What are the common problems with the 2020 Tesla Model S?
Owners of the 2020 Tesla Model S have filed 80 complaints with NHTSA, most often about forward collision avoidance (23) and the suspension (14). In NHTSA's complaints file of November 11, 2026, 25 of them list a mileage; a complaint is an owner's report, not a proven defect.
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See what the paid report includes →NHTSA's file holds 80 owner complaints on the 2020 Tesla Model S. Owners named forward collision avoidance most often: 23 complaints. A complaint can name more than one component. Of the 80 complaints, 16 report a crash, none reports a fire and 7 report an injury (8 people reported injured). These are owners' reports to NHTSA, not findings.
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Common problems with the 2020 Model S
NHTSA's file holds 80 owner complaints on the 2020 Tesla Model S. Owners named forward collision avoidance most often: 23 complaints. A complaint can name more than one component.
| Component (NHTSA category) | Complaints | Listing mileage | Median mileage |
|---|---|---|---|
| Forward Collision Avoidance | 23 | 3 | Under 5 mileages |
| Suspension | 14 | 6 | 1,000 |
| Steering | 10 | 4 | Under 5 mileages |
| Vehicle Speed Control | 8 | 5 | 2,500 |
| Electrical System | 7 | 2 | Under 5 mileages |
Of the 80 complaints, 16 report a crash, none reports a fire and 7 report an injury (8 people reported injured). These are owners' reports to NHTSA, not findings.
Mileage when owners reported a problem with the 2020 Model S
The 25 mileages owners gave run from 57 to 75,000 miles. A quarter are at or under 990 miles, half at or under 2,500, three quarters at or under 14,500 and nine in ten at or under 30,000; none came after 100,000 miles, none after 150,000 and none after 200,000.
These mileages say when owners reported a problem, not when a 2020 Model S wears out. NHTSA's file holds only vehicles whose owners complained; one that ran without a problem never appears in it, so it gives no lifespan and no cutoff, and how a vehicle was maintained matters more than any one odometer reading.
Most of these reports came early in the vehicle's life: all 25 came at or under 100,000 miles, so they say nothing about how many miles a 2020 Model S can cover.
Complaint mileage also follows a model year's age: the 2020 has had less time to cover miles than older years, so its figures will rise as it ages.
| Measure | Value |
|---|---|
| Lowest mileage listed | 57 miles |
| 25th percentile | 990 miles |
| Median (50th percentile) | 2,500 miles |
| 75th percentile | 14,500 miles |
| 90th percentile | 30,000 miles |
| Highest mileage listed | 75,000 miles |
| Complaints after 100,000 miles | none |
| Complaints after 150,000 miles | none |
| Complaints after 200,000 miles | none |
Every model year together: Half of the 1,737 NHTSA owner complaints on the Tesla Model S that list mileage came after 40,000 miles (NHTSA complaints file of November 11, 2026). How many miles will a Tesla Model S last? →
Is the 2020 Model S a good year?
Complaint counts cannot say whether the 2020 is a good or a bad Model S: they rise with how many were sold and how long they have been on the road. They show how the 2020 compares with the other model years in NHTSA's file.
With 80 complaints, the 2020 ranks 10th of the 13 Tesla Model S model years from 2012 to 2024 with 10 or more complaints, counting from the most. The most: the 2015 (672). The fewest: the 2024 (38).
Recent model years have had less time to collect complaints, so their counts are still growing. No year is ranked by mileage here, because a year's median mileage mostly follows its age.
| Model year | Owner complaints | Listing mileage | Median mileage |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2012 Model S | 61 | 41 | 68,481 |
| 2013 Model S | 461 | 291 | 70,000 |
| 2014 Model S | 368 | 220 | 52,000 |
| 2015 Model S | 672 | 455 | 49,240 |
| 2016 Model S | 652 | 384 | 26,000 |
| 2017 Model S | 432 | 207 | 24,473 |
| 2018 Model S | 170 | 68 | 16,000 |
| 2019 Model S | 45 | 19 | 5,200 |
| 2020 (this page) | 80 | 25 | 2,500 |
| 2021 Model S | 179 | 15 | 6,000 |
| 2022 Model S | 141 | 8 | Under 10 mileages |
| 2023 Model S | 115 | 2 | Under 10 mileages |
| 2024 Model S | 38 | 2 | Under 10 mileages |
2020 Tesla Model S recalls
NHTSA's recall files of November 11, 2026 list 11 recall campaigns that name the 2020 Tesla Model S. A campaign covers a production range, not every vehicle of the model year: check the VIN with NHTSA's free recall lookup.
| Campaign | Report received | Component |
|---|---|---|
| 24V376000 | May 28, 2024 | SEAT BELTS:FRONT:WARNING LIGHT/DEVICES |
| 24V153000 | Feb 27, 2024 | FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: WARNINGS:EXTERNAL/PEDESTRIAN ALERT |
| 24V051000 | Jan 30, 2024 | ELECTRICAL SYSTEM: INSTRUMENT CLUSTER/PANEL |
| 23V838000 | Dec 12, 2023 | ELECTRICAL SYSTEM:ADAS:DRIVER MONITORING:SOFTWARE |
| 23V085000 | Feb 15, 2023 | STEERING:AUTOMATED/ADAPTIVE STEERING |
What these figures can and cannot tell you
- Complaints are owners’ reports to NHTSA. NHTSA publishes them without verifying them: a complaint is an allegation, not a defect finding.
- The mileage is what the owner wrote on the complaint; NHTSA does not check it against the odometer.
- The make, model and model year are the ones on the complaint. NHTSA records them as filed, so a few complaints sit under a model year the name was not sold in.
- They are not a lifespan study. The file holds only vehicles whose owners reported a problem, so these figures do not say how long a typical 2020 Model S lasts.
- A complaint count rises with how many vehicles were sold and how long they have been on the road, so it is not a rating of the 2020 Model S.
- Nothing here describes one vehicle: its title brands, odometer readings, accidents and open recalls are in the records for its own VIN.
- 55 of the 80 complaints on the 2020 Tesla Model S give no usable mileage (blank, zero, a filler such as 999999, or over 500,000) and are left out of every mileage figure.
- NHTSA name counted: MODEL S. NHTSA files some vehicles under several names (a series name and a trim name, for example); this page counts only this one.
- Recall-file name matched: MODEL S.
Primary sources behind this page
Open the underlying public source and verify that its scope matches the question you are asking.
- NHTSA complaints flat file (FLAT_CMPL.zip), downloaded November 11, 2026National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
- Complaints file field layout (CMPL.txt)National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
- NHTSA recalls flat file (FLAT_RCL_PRE_2010.zip), downloaded November 11, 2026National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
- NHTSA recalls flat file (FLAT_RCL_POST_2010.zip), downloaded November 11, 2026National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
- Recalls file field layout (RCL.txt)National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
- NHTSA recall and complaint datasets: scope and documentationNational Highway Traffic Safety Administration
- Recalls Lookup by VINNational Highway Traffic Safety Administration
NHTSA’s complaints file was downloaded on November 11, 2026 (FLAT_CMPL.txt, dated 2026-11-11 10:15, 2,265,416 rows), with its recall files (FLAT_RCL_PRE_2010.txt and FLAT_RCL_POST_2010.txt, dated 2026-11-11 08:02). Each complaint is counted once, by its NHTSA number, with the model year and mileage of its first row; a model year has a page only with 10 or more complaints. The collection script and its rules are in scripts/collect-nhtsa-model-year-longtail.mjs.
2020 Tesla Model S questions
What are the most common 2020 Tesla Model S problems?
NHTSA's file holds 80 owner complaints on the 2020 Tesla Model S. Owners named forward collision avoidance most often: 23 complaints. A complaint can name more than one component. Of the 80 complaints, 16 report a crash, none reports a fire and 7 report an injury (8 people reported injured). These are owners' reports to NHTSA, not findings.
At what mileage do owners report problems with the 2020 Tesla Model S?
Of the 25 complaints on the 2020 Tesla Model S that list mileage, the middle half came between 900 and 15,000 miles; none came after 100,000 miles, none after 150,000 and none after 200,000. These are mileages at a reported problem; they do not say how many miles a 2020 Model S can cover.
Is the 2020 Tesla Model S a good year?
Complaint counts cannot say whether the 2020 is a good or a bad Model S: they rise with how many were sold and how long they have been on the road. They show how the 2020 compares with the other model years in NHTSA's file. With 80 complaints, the 2020 ranks 10th of the 13 Tesla Model S model years from 2012 to 2024 with 10 or more complaints, counting from the most. The most: the 2015 (672). The fewest: the 2024 (38).
How many recalls does the 2020 Tesla Model S have?
NHTSA's recall files of November 11, 2026 list 11 recall campaigns that name the 2020 Tesla Model S. A campaign covers a production range, not every vehicle of the model year: check the VIN with NHTSA's free recall lookup.
How do I check a used 2020 Tesla Model S before buying?
Take the 17-character VIN from the vehicle and compare the odometer with the readings on file for it: title transfers, inspections and auction sales record the mileage on the day. VIN Lookup (free-vin-lookup.com) sells the original ClearVIN PDF for $14.99 (3 reports for $29.99, 5 for $44.99): odometer readings, title brands and auction records on file for the VIN. Check the VIN before buying a used 2020 Tesla Model S.