Tesla Model S cruise control problems, 2016–2026
187 of the 1,842 complaints owners filed with NHTSA about the Tesla Model S 2016–2026 name the cruise control (NHTSA’s “Vehicle Speed Control” heading — cruise control, adaptive cruise and unintended-acceleration reports). The loudest years: 2016 (81), 2017 (35), 2018 (27). Filed under the same heading across these years: 2 NHTSA investigations. Every figure is a linked federal record; none is a failure rate, none a repair cost, and none a verdict on one car.
Tesla Model S cruise control problems by model year
Source: NHTSA complaints, recalls, investigations and manufacturer communicationsOne row per model year on file, newest first. A year marked in depth has its own page: the complaints, the owners’ words and every document under this heading for that year.
| Model year | Complaints naming the cruise control | Share of the year’s | Typically at | On file under the heading | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 2 | 50% | — | — | the year → |
| 2025 | 0 | — | — | — | the year → |
| 2024 | 0 | — | — | — | the year → |
| 2023 | 6 | 5% | — | 1 investigation | the year → |
| 2022 | 9 | 7% | — | 1 investigation | the year → |
| 2021 | 16 | 9% | — | 1 investigation | the year → |
| 2020 | 8 | 10% | — | 1 investigation | the year → |
| 2019 | 3 | 7% | — | 2 investigations | the year → |
| 2018 | 27 | 16% | 8k | 2 investigations | the year → |
| 2017 | 35 | 8% | 10k | 2 investigations | the year → |
| 2016 in depth | 81 | 13% | 5k | 2 investigations | the record → |
Two things the counts carry that are not the car: how many of each year were sold, and how long each has been on the road — an older year out-counts a newer one before anything is wrong with it. The share column is the honest comparison across years: what part of that year’s complaints named the cruise control. Nothing here is a rate.
When the cruise control complaints were filed, and at what mileage
Source: NHTSA complaint databaseFiled per calendar year, every model year together: 2016: 27 · 2017: 12 · 2018: 19 · 2019: 10 · 2020: 33 · 2021: 10 · 2022: 31 · 2023: 16 · 2024: 10 · 2025: 5 · 2026: 14
Across the model years, half of the 100 owners who gave an odometer reading reported the cruise control problem between 2,000 and 20,000 miles. A median of reports, not the life of a part.
In owners’ own words
Source: NHTSA complaint databaseFiled with NHTSA by the people who own these cars, about the cruise control, from the model years with the most to say. Quoted as written, with anything identifying removed; unverified reports — what was said, not a finding that it was true.
Must we wait for more deaths before the Tesla autopilot is banned? Here is a new video from russia? Showing the driver placing lives in danger. Youtube. Com/watch?v=gm_5oeidd_e here is a video showing the death of a young man in china and the effect this tragedy has on his family. Youtube.
Here is another complaint about the Tesla autopilot to draw attention to the way in which owners are behaving in real life. The proposed upgrades to the autopilot will do nothing to prevent the behavior shown in this video. Youtube.
On 12/03/20 at around 9:57am, after I slowly turned left into a parking near a white truck and just about to back up into my company's EV charging parking lot then the car suddenly sped forward climbing over the curb of the median separating the parking area and a driveway on the side of another company's building then running thru the…
This is a complaint about the Tesla autopilot. Please note that the VIN of a random Tesla Model S has been used to enable me to file this complaint. Here is a freshly uploaded youtube video of some kids fooling around with autopilot and putting many lives at risk. Youtube.
Driving on a freeway at 75mph with autopilot turned on, the car suddenly braked, requiring manual intervention to accelerate to intended speed. After this the car continued as normal. There was no visible obstruction. Fortunately I have had this happen while a vehicle has not been behind me otherwise there is a possiblity of a crash
What is on file about the cruise control, across the years
Source: NHTSA recalls, investigations and manufacturer communicationsNHTSA investigations
- DP23002 Sudden Unintended Accelerationopened Jun 29, 2023 · open
- The Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) received a petition requesting that ODI reevaluate its decision to deny DP20-001 on the basis that intermittent high electrical current demands on the vehicles' 12VDC systems may have caused some or all of the incidents examined by ODI in DP20-001. The petitioner bases this information on a review of open-source research and the DP20-001 denial. The petiti…
- DP20001 Sudden Unintended Accelerationopened Jan 13, 2020 · closed Jan 8, 2021
- On December 19, 2019, NHTSA received a petition from Mr. Brian Sparks requesting that the Agency recall all [Tesla] Model S, Model X, and Model 3 vehicles produced from 2013 to the present due to sudden unintended acceleration (SUA). In his petition and follow-up submissions, the petitioner identified a total of 232 non-duplicative complaints to NHTSA, including 203 reporting crashes. On January 1…
Other systems with a record on the Tesla Model S
Source: the same filesEvery system, every model year: Tesla Model S problems by year →
Common questions
Source: NHTSA complaint database, recalls and manufacturer communicationsWhich Tesla Model S years have the most cruise control complaints?
2016, 81; 2017, 35; 2018, 27. Raw counts, and an older year has had longer to collect them; by share of each year's own complaints the loudest is the 2026 (50%).
Is there a recall for the cruise control on the Tesla Model S?
No recall campaign is filed under this heading on any of these model years. A bulletin is not a recall: it carries no federal duty to repair for free.
When do cruise control problems show up on the Tesla Model S?
Owners who gave an odometer reading reported it at a median of 6,500 miles across the model years; half of them between 2,000 and 20,000. That is when reports cluster, not the life of a part.
What does NHTSA's "Vehicle Speed Control" heading cover?
Cruise control, adaptive cruise and unintended-acceleration reports. Owners choose the heading when they file, so it says which area of the vehicle the complaint is about, not which part failed.