2016 Tesla Model S acceleration & cruise control problems

Related recalls

No recalls on file.

What owners say

1. Filed Aug 19, 2026CACrashDriver Assistance & Safety TechAcceleration & Cruise Control

   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 lateral impact at driver diesel tank/step. Calculation: 88ft/3sec=29ft/sec avg requires 50-60 mph peak. At 5 mph (7.33 ft/sec) would need 12 sec - impossible. Proves Sudden…

   NHTSA complaint #11758003 · source
2. Filed Aug 15, 2026CAElectrical SystemAcceleration & Cruise Control

   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 recall while leaving connected legacy components intact on mismatched architecture. This creates an uneven electrical strain loop that has systematically destroyed my vehicle’s…

   NHTSA complaint #11757143 · source
3. Filed Jun 29, 2026CAElectrical SystemFuel, Hybrid & EV PropulsionAcceleration & Cruise Control

   On 6/11/26, around 2:10 pm, when i was slowly pulling over to park on a road side, the car suddenly rushed forward unexpectedly. It was so powerful, at the time I could only hear the panic reactions from the two passengers and sense the imminent collision with the parked bmw in the front of several car length away. Right before the collision i steered the wheel to the right to avoid the bmw and my car came to violent halt less than a foot next to the bmw. I came out of my…

   NHTSA complaint #11747285 · source
4. Filed May 4, 2026CAElectrical SystemAcceleration & Cruise ControlTransmission & Drivetrain

   I own a 2016 Model S 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…

   NHTSA complaint #11735433 · source
5. Filed May 4, 2026CAElectrical SystemAcceleration & Cruise ControlTransmission & Drivetrain

   I own three 2016 Tesla vehicles with the same known safety defect: two Model S P100D and one Model X P100D, all 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…

   NHTSA complaint #11735429 · source
6. Filed Feb 5, 2026MDCrashAcceleration & Cruise Control

   I was parking the car and gently tapped on the accelerator to inch forward. The car accelerated suddenly, crashed into a concrete sign holder, and knocked down a sign, until I was able to stop it using the breaks. The accident caused $5000 worth of damage that I paid out of pocket to fix, since I assumed I must have made a mistake. However when I got the car back a month later, unintended acceleration happened AGAIN - under the same circumstances. I was parking and inching…

   NHTSA complaint #11715871 · source
7. Filed Dec 15, 2024PABrakesDriver Assistance & Safety TechAcceleration & Cruise Control

   My car slams on the brakes consistently at green lights when FSD is activated. This is version 12.5.4.2 of FSD. Tesla is not responding to my inquiries.

   NHTSA complaint #11630835 · source
8. Filed Nov 27, 2024CAAcceleration & Cruise Control

   The accelerating pedal is the one that was affect it is available upon request for inspection. It put me in danger because while I was driving, it snapped off. Has not been inspected by others. There was no warning lamps and it just happened out of nowhere as well. I was driving.

   NHTSA complaint #11627727 · source
9. Filed Oct 31, 202493,000 miPACrashTowedAcceleration & Cruise Control

   The contact owns a 2016 Tesla Model S. The contact stated that while turning into a parking spot, there was an unintended acceleration of the vehicle; it surged forward, jumped the parking barrier, and crashed into a wall. There were no warning lights illuminated. A police report was filed. There was no reported fire, injuries, or air bag deployment. The vehicle was towed to a body shop. The local dealer was not contacted. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The…

   NHTSA complaint #11622945 · source
10. Filed Oct 17, 2024MDCrash1 injuredTowedAcceleration & Cruise Control

    On September 7th, 2024 around 7:35 PM, my tesla model S 2016 Suddenly accelerated, smashed in the siding of my house breaking the the siding of the wall and was totaled. All of this happened while my mom was trying to park the car in the garage the car suddenly took off without her pressing the accelerator. I have tesla to send an engeneer to collect the data of the car in which they said they did but have not yet gotten back to me on the issue. They informed me that they…

    NHTSA complaint #11620457 · source
11. Filed May 7, 2024CACrashDriver Assistance & Safety TechAcceleration & Cruise ControlSteering

    Incident Tesla Model S was up to date on recalls as far as we can tell, including the recent autopilot update via Tesla internet vehicle update releases. While driving in autopilot mode on the freeway in the lane next to the HOV lane, the autopilot got confused as to which lane it should keep and failed to maintain its lane. Incident vehicle drifted across the double lines into the HOV lane, where another Tesla Model S was driving. Both cars were damaged in the ensuing side…

    NHTSA complaint #11587408 · source
12. Filed Dec 1, 2023NYCrash1 injuredTowedElectrical SystemFuel, Hybrid & EV PropulsionAcceleration & Cruise Control

    Sudden unintended acceleration appeared to cause the Tesla while parking the car on the street in front of home accelerate go out of control and crash into the home totaling the car and damaging the house. Two days prior the vehicle was brought into a Tesla service location where Tesla replaced the 12 volt battery that they believed was causing the car not to power on properly at that time. After the crash and googling to see if others suffered similar issues it appears the…

    NHTSA complaint #11558021 · source

Source: U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) Office of Defects Investigation public data. Complaints are submitted by owners and are not verified by NHTSA or by us; a complaint does not prove a defect exists. View this vehicle on NHTSA.gov Methodology