2012 Tesla MODEL S

Problems, Recalls & Reliability Report

Average

Quick Summary

The 2012 Tesla MODEL S has 89 owner complaints filed with NHTSA — that's 1.1x the segment average of 80. The most common issue is electrical problems (42% of all complaints), specifically: the right rear door handle became non-functional when attempting to open the car from outside the car. after service by the manufacturer (tesla), the door handle became exteriorly functional, although to a decreased amount compared to optimal performance, but was left in a state of inoperability f. ⚠️ 1 fire report filed.

1 fire report 3 crash reports 6 injuries

Total Complaints

Recalls Issued

—/5

Safety Stars

1.1x

vs Segment Avg

Known Problems

ELECTRICAL

37 complaints

42%

• THE RIGHT REAR DOOR HANDLE BECAME NON-FUNCTIONAL WHEN ATTEMPTING TO OPEN THE CAR FROM OUTSIDE THE CAR. AFTER SERVICE BY THE MANUFACTURER (TESLA), THE DOOR HANDLE BECAME EXTERIORLY FUNCTIONAL, ALTHOUGH TO A DECREASED AMOUNT COMPARED TO OPTIMAL PERFORMANCE, BUT WAS LEFT IN A STATE OF INOPERABILITY F
• THIS COMPLAINT MAY REFER TO THE REFERENCE NUMBER PROVIDED BELOW: NHTSA ACTION NUMBER: DP19005 - INVESTIGATION SUBJECT: BATTERY MANAGEMENT SOFTWARE UPDATES TO WHOM IT MIGHT CONCERN, BACK TO MAY 2019, TESLA PUSHED A SOFTWARE UPDATE, FIRMWARE NUMBER 2019.16.2, TO MY CAR VIA OVER-THE-AIR(OTA) MET
• EACH TIME THE TESLA S IS STARTED THE LARGE TOUCH DISPLAY SCREEN IS INOPERATIVE. NO FUNCTION ON THE SCREEN WORKS. THE REARVIEW CAMERA, CELL PHONE OR ANY FUNCTION-HAVE,SUNROOF,GARAGE DOOR CLOSE, ETC. THE SCREEN HAS TO BE RESET TAKING 5 MINUTES. THE CAR CAN BE DRIVEN BY ALL SCREEN FUNCTIONS INCLUDING C

Typical onset: 50K miles Est. repair: $500

“THE RIGHT REAR DOOR HANDLE BECAME NON-FUNCTIONAL WHEN ATTEMPTING TO OPEN THE CAR FROM OUTSIDE THE CAR. AFTER SERVICE BY THE MANUFACTURER (TESLA), THE DOOR HANDLE BECAME EXTERIORLY FUNCTIONAL, ALTHOUGH TO A DECREASED AMOUNT COMPARED TO OPTIMAL PERFORMANCE, BUT WAS LEFT IN A STATE OF INOPERABILITY F”

— NHTSA complaint filing

OTHER

15 complaints

17%

• THE RIGHT REAR DOOR HANDLE BECAME NON-FUNCTIONAL WHEN ATTEMPTING TO OPEN THE CAR FROM OUTSIDE THE CAR. AFTER SERVICE BY THE MANUFACTURER (TESLA), THE DOOR HANDLE BECAME EXTERIORLY FUNCTIONAL, ALTHOUGH TO A DECREASED AMOUNT COMPARED TO OPTIMAL PERFORMANCE, BUT WAS LEFT IN A STATE OF INOPERABILITY F
• THE TOUCHSCREEN ON MY 2012 TESLA MODEL S BECOMES UNRESPONSIVE EACH TIME I START THE CAR. THIS DRAMATICALLY LIMITS THE CAR'S FUNCTIONALITY AND REQUIRES A SEVERAL MINUTE LONG RESET PROCESS. THE CAR IS STATIONARY AS IT HAPPENS WHEN I FIRST TRY TO START IT. *TR
• LOSS OF REAR VIEW CAMERA. THE MIDDLE TOUCH SCREEN OR MCU QUIT WORKING. THIS IS MY 3RD MCU. THE CAR HAS 41K MILES. THE LAST ONE LASTED JUST OVER 1 YEAR, JUST OUT OF A 1 YEAR WARRANTY. THE MCU CONTROLS ALMOST ALL FEATURES OF THE CAR, INCLUDING THE REAR CAMERA FOR BACKING UP. *TR

Typical onset: 50K miles Est. repair: $500

— NHTSA complaint filing

SUSPENSION

9 complaints

10%

• I AM FILING THESE COMPLAINTS IN THE PUBLIC INTEREST. I AM NOT A TESLA OWNER AND I HAVE NO INVESTMENT IN TESLA NOR DO I HOLD ANY SHARES IN THE STOCK-MARKET. THIS CAR IS IN THE WRECKING YARD. THE FRONT SUSPENSION HAS FAILED AND THE WHEEL IS PUSHED BACK AGAINST THE HIGH VOLTAGE CONTROLLER. HTTP:
• THIS IS THE STOLEN CAR WHICH CRASHED IN HOLLYWOOD. PHOTOGRAPHS AT THE SCENE SHOW 3/4 OF A WHEEL AND THE TIRE LYING ON THE GROUND. HERE IS THE LISTING AT THE SALVAGE AUCTION SITE. HTTP://IMGUR.COM/A/H7ROA THE CRASH SITE IMAGES HOW THE FRONT WHEEL BROKEN LOOSE. THE SALVAGE YARD PHOTOGRAPHS SHOW
• NOTICED THIS PROBLEM AFTER I WAS BACKING UP AND TURNING MY WHEELS AND WOULD HEAR A LOUD METAL ON METAL "CLUNK" OR "GRINDING" SOUND. IT WAS COMING FROM THE FRONT-LEFT SUSPENSION AND WOULD OCCUR CAUSING MY WHEEL AND STEERING TO FEEL LIKE IT WAS SKIPPING. I NOTICED AND MY STEERING FELT "LOOSE" OVER

Typical onset: 50K miles Est. repair: $500🔥 1 fire reports💥 3 crashes

“I AM FILING THESE COMPLAINTS IN THE PUBLIC INTEREST. I AM NOT A TESLA OWNER AND I HAVE NO INVESTMENT IN TESLA NOR DO I HOLD ANY SHARES IN THE STOCK-MARKET. THIS CAR IS IN THE WRECKING YARD. THE FRONT SUSPENSION HAS FAILED AND THE WHEEL IS PUSHED BACK AGAINST THE HIGH VOLTAGE CONTROLLER. HTTP:”

— NHTSA complaint filing

VISIBILITY

6 complaints

• THE HEATER AND DEFROSTER STOPPED WORKING IN THIS COLD WEATHER AS WE WERE DRIVING HOME WITH MY SONS. THEY WERE FREEZING AND COLD. I WAS NOT ABLE TO SEE CLEARLY RATHER VERY FOGGY WINDSHIELD DUE TO NON-WORKING CABIN HEATER AND DEFROSTER. THIS ISSUE HAD HAPPENED TO MANY MANY TESLA OWNERS, INFACT MODEL
• ON NOVEMBER 23RD 2020 I TOOK MY MODEL S ([XXX]) TO TESLA SERVICE CENTER LANCASTER, PA FOR THE TESLA WARRANTY ADJUSTMENT PROGRAM WHICH WAS ANNOUNCED ON NOVEMBER 9TH AND RELATED TO MALFUNCTIONING TOUCHSCREEN DUE TO A MALFUNCTIONING EMMC. THIS IS THE RESULT OF THE SERVICE VISIT; 1) TESLA LANCASTER,
• This is related to NHTSA recall 21V-035. Tesla replaced the 8Gb memory card with a 64Gb memory card (so I'm told) but the main car display screen still does not function most of the time. This results in; -unavailability of the rearview camera display -defrost/defog control settings unavailable for

Typical onset: 50K miles Est. repair: $500

“THE HEATER AND DEFROSTER STOPPED WORKING IN THIS COLD WEATHER AS WE WERE DRIVING HOME WITH MY SONS. THEY WERE FREEZING AND COLD. I WAS NOT ABLE TO SEE CLEARLY RATHER VERY FOGGY WINDSHIELD DUE TO NON-WORKING CABIN HEATER AND DEFROSTER. THIS ISSUE HAD HAPPENED TO MANY MANY TESLA OWNERS, INFACT MODEL ”

— NHTSA complaint filing

TRANSMISSION

5 complaints

• CAR WON'T START, COMPUTER PROBLEMS ON MULTIPLE OCCASIONS, AFTER MULTIPLE CALLS TESLA HAD NO RECORD OF PRIOR COMPLAINTS AND NO REMEDY. LEFT STRANDED MULTIPLE TIMES. *TR
• The contact owns a 2012 Tesla Model S. The contact stated while driving at various speeds, there was an abnormal humming sound detected coming from the drive unit. There was no warning light illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer and diagnosed that the drive unit needed to be replace
• The contact owns a 2012 Tesla Model S. The contact stated while driving 20 MPH, the vehicle independently shifted to neutral. An unknown warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer who informed the contact that they could not duplicate the failure. The contact stated that the

Typical onset: 50K miles Est. repair: $500

“CAR WON'T START, COMPUTER PROBLEMS ON MULTIPLE OCCASIONS, AFTER MULTIPLE CALLS TESLA HAD NO RECORD OF PRIOR COMPLAINTS AND NO REMEDY. LEFT STRANDED MULTIPLE TIMES. *TR”

— NHTSA complaint filing

Estimated Repair Costs

ELECTRICAL(~50K mi)

$500

OTHER(~50K mi)

$500

SUSPENSION(~50K mi)

$500

VISIBILITY(~50K mi)

$500

TRANSMISSION(~50K mi)

$500

Estimates based on average reported repair costs. Actual costs vary by location, shop, and severity.

🔍 Pre-Purchase Inspection Checklist

Based on 89 owner complaints for this specific year, here's what to check or ask about:

☐
ELECTRICAL: THE RIGHT REAR DOOR HANDLE BECAME NON-FUNCTIONAL WHEN ATTEMPTING TO OPEN THE CAR FROM OUTSIDE THE CAR. AFTER SERVICE BY THE MANUFACTURER (TESLA), THE DOOR HANDLE BECAME EXTERIORLY FUNCTIONAL, ALTHOUGH TO A DECREASED AMOUNT COMPARED TO OPTIMAL PERFORMANCE, BUT WAS LEFT IN A STATE OF INOPERABILITY F
Typically appears around 50K miles. Repair cost ~$500
☐
OTHER: THE RIGHT REAR DOOR HANDLE BECAME NON-FUNCTIONAL WHEN ATTEMPTING TO OPEN THE CAR FROM OUTSIDE THE CAR. AFTER SERVICE BY THE MANUFACTURER (TESLA), THE DOOR HANDLE BECAME EXTERIORLY FUNCTIONAL, ALTHOUGH TO A DECREASED AMOUNT COMPARED TO OPTIMAL PERFORMANCE, BUT WAS LEFT IN A STATE OF INOPERABILITY F
Typically appears around 50K miles. Repair cost ~$500
☐
SUSPENSION: I AM FILING THESE COMPLAINTS IN THE PUBLIC INTEREST. I AM NOT A TESLA OWNER AND I HAVE NO INVESTMENT IN TESLA NOR DO I HOLD ANY SHARES IN THE STOCK-MARKET. THIS CAR IS IN THE WRECKING YARD. THE FRONT SUSPENSION HAS FAILED AND THE WHEEL IS PUSHED BACK AGAINST THE HIGH VOLTAGE CONTROLLER. HTTP:
Typically appears around 50K miles. Repair cost ~$500
☐
VISIBILITY: THE HEATER AND DEFROSTER STOPPED WORKING IN THIS COLD WEATHER AS WE WERE DRIVING HOME WITH MY SONS. THEY WERE FREEZING AND COLD. I WAS NOT ABLE TO SEE CLEARLY RATHER VERY FOGGY WINDSHIELD DUE TO NON-WORKING CABIN HEATER AND DEFROSTER. THIS ISSUE HAD HAPPENED TO MANY MANY TESLA OWNERS, INFACT MODEL
Typically appears around 50K miles. Repair cost ~$500
☐
General: Get a pre-purchase inspection from an independent mechanic ($100-$200)