |
| Defect investigation | 1 | DP19005 | |
| Defect investigation | 1 | DP20001 | |
| Defect investigation | 1 | PE20010 | |
| Defect investigation | 1 | EA20003 | |
| Defect investigation | 1 | PE20020 | |
| Defect investigation | 1 | EA21002 | |
| Defect investigation | 1 | EA22002 | |
| Defect investigation | 1 | DP22005 | |
| Defect investigation | 1 | DP23001 | |
| Defect investigation | 1 | DP23002 | |
| Defect investigation | 1 | RQ24009 |
Safety Recalls (11)
Official campaigns. Each one says what could go wrong and what the dealer was told to fix.
In short, these campaigns were filed about Electrical, Seat belts, Airbags, Steering, and Rear camera / backup safety.
-
Recall campaign 13V249000
Safety recall 13V249000
- Report date
- Component:
- Not available in the source record
- Consequence:
- In the event of a crash, the left hand seat back may not stay mounted, increasing the risk of injury to passengers.
- Remedy:
- Tesla will notify owners, and Tesla Service Centers will inspect the left hand second row strikers. Tesla will add additional mounting hardware to ensure a proper joint between the bracket and the frame, free of charge. The recall began on June 24, 2013. Owners may contact Tesla at 1-650-681-5000.
-
Recall campaign 14V006000
Electrical
- Report date
- Component:
- Electrical (ELECTRICAL SYSTEM)
- Consequence:
- An overheated adapter, cord, or wall outlet increases the risk of burn injury and/or fire.
- Remedy:
- Tesla will notify owners and provide an over-the-air (OTA) software update. Some owners have already received this update. This update allows the Model S on board charging system to detect any unexpected fluctuations in the input power or higher resistance connections to the vehicle. If detected, the onboard charging system will automatically reduce the charging current by 25%. Tesla owners can verify that they have received the updated software (version 5.8.4 or later) by viewing the vehicle's center information screen. Additionally, Tesla will mail owners a replacement NEMA 14-50 adapter that is equipped with an internal thermal fuse. The recall began on March 14, 2014. Owners may contact Tesla Service Center at 1-877-79-TESLA (1-877-798-3752).
-
Recall campaign 15V780000
Seat belts
- Report date
- Component:
- Seat belts (SEAT BELTS)
- Consequence:
- 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.
- Remedy:
- 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.
-
Recall campaign 17V260000
Safety recall 17V260000
- Report date
- Component:
- Not available in the source record
- Consequence:
- 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.
- Remedy:
- 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.
-
Recall campaign 18V031000
Airbags
- Report date
- Component:
- Airbags (AIR BAGS)
- Consequence:
- An inflator explosion may result in sharp metal fragments striking the driver or other occupants resulting in serious injury or death.
- Remedy:
- Tesla will notify owners, and Tesla Service Centers will replace the passenger frontal air bag modules, free of charge. The recall is expected to begin in March 2018. Owners may contact Tesla customer service at 1-877-798-3752. Tesla's number for this recall is SB-18-20-001.
-
Recall campaign 18V204000
Steering
- Report date
- Component:
- Steering (STEERING)
- Consequence:
- Loss of power steering assist would require a higher steering effort, especially at lower speeds, which may increase the risk of a crash.
- Remedy:
- 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.
-
Recall campaign 21V035000
Rear camera / backup safety
- Report date
- Component:
- Rear camera / backup safety (BACK OVER PREVENTION)
- Consequence:
- 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.
- Remedy:
- 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.
-
Recall campaign 23V838000
Electrical
- Report date
- Component:
- Electrical (ELECTRICAL SYSTEM)
- Consequence:
- 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.
- Remedy:
- 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.
-
Recall campaign 24V051000
Electrical
- Report date
- Component:
- Electrical (ELECTRICAL SYSTEM)
- Consequence:
- 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.
- Remedy:
- 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.
-
Recall campaign 24V153000
Electrical
- Report date
- Component:
- Electrical (ELECTRICAL SYSTEM)
- Consequence:
- Pedestrians may be unaware of an approaching vehicle if the PWS sounds are muted, increasing the risk of a crash.
- Remedy:
- Tesla released an over-the-air (OTA) software update, release 2023.44.30.14, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed April 27, 2024. Owners may contact Tesla customer service at 1-877-798-3752. Tesla's number for this recall is SB-24-00-006.
-
Recall campaign 24V376000
Seat belts
- Report date
- Component:
- Seat belts (SEAT BELTS)
- Consequence:
- A seat belt warning system that fails to alert occupants of an unbelted seat belt can increase the risk of injury during a crash.
- Remedy:
- 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.
Complaint counts reflect self-selected reports and are not normalised for production sales volume. We publish no reliability scores, superlatives, or vehicle rankings.
What owners actually wrote
Short excerpts from the public NHTSA file. Look for the same symptom repeating.
Data: NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation · snapshot 2026-09-07
Showing 5 of 455 complaints · page 1 of 19
CrashFireInjuryDeath
The vehicle has suffered a catastrophic, intermittent low-voltage network crash caused by a failing Body Control Module (BCM), resulting in multiple dangerous safety-critical failure modes. On a previous occasion, the vehicle woke up with severe network faults and automatically forced itself into Neutral. When the driver stepped out to get the child and shut the door, the system crashed entirely and the exterior electronic door handles failed to present, trapping an infant child inside the running vehicle. Most recently, while driving in a rainstorm, the vehicle suffered a complete failure of the windshield wipers, a total loss of the high-beam headlights, a total loss of the horn, and a total loss of electronic communication to the electronic parking brake system. Most critically, the vehicle experienced an uncommanded propulsion hazard where it hard-locked itself in the 'Drive' gear and absolutely refused to shift into 'Park' or 'Neutral,' forcing the driver to physically maintain heavy hydraulic brake pressure to keep the vehicle from creeping forward. Because the horn failed and the parking brake was disabled, the driver was trapped in the driver's seat holding the brakes and was forced to call 911 for emergency first responders to come and physically block the wheels so the driver and infant could safely exit. Tesla Service has diagnosed the issue as a failed central Body Control Module (Part #1010906-00-D), but the cascading network failure modes present an extreme, life-threatening hazard regarding vehicle control and child entrapment.
CrashFireInjuryDeath
This issue appears to be related to a known MCU failure affecting early Tesla Model S vehicles. The touchscreen exhibits screen melting/discoloration and eventually goes blank or becomes inoperative. When this occurs, critical functions including occupant detection indicators, seatbelt warnings, and windshield defrost controls may become unavailable. The loss of these functions creates potential safety risks involving visibility, occupant protection, and driver awareness while operating the vehicle."
CrashFireInjuryDeath
This issue appears to be related to a known MCU failure affecting early Tesla Model S vehicles. The touchscreen exhibits screen melting/discoloration and eventually goes blank or becomes inoperative. When this occurs, critical functions including occupant detection indicators, seatbelt warnings, and windshield defrost controls may become unavailable. The loss of these functions creates potential safety risks involving visibility, occupant protection, and driver awareness while operating the vehicle."
CrashFireInjuryDeath
While driving my 2013 Tesla Model S at normal road speed, the vehicle suddenly lost all propulsion without any warning. I had to coast and maneuver across traffic to avoid being hit before the car came to a stop. After shifting into Park, the vehicle displayed DI_w072 and DI_f072 gate‑drive faults, which indicate inverter/drive‑unit failure and match a pattern reported by other early‑model‑year Tesla owners. This sudden loss of motive power created a serious safety hazard, including risk of rear‑end collision and exposure to oncoming traffic while disabled. • No alerts appeared before the failure • Fault codes appeared only after the vehicle stopped • Vehicle required towing • Incident occurred under normal driving conditions • Tesla has denied responsibility or involvement It was serviced by Tesla a couple days before. During servicing they stated on one side the drive axle was not completely installed upon arrival. They stated they "popped it in for free but the drive unit will likely need replacement soon." Prior to this visit i have had no issues or alerts with these parts or systems, I declined any work to these areas. The next day after receiving my vehicle back, I discovered the coolant reservoir was completely empty. No warning was provided that the coolant system had been left unfilled, and the lack of coolant may have contributed to thermal damage in the drive unit or inverter. They denied any work they did involve these parts and denied any responsibility. They denied my request to have the car towed to their service center and diagnose it unless i paid for it. They also estimated the repair to cost me 6k without any further investigation. I request that NHTSA evaluate whether this failure mode represents a broader defect affecting 2012–2015 Model S drive units/inverter electronics and whether further investigation or recall is warranted.
CrashFireInjuryDeath
Vehicle lights turned off while driving home with my family. Pulling over and turning off and on the car reset the problem. When lights turned off I received a warning light identifying a faulty right headlight and faulty left headlight. No accident and vehicle is currently outside manufacture warranty.
Frequently asked questions
What are the most common problems on the 2013 Tesla Model S?
Owners named Electrical most often — 112 of 455 reports (25%). That is the NHTSA file, not a diagnosis of every vehicle.
Are there recalls for the 2013 Tesla Model S?
NHTSA lists 11 safety recall campaigns. They were filed about Electrical, Seat belts, Airbags, Steering, and Rear camera / backup safety. Check the VIN at nhtsa.gov; a campaign on this page can still be open on a specific vehicle.
What should I inspect before buying a 2013 Tesla Model S?
Look up the VIN for open recalls. Have a shop scan for stored codes and check battery, charging and any warning lights that stay on. Then skim owner filings for the same symptom and take that list to a mechanic.
Does a high complaint count mean I should skip this year?
No. Counts are reports people chose to file and they are not adjusted for sales volume. YearTell does not publish scores or a list of years to skip. Inspect the vehicle.
Estimated Ownership Cost
EPA fuel economy ratings and annual operating cost estimates
Data: US EPA Fuel Economy Guide · snapshot 2026-08-21
Adjacent Model Years
Immediate preceding and succeeding model year records
Complaint counts reflect self-selected reports and are not normalised for production sales volume. We publish no reliability scores, superlatives, or vehicle rankings.
Methodology & Data Integrity
Source: NHTSA ODI / recalls, snapshot 2026-09-07. YearTell is not a government agency.