2021 Tesla Model S owner complaints
Most named: forward collision avoidance
48 of 179 complaints
- Crashes
- 13
- Fires
- 2
- Injuries
- 5
- Deaths
- 1
Owner complaints to the US safety agency (NHTSA), 2021 models.
Components named most often
A complaint can name more than one component.
| Component | Complaints | Share of complaints |
|---|---|---|
| Forward collision avoidance | 48 | 27% |
| Other or not specified | 45 | 25% |
| Steering | 29 | 16% |
| Electrical system | 25 | 14% |
| Service brakes | 16 | 9% |
| Suspension | 16 | 9% |
Complaints by model year
Rivals, 2021
| Rival | Complaints |
|---|---|
| Tesla Model Y | 1,080 |
| Tesla Model 3 | 665 |
| Audi A6 Allroad | 26 |
| Audi A7 | 6 |
| BMW M3 | 3 |
| Mercedes-Benz CLS | 1 |
What this cannot tell you
Counts, not rates. Sales volume differs by model.
Complaints are owner reports, not confirmed defects.
Source: NHTSA complaints data (api.nhtsa.gov), public domain. Collected 2026-10-05.
- Two or more sources agree
- One source
- Model-level or estimate
- Sources differ