2015 Tesla Model S Driver Assist & ADAS Problems

The car veered suddenly to the left (out of the left lane of a highway) while supervised in auto steer. The driver could not move the steering wheel to avoid a collision with the guardrail as the steering wheel had locked up. The collision warning didn’t sound and emergency brakes did not activate upon impact. The airbags were deployed and the car was totaled.

The vehicle was involved in an accident due to a failure of the autopilot system. There was a recall letter sent out of 23V-838 a month prior, but changes either did not persist or was the primary cause of the accident.

When backing out of my garage, and reverse my car often times stops violently on its own

Tesla sent an “Over the Air” software update to my car that compromised the original functionality as designed at the date of manufacture. The software includes advancements that when installed on the original MCU1 hardware causes connectivity issues and significant delays in the Tesla Autopilot system, making the safety assistance system untrustworthy. Tesla informed me this is expected behavior when using the new software on the MCU1 hardware and that it was on the customer to upgrade to the newer MCU2 hardware at a cost of $2250 even when the car is covered under a full warranty.

When passing an off-ramp with a vertical wall next to the lane in which the car is travelling, the car sometimes rapidly slows down for no apparent reason. This has occurred at only two such off-ramps: North bound I-5 at 317th in Federal Way only while in the HOV lane and North bound on I-5 at the Berkeley Avenue SW exit at Camp Murray from the right lane.

The contact owns a 2015 Tesla Model S. The contact stated that the center display screen became inoperable. The contact stated that the defroster, exterior lights, back-up camera and radio were inoperable. The contact stated that the vehicle occasionally stalled. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer where it was diagnosed and determined that the center display screen needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The contact related the failure to NHTSA Campaign Number: 21V035000 (Back Over Prevention, Visibility, Exterior Lighting) however, the VIN was not included. The manufacturer was contacted, and the contact was referred to the dealer. The failure mileage was approximately 79,000.

Sudden braking for no reason. On Autopilot on freeway. Sudden braking from 70 MPH to 15 MPH. Happens about 1 in 3 road trips. No car in front.

The contact owns a 2015 Tesla Model S. The vehicle had previously been serviced under NHTSA Campaign Number: 21V035000 (Back Over Prevention, Visibility, Exterior Lightning) however, the failure occurred after the recall was repaired. The contact stated that while driving at an 60 mph, the center display screen went black and then rebooted, causing the defroster, the rearview camera display, and the navigational system to become inoperable. The auto pilot function and other unknown warning messages were displayed. The vehicle was not diagnosed nor repaired by an independent mechanic or dealer. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 56,000. When he reported the failure to Tesla, they believe a firmware update in the near future should fix this problem.

The contact owns a 2015 Tesla Model S. The contact stated that the backup camera functioned intermittently and on other occasions, the image would remain frozen on the screen. The contact also stated that the MCU Unit failed and went blank on several occasions. While driving on some occasions, the MCU Unit would reboot. In addition, the defroster and turn signal chimes failed to function. The failure had gotten progressively worse. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where the vehicle was serviced under NHTSA Campaign Number: 21V035000 (Back Over Prevention, Visibility, Exterior Lighting) however, the failure persisted. The service center offered the contact a special offer of $2,000 for an Entertainment System Upgrade (NVIDIA Tegra 3 to Intel Atom Processor). The contact declined and Tesla acknowledged that there was a known issue with NVIDIA Tegra 3 Processor in the MCU and that an upgrade to the NVIDIA Tegra 3 would resolve the known failure. The contact was concerned that the backup camera failure might result in a crash with another vehicle or pedestrian. The vehicle had been taken to the dealer on three separate occasions and on each occasion, the vehicle remained in their possession for approximately 2 weeks. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 80,000.

The contact owns a 2015 Tesla Model S. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 21V035000 (Back Over Prevention, Visibility, Exterior Lighting) however, the part to do the recall repair was unavailable. The contact took the vehicle to the local dealer and it was confirmed that the part was not yet available. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufacturer had not been made aware of the issue. The contact had not experienced a failure. Parts distribution disconnect.

The contact owns a 2015 Tesla Model S. The contact received a recall notification for NHTSA Campaign Number: 21V035000 (Back Over Prevention, Visibility, Exterior Lighting) however, the dealer informed the contact that the vehicle had to experience the failure for the recall repair to be completed. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufacturer was not notified of the issue. The contact had not experienced a failure. Parts distribution disconnect.

MY VEHICLE IS SUBJECT TO THE TESLA MCU RECALL, IN WHICH THE SUBSTANDARD EMMC WAS KILLED BY EXCESSIVE LOGGING AND RENDERING THE ENTIRE MCU INOPERATIVE. I HAD THE MCU REPLACED PRIOR TO THE RECALL, AND FILED THE REIMBURSEMENT CLAIM WHEN IT WENT LIVE. TESLA DENIED MY CLAIM, STATING THAT THE REPLACEMENT WAS DONE FOR REASONS OTHER THAN THOSE SPECIFIED IN THE RECALL. OTHER TESLA OWNERS REPORT SIMILAR CLAIM DISMISSALS. TESLA MUST BE LEGALLY FORCED TO HONOR THE RECALL AND REIMBURSEMENT ORDER.

WHEN MY MCU FAILS, I RECEIVE A MESSAGE THAT SAYS, "AUTOPILOT SAFETY/CONVENIENCE FEATURES UNAVAILABLE." TESLA'S TEXT MESSAGES TO ME STATE: - "THE ISSUE THAT YOU EXPERIENCED WITH THE CENTER DISPLAY RESETTING .. WAS A CONTINUATION OF THE FIRMWARE ISSUE WE HAD IDENTIFIED..."- "THIS WAS CAUSED BY A KNOWN FIRMWARE ISSUE",- "WE DO HAVE A COUPLE OF KNOWN FIRMWARE ISSUES THAT CAUSING OCCASIONAL RESETS OR SLOW PERFORMANCE",- "SINCE THERE ARE NO REPAIRS TO BE MADE AT THIS TIME .. I WILL GO AHEAD AND CLOSE YOUR SERVICE REQUEST" [AND EFFECTIVELY REFUSING TO REPAIR MY CAR UNDER THE WARRANTY ADJUSTMENT PROGRAM] THIS ISSUE IS NOT AN ACADEMIC OR FINANCIAL ONE. I WAS DRIVING ON AN INTERSTATE FREEWAY IN HEAVY RAIN APPROACHING A NEEDED CHARGING STOP WHEN I SUDDENLY LOST CONTROL OF THE HEAT AND DEFROST SYSTEMS, THE CRUISE CONTROL, ALL NAVIGATION DISPLAYANDCONTROL, AND THE "SAFETY SYSTEMS" WHICH I ASSUME ARE AEB. I HAD TO EITHER RISK PULLING OVER ON THE FREEWAY, WHICH IS NEVER COMPLETELY SAFE, OR SCRAMBLE WITH THE NAVIGATION ON MY PHONE TO MAKE SURE I KNOW WHICH EXIT TO TAKE. ON SEVERAL OTHER OCCASIONS, I HAVE LOST SIMILAR SYSTEMS AND THE BACK UP CAMERA FEED AS I WAS BACKING UP OR NEEDING TO BACK UP. TESLA HAS REFUSED TO HONOR ITS WARRANTY ADJUSTMENT PROGRAM IN WRITTENTEXT MESSAGES, IS CREATING AN ONGOING RISK TO THE PUBLIC, AND SEEMS TO HAVE, IN ADDITION TO THE KNOWN MEMORY ISSUE, A KNOWN BUT UNCORRECTED SOFTWARE PROBLEM THAT SIGNIFICANTLY IMPLICATES SAFETY. I STRONGLY ENCOURAGE NHTSA TO FOLLOW UP ON THE ISSUES RAISED BY TESLA'S ACTIONS ASAP. THANK YOU FOR YOUR ATTENTION TO THIS MATTER.

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2015 TESLA MODEL S. THE CONTACT STATED THAT WHILE OPERATING THE VEHICLE, THE MASTER CONTROL UNIT WAS INOPERABLE. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE BACK OVER PREVENTION CAMERA DISPLAY AND TURN SIGNALS WERE INOPERABLE. THE CAUSE OF THE FAILURE WAS NOT DETERMINED. THE LOCAL DEALER TESLA ATLANTA LOCATED AT 3393 PEACHTREE RD NE, ATLANTA, GA 30326 WAS MADE AWARE OF THE FAILURE. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOT NOTIFIED OF THE FAILURE. THE APPROXIMATE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 50,000.

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2015 TESLA MODEL S. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE BACK OVER PREVENTION CAMERA FAILED TO ILLUMINATE PROPERLY. AN ERROR MESSAGE WAS DISPLAYED AND INDICATED THAT THE CENTER DISPLAY WAS UNAVAILABLE. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO TESLA (1901 DEL MONTE BLVD, SEASIDE, CA 93955, (831) 264-6896) WHERE IT WAS DIAGNOSED AND DETERMINED THAT THE MEDIA CONTROL UNIT NEEDED TO BE REPLACED. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOT MADE AWARE OF THE FAILURE. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS APPROXIMATELY 75,000.

8:15 AM, 6/19/20, I HEAD A SICKENING THWACK FROM THE STREET FROM ABT 300 YDS AWAY. EERILY, BEC SOMETHING VERY LARGE WAS HIT WITH NO SOUND OF SQUEALING BRAKES OR CRIES, I WENT OUT FRONT TO LOOK LEFT WITHOUT SEEING ANYTHING. THEN I LOOKED RIGHT AND SAW A MAN CROUCHED TO THE GROUND BESIDE A CAR. I IOOKED FURTHER RT & SAW THE BACK OF A MAN THROWN FACE-FIRST INTO MY TREES. I DIDN'T IMME REGISTER WHAT I WAS LOOKING AT UNTIL I RECOGNIZED THE BODY AS MY HUSBAND, SCREAMED, & RAN TO HIM. HE WAS SNORING LOUDLY. I WAS AFRAID TO TOUCH HIM, SO I HOVERED OVER HIM CALLING HIS NAME. HE DID NOT RESPOND. I TURNED TO THE STREET, SCREAMING AT PASSERS-BY TO CALL 911. THE CROUCHING MAN SAID HE HAD, BUT I WAS FEARFUL OF HIM & THOUGHT, "HOW DO I KNOW YOU HAVE? WHY ARE YOU SO FAR AWAY? DIDN'T YOU EVEN COME OVER TO CHECK ON HIM?" I KEPT SCREAMING AS DRIVERS STOPPED THEIR CARS AND PEOPLE GATHERED. OUR 19-YR-OLD DAUGHTER CAME RUNNING OUT OF THE HOUSE, FOLLOWED BY OUR 17 AND 15-YR-OLD SONS. AN AMBULANCE CAME AND TOOK MY HUSBAND, REFUSING ME BECAUSE OF COVID. THEN I SPOKE WITH 1 OF 2 POLICE WHILE THE OTHER SPOKE TO THE DRIVER OF THE TESLA. HE SAID THE DRIVER ADMITTED TO BEING ON HIS PHONE AS THE CAR DROVE ITSELF, NEVER SEEING MY HUSBAND AND DRIVING 45 MPH. WHEN HE SAID I COULD LEAVE, I WENT TO THE ER WHERE I WAS IMME TOLD MY HUSBAND HAD SUSTAINED SEVERE BRAIN DAMAGE TO BOTH SIDES OF HIS BRAIN AND CATASTROPHIC OTHER INJURIES. A POLICE INVESTIGATOR MET ME AT THE ER. INVESTIGATION OF THE VEHICLE & DOWNLOAD OF THE COMPUTER WERE COMPLETED AT POLICE STATION. I WAS TOLD THE TESLA HAD BEEN IN 1 PRIOR AX, BUT HAD NOT REGISTERED "AN EVENT" ON 6/19. LAWYER PRESENT DID SAY THE CAR WAS IN "AUTOPILOT" & SEV SYSTEMS HAD MALFUNCTIONED: AIRBAG, BRAKING, WARNING SOUND, VEERING AWAY, ETC. I WAS LATER TOLD HE WAS DOA, BUT BROUGHT BACK.10 MOS LATER, HUSBAND IS A NON-COMMUNICATING QUADRIPLEGIC, SEVERE TBI, FEEDING TUBE.

The contact owns a 2015 Tesla Model S. The contact stated while driving at various speeds, the main center display failed not allowing the contact to use the rearview camera, the turn signals, and all the electrical functions. There was no warning light illuminated. The vehicle was taken to a local dealer where it was diagnosed with the eMMC flash memory device needing to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired. The contact stated that a couple of days later he received notification of NHTSA campaign number: 21V035000 (Back Over Prevention, Visibility, Exterior lighting). The manufacturer was informed of the failure and referred the contact to the NHTSA for assistance. The failure mileage was approximately 49,274.