Tesla Model S Vehicle Speed Control Problems
Owners have filed 276 complaints with NHTSA about vehicle speed control problems on the Tesla Model S across 13 model years. The 2016 model year has the most (81). The words owners use most often: “cruise control” (17% of reports).
- 276vehicle speed control complaints
- —median miles at failure
- 117mention a crash
- 44mention an injury
- 0related recalls
- 52%of reports with a speed happened at 50+ mph
What owners describe
Phrases that appear unusually often in these complaints compared with complaints about other cars.
- Cruise control: mentioned in 46 of 276 complaints (17%)
- Https www youtube: mentioned in 19 of 276 complaints (7%)
- Com watch: mentioned in 19 of 276 complaints (7%)
- Complaint autopilot: mentioned in 16 of 276 complaints (6%)
At what mileage do vehicle speed control problems happen?
Based on 163 complaints that reported the odometer reading.
How serious are the reports?
Of 276 complaints, 117 mention a crash, 3 a fire, 44 an injury.
Tesla Model S vehicle speed control complaints by model year
| Model year | Vehicle Speed Control complaints | Share of that year | Median miles |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 Model S | 2 | 29% | — |
| 2023 Model S | 7 | 6% | — |
| 2022 Model S | 9 | 6% | — |
| 2021 Model S | 16 | 9% | 8,000 |
| 2020 Model S | 8 | 10% | 2,500 |
| 2019 Model S | 3 | 7% | 4,538 |
| 2018 Model S | 27 | 16% | 7,255 |
| 2017 Model S | 35 | 8% | 11,000 |
| 2016 Model S | 81 | 13% | 5,000 |
| 2015 Model S | 40 | 6% | 25,193 |
| 2014 Model S | 22 | 6% | 30,000 |
| 2013 Model S | 25 | 5% | 40,000 |
| 2012 Model S | 1 | 2% | 65,000 |
When owners reported it
Related recalls (0)
No safety recall lists vehicle speed control for the Tesla Model S. A pattern of complaints does not always lead to a recall.
What owners report
Short excerpts of recent complaints, with personal details removed. Full reports are on NHTSA.gov.
Tesla removed speed control from their "full self-driving" product. They have removed the ability to conveniently switch to normal cruise control (have to pull over on freeway or get off freeway to park first) and speed profiles use outdated map data and frequently suddenly change speeds. Sometimes…
Tesla has taken away the ability to set maximum speed when using their Full Self Driving. THIS SHOULD BE ILLEGAL!!!! Now, the car can and will do 85 on a 60mph freeway! Sometimes you can't even tell you're speeding that fast until it's too late. INCREDIBLY DANGEROUS! They used to have that feature…
Speed profiles don't adhere to actual speed limits. Speed can be higher or lower than posted. I can be driving in a 55mph speed zone and it will drop to 35 then accelerate to 65. On roads that have no speed limit posted car tends to want to go 55 rather than a more sensible speed of under 30…
UPDATE to Complaint XXX. Reference VIN [XXX] Tesla Model S 2016. Incident XXX [XXX] XXX Report XXX. Tractor [XXX] Unit XXX + Trailer XXX. 11 sec forward camera video proves Tesla BEHIND trailer at Time 0, 30ft gap. Tesla travels 88ft (30ft gap + 53ft trailer + 5ft to diesel tank/step) in 3-4 sec to…
This complaint covers a 13-month continuous chain of severe electrical system failures stemming from a deficient federal safety recall remedy on my vehicle's Media Control Unit (MCU) architecture. Tesla's corporate policy has been to replace only the isolated center screen explicitly tracked by the…
Frequently asked questions
Do all Tesla Model Ss have vehicle speed control problems?
No. NHTSA has 276 owner complaints about vehicle speed control for the Tesla Model S. Complaint data shows that the problem is reported, not how many of all cars sold are affected.
Was there a recall on the Tesla Model S vehicle speed control?
No recall currently lists vehicle speed control for this vehicle.
What do owners say about vehicle speed control problems on the Tesla Model S?
The most frequent phrase is “cruise control”, in 46 of 276 complaints, followed by “https www youtube” (19).
Other Tesla Model S problems
- Electrical System problems (998)
- Suspension problems (732)
- Steering problems (346)
- Forward Collision Avoidance problems (337)
- Service Brakes problems (203)
- Exterior Lighting problems (197)
- Structure problems (158)
- Power Train problems (148)
See all Tesla Model S problems.