2016 Tesla Model X Problems and Recalls (444 Complaints)
The most-reported problem on the 2016 Tesla Model X is Suspension (29% of 444 owner reports). There are 12 safety recalls. Check the VIN and inspect Suspension — this is the NHTSA file, not a score.
NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation Snapshot 2026-09-07 444 complaints · 12 recalls
What problems show up on the 2016 Tesla Model X?
130 of 444 filings named Suspension (29% of the file). That is what owners wrote, not a shop diagnosis of the vehicle in the driveway.
Second is Electrical (44 reports).
There are 12 official safety recalls on this year. They were filed about Steering, Body / frame, Rear camera / backup safety, Electrical, and Seat belts. Check the VIN at nhtsa.gov — a campaign on this page can still be open on a specific truck.
The previous year is not published here. Use the year list to jump around.
What owners reported
System named most often: Suspension 130 complaints · 29.3% of the file
Crashes, fires, injuries and deaths in those filings:
- Crashes 62
- Fires 4
- Injuries 36
- Deaths 1
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) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Suspension (SUSPENSION) | 130 | 29.3% | 14 crashes · 3 fires |
| Electrical (ELECTRICAL SYSTEM) | 44 | 9.9% | 5 crashes · 0 fires |
| Body / frame (STRUCTURE) | 33 | 7.4% | 3 crashes · 0 fires |
| Steering (STEERING) | 31 | 7.0% | 2 crashes · 0 fires |
| Glass / wipers / cameras (VISIBILITY) | 26 | 5.9% | 0 crashes · 0 fires |
| Cruise / speed control (VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL) | 20 | 4.5% | 15 crashes · 0 fires |
| Automatic braking / collision warning (FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE) | 15 | 3.4% | 3 crashes · 0 fires |
| Wheels (WHEELS) | 11 | 2.5% | 2 crashes · 0 fires |
| Lights (EXTERIOR LIGHTING) | 9 | 2.0% | 0 crashes · 0 fires |
| Unclassified NHTSA leftover | 148 | 33.3% | 18 crashes · 1 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 16V192000 was reported 20 days after the first earlier complaint mapped to its component.
- Campaign 17V639000 was reported 574 days after the first earlier complaint mapped to its component.
- Campaign 20V062000 was reported 1,289 days after the first earlier complaint mapped to its component.
- Campaign 20V710000 was reported 1,687 days after the first earlier complaint mapped to its component.
- Campaign 21V035000 was reported 8 days after the first earlier complaint mapped to its component.
- Campaign 22V037000 was reported 2,011 days after the first earlier complaint mapped to its component.
- Campaign 23V085000 was reported 2,395 days after the first earlier complaint mapped to its component.
- Campaign 23V838000 was reported 2,530 days after the first earlier complaint mapped to its component.
- Campaign 24V051000 was reported 2,579 days after the first earlier complaint mapped to its component.
- Campaign 24V376000 was reported 1,088 days after the first earlier complaint mapped to its component.
- Campaign 24V615000 was reported 3,054 days after the first earlier complaint mapped to its component.
View timeline records as a table
| Date | Record type | Count | Record identifier |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2016-Q1 | Owner reports | 1 | |
| 2016-Q2 | Owner reports | 7 | |
| 2016-Q3 | Owner reports | 27 | |
| 2016-Q4 | Owner reports | 6 | |
| 2017-Q1 | Owner reports | 21 | |
| 2017-Q2 | Owner reports | 19 | |
| 2017-Q3 | Owner reports | 10 | |
| 2017-Q4 | Owner reports | 9 | |
| 2018-Q1 | Owner reports | 3 | |
| 2018-Q2 | Owner reports | 3 | |
| 2018-Q3 | Owner reports | 2 | |
| 2018-Q4 | Owner reports | 4 | |
| 2019-Q2 | Owner reports | 4 | |
| 2019-Q3 | Owner reports | 4 | |
| 2019-Q4 | Owner reports | 12 | |
| 2020-Q1 | Owner reports | 10 | |
| 2020-Q2 | Owner reports | 8 | |
| 2020-Q3 | Owner reports | 44 | |
| 2020-Q4 | Owner reports | 33 | |
| 2021-Q1 | Owner reports | 28 | |
| 2021-Q2 | Owner reports | 20 | |
| 2021-Q3 | Owner reports | 15 | |
| 2021-Q4 | Owner reports | 8 | |
| 2022-Q1 | Owner reports | 6 | |
| 2022-Q2 | Owner reports | 11 | |
| 2022-Q3 | Owner reports | 14 | |
| 2022-Q4 | Owner reports | 17 | |
| 2023-Q1 | Owner reports | 14 | |
| 2023-Q2 | Owner reports | 11 | |
| 2023-Q3 | Owner reports | 5 | |
| 2023-Q4 | Owner reports | 8 | |
| 2024-Q1 | Owner reports | 8 | |
| 2024-Q2 | Owner reports | 8 | |
| 2024-Q3 | Owner reports | 3 | |
| 2024-Q4 | Owner reports | 8 | |
| 2025-Q1 | Owner reports | 12 | |
| 2025-Q2 | Owner reports | 7 | |
| 2025-Q3 | Owner reports | 2 | |
| 2025-Q4 | Owner reports | 4 | |
| 2026-Q1 | Owner reports | 5 | |
| 2026-Q2 | Owner reports | 2 | |
| 2026-Q3 | Owner reports | 1 | |
| Recall campaign | 1 | 16V192000 | |
| Recall campaign | 1 | 17V260000 | |
| Recall campaign | 1 | 17V639000 | |
| Recall campaign | 1 | 20V062000 | |
| Recall campaign | 1 | 20V710000 | |
| Recall campaign | 1 | 21V035000 | |
| Recall campaign | 1 | 22V037000 | |
| Recall campaign | 1 | 23V085000 | |
| Recall campaign | 1 | 23V838000 | |
| Recall campaign | 1 | 24V051000 | |
| Recall campaign | 1 | 24V376000 | |
| Recall campaign | 1 | 24V615000 | |
| Defect investigation | 1 | PE16007 | |
| Defect investigation | 1 | DP19005 | |
| Defect investigation | 1 | DP20001 | |
| Defect investigation | 1 | PE20010 | |
| Defect investigation | 1 | EA20003 | |
| Defect investigation | 1 | PE20020 | |
| Defect investigation | 1 | PE21020 | |
| Defect investigation | 1 | EA21002 | |
| Defect investigation | 1 | EA22002 | |
| Defect investigation | 1 | DP22005 | |
| Defect investigation | 1 | DP23001 | |
| Defect investigation | 1 | DP23002 | |
| Defect investigation | 1 | RQ24009 | |
| Defect investigation | 1 | PE24031 | |
| Defect investigation | 1 | PE24033 | |
| Defect investigation | 1 | AQ25002 | |
| Defect investigation | 1 | PE25012 | |
| Defect investigation | 1 | EA26002 |
Safety Recalls (12)
Official campaigns. Each one says what could go wrong and what the dealer was told to fix.
In short, these campaigns were filed about Steering, Body / frame, Rear camera / backup safety, Electrical, and Seat belts.
-
Recall campaign 16V192000
Safety recall 16V192000
- Report date
- Component:
- Unclassified NHTSA leftover
- Consequence:
- If the third row seat does not remain in its adjusted position, there may be an increased risk of injury to an occupant in the event of a crash.
- Remedy:
- Tesla will notify owners, and dealers will replace all affected third row seats, free of charge. The recall began on April 20, 2016. Owners may contact Tesla customer service at 1-844-248-3752 or by email at ServiceHelpNA@teslamotors.com. Tesla's number for this recall is SB-16-13-003
-
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 17V639000
Safety recall 17V639000
- Report date
- Component:
- Unclassified NHTSA leftover
- Consequence:
- If the seat back moves forward in the event of a crash, it can increase the risk of injury.
- Remedy:
- Tesla will notify owners, and Tesla service technicians will correct the cable adjustment for the left-side, fold-flat, second row, seat recliner mechanism, free of charge. The recall began on November 10, 2017. Owners may contact Tesla customer service at 1-877-798-3752. Tesla's number for this recall is SB-17-13-004.
-
Recall campaign 20V062000
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 with coated steel bolts, and add a corrosion-preventative sealer to the steering gear motor housing and motor connection bolts. If the mounting bolts are found to be broken or break during removal and cannot be removed, a new steering gear will also be installed. All services will be performed free of charge. The recall began February 15, 2021. Owners may contact Tesla customer service at 1-877-798-3752.
-
Recall campaign 20V710000
Body / frame
- Report date
- Component:
- Body / frame (STRUCTURE)
- Consequence:
- Trim that separates from the vehicle during use can cause a road hazard and increase the risk of a crash.
- Remedy:
- Tesla will notify owners, and dealers will test the roof trim adhesion, and, as necessary, apply primer, free of charge. The recall began January 15, 2021. Owners may contact Tesla customer service at 1-877-798-3752. Tesla's number for this recall is SB-20-12-005. This recall has been superseded by Recall 24V615 (SB-24-12-008).
-
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 22V037000
Steering
- Report date
- Component:
- Steering (STEERING)
- Consequence:
- Failing to stop at a stop sign can increase the risk of a crash.
- Remedy:
- Tesla will perform an over-the-air (OTA) software update that disables the "rolling stop" functionality, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed March 28, 2022. Owners may contact Tesla customer service at 1-877-798-3752. Tesla's number for this recall is SB-22-00-001.
-
Recall campaign 23V085000
Steering
- Report date
- Component:
- Steering (STEERING)
- Consequence:
- FSD Beta software that allows a vehicle to exceed speed limits or travel through intersections in an unlawful or unpredictable manner increases the risk of a crash.
- Remedy:
- Tesla will release an over-the-air (OTA) software update, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed April 15, 2023. Owners may contact Tesla customer service at 1-877-798-3752. Tesla's number for this recall is SB-23-00-001.
-
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 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.
-
Recall campaign 24V615000
Body / frame
- Report date
- Component:
- Body / frame (STRUCTURE)
- Consequence:
- Trim that separates from the vehicle during use can create a road hazard and increase the risk of a crash.
- Remedy:
- Tesla service will test the roof trim adhesion and reattach the trim pieces as necessary, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed October 14, 2024. Owners may contact Tesla customer service at 1-877-798-3752. Tesla's number for this recall is SB-24-12-008. Vehicles previously repaired under recall 20V-710 will need to have the new inspection and remedy completed.
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 4 of 444 complaints · page 1 of 18
CrashFireInjuryDeath
I was driving the vehical when something went wrong. The vehicle showed a warning stating "ABS disabled". I was worried by this, when I saw further warnings appear including "Safety restraint system issue" "Power braking assist reduced" and something about steering. The dashboard also showed "Park Brake fault" and a red icon with a seatbelt and another with an airbag. Alarmed, I pulled to the side of the road. I then discovered that I could not use the parking brake or turn on the flashers. There is no manual parking brake, and the car thought it was still driving. I was facing downhill and the only way to keep the car from rolling was to keep my foot on the brake. I had to call 911 and could only safely exit the vehicle, after they had ensured it would not roll. Again, I could not exit the vehicle, or even put on flashers to warn traffic. Tesla attempted to have me reboot the operating system but this also failed -- apparently there is no manual reboot or brake avalible.
CrashFireInjuryDeath
I own a 2016 Tesla Model X P100D equipped with the Large Drive Unit (LDU). The component that fails is the rotor coolant seal in the rear drive unit motor. Coolant leaks internally into the motor and inverter, causing bearing wear, corrosion, isolation faults, and eventual complete drive unit failure. The affected drive units are still installed and available for inspection upon request. This defect puts my safety and the safety of others at risk because it can cause sudden loss of propulsion (especially at highway speeds), power reduction, or total drivetrain shutdown, potentially leading to a crash. Coolant in high-voltage areas also raises electrical fault/fire risks. The problem is widely reproduced and confirmed: Tesla service centers are familiar with it and replace failed units with updated “-U” revisions that include a coolant bypass. Independent EV shops confirm the exact root cause (rotor seal failure) via encoder inspections showing coolant intrusion and through disassembly. This is a documented pattern failure in all 2012–2020 LDU vehicles. No police or insurance inspections have occurred yet, as no crash or total failure has happened. Tesla is aware of the recurring issue through service records on similar vehicles. Early symptoms before full failure typically include rear motor whining/grinding (especially under load), reduced power warnings, “Rear Drive Unit Fault” messages, and visible coolant on the speed sensor. These can appear gradually. My vehicles have not yet experienced total failure, but the defect is known to be inevitable. I am proactively monitoring encoder sensors. Because this is a systemic design defect affecting thousands of vehicles with clear safety implications, I request NHTSA open an investigation and require Tesla to issue a recall for free repairs/replacements on all affected 2012–2020 LDU vehicles.
CrashFireInjuryDeath
The rack-and-pinion system failed, causing steering to become difficult at low speeds and worsening rapidly over weeks. It was inspected by a mechanic at EV Coastal in Santa Ana, who said it was not the U-Joint or bolt corrosion issue addressed by an earlier NHTSA recall. There were no notifications either visible to me or to the mechanic in service mode. The accident was at low speeds and a partial cause was my daughter's difficulty making a smooth adjustment with the steering wheel. She was pulling out of a parking spot and collided with a car going a little faster than it should have in a parking lot. Fortunately, the damage was limited to a scratch to the passenger side door of the other car (see photo) and scratches to the right side of the front fender of the Tesla.
CrashFireInjuryDeath
Coolant heater failure resulting in no regenerative braking .
Frequently asked questions
What are the most common problems on the 2016 Tesla Model X?
Owners named Suspension most often — 130 of 444 reports (29%). That is the NHTSA file, not a diagnosis of every vehicle.
Are there recalls for the 2016 Tesla Model X?
NHTSA lists 12 safety recall campaigns. They were filed about Steering, Body / frame, Rear camera / backup safety, Electrical, and Seat belts. 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 2016 Tesla Model X?
Look up the VIN for open recalls. Listen for clunks over bumps and look at tire wear for alignment issues. 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.