2024 Tesla Model S: what breaks, and at what mileage
What breaks on the 2024 Tesla Model S
On the 2024 Tesla Model S, the failure owners report most often is lane keep or steering assist fault, with 42 reports on file. Across every failure mode on this year, half the dated reports were filed before 5,000 miles. Overall it scores 72 out of 100, high risk for a 2024.
High risk for a 2024 — 133rd riskiest of the 226 2024 vehicles we can rate. 78 owner reports; fleet size estimated from this year's own recall paperwork.
What owners report breaking
Owners have reported 14 named failure modes on the 2024 Tesla Model S, and the three most-reported carry 67% of everything filed, so the trouble here is concentrated rather than scattered.
Lane keep or steering assist fault leads with 42 reports and about 0.4 per 1,000 vehicles.
Other electrical problem follows with 7 reports, median 5,000 miles.
Turbocharger or supercharger failure follows with 3 reports.
By system, the reports fall mostly into adas (44), electrical (7) and engine (5).
When these failures get reported
Too few of the reports on this year carry an odometer reading to describe the timing: 2 of them do. The mileages quoted elsewhere on this page come from the modes that have enough of them.
Tick median reported mileage Solid middle half of reports Faint 10th to 90th percentile Colour how bad the failure is when it happens
Showing the 12 most-reported failure modes of 14. The full list is in the table below.
How reports accumulate
Every report with an odometer reading, cumulative, from 0 to 200,000 miles. A curve that climbs early is a car with early problems, whatever its total.
- Line share of reports filed by that mileage
How bad it is when it goes
Across the named modes, 1 mentions a crash and 1 an injury. Those are the words owners used in their own complaints, and NHTSA does not verify them, but they are the closest thing in this data to a measure of what a failure actually did.
The average severity weight across every report on this year is 3.64, where a stalled engine or a failed airbag weighs many times more than a rattling trim panel, and a figure this high means the reports are dominated by failures with safety consequences rather than annoyances. The weighting is set out in full on the methodology page.
What the top failures cost to put right, as editorial estimates for an independent US shop rather than figures from NHTSA: lane keep or steering assist fault at $200–$1,600, other electrical problem at $250–$2,000, turbocharger or supercharger failure at $1,500–$4,500 and cruise control failure at $200–$1,400. Dealer labour, a seized bolt or a part that is no longer made can push any of these past the top of its range.
8% of the reports on this year sit in the engine, transmission, drivetrain or cooling systems — the four where a repair bill is usually four figures.
Every reported failure mode
| Failure mode | System | Reports | With reading | 25th | Median | 75th | Per 1,000 | Typical repair | Severity |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lane keep or steering assist fault | adas | 42 | 0 | — | — | — | 0.4 | $200–$1,600 | High |
| Other electrical problem | electrical | 7 | 2 | — | 4k | — | 0.1 | $250–$2,000 | Moderate |
| Turbocharger or supercharger failure | engine | 3 | 0 | — | — | — | 0.0 | $1,500–$4,500 | High |
| Cruise control failure | adas | 2 | 0 | — | — | — | 0.0 | $200–$1,400 | High |
| Alignment fault and uneven tire wear | suspension | 2 | 0 | — | — | — | 0.0 | $150–$1,200 | Moderate |
| Tail light, brake light or signal failure | lighting | 2 | 0 | — | — | — | 0.0 | $100–$900 | Moderate |
| Other engine problem | engine | 2 | 0 | — | — | — | 0.0 | $300–$4,000 | High |
| CV axle or driveshaft failure | drivetrain | 1 | 0 | — | — | — | 0.0 | $450–$2,200 | High |
| Fuel gauge or level sensor failure | fuel | 1 | 0 | — | — | — | 0.0 | $300–$1,200 | Moderate |
| Seat belt or retractor failure | airbag | 1 | 0 | — | — | — | 0.0 | $200–$900 | High |
| Liftgate, tailgate or trunk failure | body | 1 | 0 | — | — | — | 0.0 | $250–$1,500 | Moderate |
| Other brake problem | brakes | 1 | 0 | — | — | — | 0.0 | $300–$1,800 | High |
| Other visibility problem | glass | 1 | 0 | — | — | — | 0.0 | $150–$1,400 | Moderate |
| Other body or interior problem | body | 1 | 0 | — | — | — | 0.0 | $200–$2,000 | Moderate |
| Unclassified problem | other | 11 | 0 | — | — | — | 0.1 | — | Moderate |
Rate per 1,000 uses a fleet-size estimate derived from recall paperwork for this exact model year. It is a lower bound. Repair costs are typical independent-shop ranges for the failure, not figures from these reports.
How often, against how many were built
Scaled by an estimate of how many of these cars exist, the 2024 Tesla Model S draws about 0.7 per 1,000 vehicles, which puts it in the 74th percentile of complaint rates among 2024 vehicles we can rate.
That denominator is the weakest number on the page and it is fair to say so plainly. Rate per 1,000 uses a fleet-size estimate derived from recall paperwork for this exact model year. It is a lower bound.
The working figure is 108,802 vehicles. If the true number is twice that, every rate on this page is half what it says; the ranking against other 2024 vehicles, which is what the risk score uses, is far more robust than the rate itself.
Recalls on the 2024 model year
NHTSA has issued 6 recall campaigns covering the 2024 Tesla Model S, affecting an estimated 136,505 vehicles. A recall is a different kind of evidence from a complaint: it is the regulator and the manufacturer agreeing that something has to be fixed, and the fix is free for as long as the car exists.
The campaigns cover electrical system:horn, electrical system, air bags:frontal:driver side:cushion and latches/locks/linkages:hood:latch. Whether the work was actually done on the car in front of you is a question only the VIN can answer, and the manufacturer or NHTSA will answer it free.
Recalls also distort complaint counts. Publicity about a campaign reminds owners that complaining is possible, so reports for a recalled component often spike after the recall rather than before it.
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM:HORN
91 vehicles 2025-03-19- Defect
- Tesla, Inc. (Tesla) is recalling certain 2021-2024 Model S and 2021-2025 Model X vehicles. An air bag with the incorrect horn pad may have been installed, preventing the horn from sounding.
- Consequence
- An inoperative horn may prevent the driver from alerting other drivers, increasing the risk of a crash.
- Remedy
- Tesla service will inspect and install an air bag with the correct horn pad as necessary, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed May 20, 2025. Owners may contact Tesla customer service at 1-877-798-3752. Tesla's number for this recall is SB-25-20-001.
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
239,382 vehicles 2025-01-06- Defect
- Tesla, Inc. (Tesla) is recalling certain 2024-2025 Model 3, Model S, 2023-2025 Model X, and Model Y vehicles. The computer circuit board may short, resulting in the loss of the rearview camera image. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) number 111, "Rear Visibility."
- Consequence
- A rearview camera that does not display an image reduces the driver's rear view, increasing the risk of a crash.
- Remedy
- Tesla released an over-the-air (OTA) software update, free of charge. Tesla will also identify any vehicles that experienced a circuit board failure, or stress that may lead to a circuit board failure, and replace the affected computers, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed March 7, 2025. Owners may contact Tesla customer service at 1-877-798-3752. Tesla's number for this recall is SB-25-00-001.
AIR BAGS:FRONTAL:DRIVER SIDE:CUSHION
487 vehicles 2024-12-23- Defect
- Tesla, Inc. (Tesla) is recalling certain 2021-2025 Model S and Model X vehicles. The driver's air bag could tear during deployment. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) numbers 208, "Occupant Crash Protection" and 212, "Windshield Mounting."
- Consequence
- A torn air bag may not adequately protect an occupant in a crash, increasing the risk of injury.
- Remedy
- Tesla service will replace the air bag assembly, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed February 21, 2025. Owners may contact Tesla customer service at 1-877-798-3752. Tesla's number for this recall is SB-24-20-001.
LATCHES/LOCKS/LINKAGES:HOOD:LATCH
1,849,638 vehicles 2024-07-24- Defect
- Tesla, Inc. (Tesla) is recalling certain 2021-2024 Model 3, Model S, Model X, and 2020-2024 Model Y vehicles. The hood latch assembly may fail to detect an unlatched hood condition after the hood has been opened.
- Consequence
- An unlatched hood can fully open, obstructing the driver's view and increasing the risk of a crash.
- Remedy
- Tesla has released an over-the-air (OTA) software update, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed September 24, 2024. Owners may contact Tesla customer service at 1-877-798-3752. Tesla's number for this recall is SB-24-00-012.
SEAT BELTS:FRONT:WARNING LIGHT/DEVICES
125,233 vehicles 2024-05-28- Defect
- Tesla, Inc. (Tesla) is recalling certain 2012-2024 Model S, 2015-2024 Model X, 2017-2023 Model 3, and 2020-2023 Model Y vehicles. In the event of an unbelted driver, the seat belt warning light and audible chime may not activate as intended. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard number 208, "Occupant Crash Protection."
- Consequence
- A seat belt warning system that fails to alert occupants of an unbelted seat belt can increase the risk of injury during a crash.
- Remedy
- Tesla will release an over-the-air (OTA) software update. Owner notification letters were mailed July 26, 2024. Owners may contact Tesla customer service at 1-877-798-3752. Tesla's number for this recall is SB-24-00-008.
AIR BAGS:FRONTAL
194 vehicles 2023-11-03- Defect
- Tesla, Inc. (Tesla) is recalling certain 2021-2024 Model S and Model X vehicles. An incorrect air bag may have been installed when the steering yoke or round steering wheel was replaced with a different style of yoke or steering wheel.
- Consequence
- An air bag that is not designed to function with the replacement steering yoke or wheel may deploy incorrectly, increasing the risk of injury during a crash.
- Remedy
- Tesla Service will inspect and replace the driver air bag as necessary, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed January 2, 2024. Owners may contact Tesla customer service at 1-877-798-3752. Tesla's number for this recall is SB-23-20-005.
Recall work is free at a franchised dealer regardless of the car's age. Check the VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls before assuming it was done.
How it ranks in the 2024 field
The score at the top of the page, placed among its peers. The zones are the same thresholds the scorer applies, read out of the scorer itself, so the picture and the band word cannot disagree.
Scores are ranked within the model year, never across years, because an older car has had longer to accumulate reports.
- Left fewer and less serious reports
- Right more, or worse
- Marker this vehicle
How 2024 compares with the other years
High risk for a 2024 — 133rd riskiest of the 226 2024 vehicles we can rate. Every score on this site is a rank inside its own model year, which is what makes a 2004 and a 2019 comparable at all.
Across the 13 model years of this car that carry enough reports to score, 2023 comes out best at 62 and 2018 worst at 80, with 2024 itself at 72.
If the model year is negotiable, 2023, 2012 and 2022 score lower than 2024 by a margin worth acting on. Same body, same engines, different luck — usually a supplier change or a mid-cycle fix, which the complaint data can show but never explain.
Scores compare each year against other cars of the same model year, so a low number on an older car is a real result and not an artefact of age.
Shorter is better. Years with too few reports to score are shown without a bar rather than as a zero, because no data is not good news.
Where these figures stop being useful
78 owner reports; fleet size estimated from this year's own recall paperwork. Every count on this page is therefore a floor: it is the number of owners who went to the trouble of filing with a federal agency, which is a small and self-selected fraction of the owners who had the fault.
Of those 78 reports, 2 carried an odometer reading, so the mileages here describe 3% of the sample rather than all of it. Owners also round: readings pile up on multiples of ten thousand, which is why this site publishes "about 90,000 miles" and not "91,438".
Named failure modes come from matching phrases in the complaint text, so a badly worded complaint can land in the wrong bucket. The effect washes out across hundreds of reports and does not wash out across five.
And nothing here predicts what one car will do. These are other people's complaints, filed years apart, on cars maintained by strangers. Read the page as a map of where this model year has previously gone wrong, then have the specific car in front of you inspected.
Questions this page answers
What are the most common problems with the 2024 Tesla Model S?
The most-reported failures are lane keep or steering assist fault (42 reports), other electrical problem (7 reports, median 5,000 miles) and turbocharger or supercharger failure (3 reports). Counts come from owner complaints filed with NHTSA, which are voluntary, so they show what owners bothered to report rather than every fault that occurred.
Is the 2024 Tesla Model S reliable?
It scores 72 out of 100 on our risk index, which is high — 133rd riskiest of the 226 2024 vehicles we can rate. The score is a comparison against other 2024 vehicles, not a prediction about any individual car, and it is built from complaint rates, severity and how early failures appear.
Where this comes from. Every figure above is computed from NHTSA owner complaints and recall records for this exact make, model and year. Complaints are voluntary and self-selected, so treat counts as a floor. The methodology page writes out each formula, and the same numbers are available as JSON.
What breaks at my mileage Compare with another car
Source Owner complaints and recall records published by the US National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, model years 1996–2027 Figures rebuilt Published by AtWhatMileage How every figure is computed