Tesla Model X Complaints (2023)

192 consumer complaints on file.

#11699799November 17, 2025
UNKNOWN OR OTHER
Tesla has taken the horn away from the traditional center of the steering wheel and put a ridiculously small button on the side of the steering wheel. Most times when you need to use your horn it’s because of a sudden, unanticipated situation. It’s intuitive to hit the center of the wheel. It’s absolutely impossible to find the tiny button in that situation. One has to take their eyes off the road and look for the button. By the time it is located the situation is over. I understand Tesla has corrected this on their current vehicles and gone back to the traditional center of the wheel. But that does not help owners of the affected autos. They should be required to offer a solution, like a stand alone button that can be attached to the center steering wheel. The current configuration is flat out unsafe.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11694997October 22, 2025
STRUCTURE:BODY
In an emergency when the vehicle loses battery power, the rear falcon wing doors are very difficult to unlatch and open. A person has to be able to pull the speaker off the door, which is located at the bottom of the door panel (in good condition I had a difficult time doing it ). Once the speaker cover is pulled off then you have to pull on a thin wire to unlatch the car door. I can do it, but my wife can’t. Children wouldn’t be able to do it and elderly people won’t be able to do it. This is truly a safety hazard that can be easily corrected. I tried reporting this to Tesla, but was not able to report the information. Their customer service line doesn’t have a callback or tell you what the wait time is. I waited 45 minutes one day and 25 minutes the second day. On the first day, I was told that it would be a 20 minute wait.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11691180October 3, 2025
AIR BAGS, ELECTRICAL SYSTEM, SEAT BELTS
The vehicle has start throwing a safety restraint error. We got into the service mode and it shows there is electrical problems with the driver side airbag system and that it may not deploy in the event of an accident. Tesla is delaying the appointment to review this for 12 days. Their app advised to not drive the car due to a safety issue as all safety measures may not work appropriately. Seems to be a safety level recall.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11686429September 10, 2025
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM, FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: ADAPTIVE CRUISE CONTROL, LANE DEPARTURE: BLIND SPOT DETECTION
Issue Description GPS freeze: The navigation system remains stuck at one location even when the vehicle is moving. Park Assist not available. FSD not available. Rear camera shows black screen, completely disabling reverse visibility. These issues occur intermittently, often lasting for days, and then resolve themselves unexpectedly. Unfortunately, when scheduling service, the problem often disappears by the appointment date, making diagnosis inconsistent. However, the failures have already occurred more than three times, and each time they severely impact both safety and usability. Safety Concerns Lack of rear camera visibility creates a direct safety hazard during reversing. Disabled Park Assist and FSD compromise Tesla’s advertised safety features. GPS malfunction affects navigation and system reliability.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11685373September 5, 2025
UNKNOWN OR OTHER
The horn is in a place that is difficult to find in hazardous situations rather than in the center of the steering wheel like every other car on earth. We have found it dangerous many times
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11683909August 29, 2025
UNKNOWN OR OTHER
All trailer hitches installed on Tesla Model X and Model Y vehicles do not meet the standards for towing in the US. These hitches are from Bosal, a European manufacturer, and there is no way to safely tow most trailers in the US including Home Depot, UHAUL, Airstream, boat trailers, etc. and meet the manufacturer safety specifications. Model X and Model Y owners on the road today are not following Tesla's manual and are using a tow ball adapter way outside the safety spec for the Tesla hitch. This poses a serious safety concern which could lead to failure of the hitch and the trailer detaching from the car while in motion. This poses as serious safety concern for the drivers, passengers, and everyone around the vehicle in tow. Please investigate this. I quick look at the Tesla manual specifications and the standard 18" height of trailers in the US makes it clear there is a serious issue here. Please investigate asap. I have contacted Tesla at least 10 times and nobody there is taking action on this issue.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11682221August 21, 2025
STRUCTURE:FRAME AND MEMBERS:UNDERBODY SHIELDS
I was driving home from work within city limits at less than 30 miles per hour. The roads were waterlogged due to a thunderstorm and the next thing I knew i heard other vehicles near me honking and telling me that something large had fallen off the underside of my car. I stopped the car immediately and was shocked to see that the guard that covers the bottom of my car had fallen off by itself. Apparently the batteries powering the vehicle are situated in the undercarriage and the guard is supposed to protect that area. I called Tesla Insurance Agency and despite me telling them that it would be a possible fire hazard if I continue driving the vehicle and the car was making some noises from the area, they want me to continue driving the car, which I have refused. I am attaching the picture of the part that fell off and also the body shop details of the repairs to be done. My car has only 22,000 miles on it in the last 2 1/2 years that I have driven it and it is shocking that an expensive vehicle such as the Model X should have parts falling off endangering lives of those traveling in it. I would certainly recommmend Tesla inspect all Model Xs as this could be a major problem.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11677989August 2, 2025
FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: ADAPTIVE CRUISE CONTROL, LANE DEPARTURE: ASSIST
The primary issues are: The vehicle consistently chooses the wrong lane and drifts across yellow lines. The FSD visualization fails to correctly distinguish road markings, lanes, and turning arrows, causing them to move erratically on the display. The car attempts to merge into lanes that appear in the visualization but do not exist on the road. The vehicle attempts to merge into lanes that are ending, without recognizing the lane-ending markers. My service history for this single, unresolved issue is as follows: June 12, 2025 (Invoice #3000S0013397552): I brought the vehicle in because Autopilot was incorrectly detecting lanes. The service team diagnosed "severe hazing over forward facing cameras," cleaned them, and returned the car to me. The problem was not fixed. July 1, 2025 (Invoice #3000S0013588350): I returned for the same issue, stating that the FSD was driving over yellow lines and not recognizing traffic patterns. The diagnosis was changed to a bad alignment; service notes indicate "multiple angles out of specification". A four-wheel alignment was performed, and I was assured the issue was resolved. July 10, 2025 (Invoice #3000S0013675264): On my third visit for this issue, the service team verified that the Autopilot visualization showed "random turn lane markings". However, I was told this behavior was "considered normal at this time" and would improve with future firmware updates. The "correction" was listed as "Remote - Education". July 28, 2025 (Invoice #3000S0013834479): I returned for a fourth time, explaining that the problems persisted and were a safety concern. I noted that the car had recently tried to merge past a solid yellow line into the shoulder. The service team acknowledged the issue but concluded it is an "issue with V13 due its design" and that "No repairs are recommended for this concern". The assertion that this is a "known characteristic" is unacceptable. The FSD and Autopilot features are now unusable and unpredictable
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11676239July 25, 2025
UNKNOWN OR OTHER
I’m writing to formally report a persistent issue with Tesla’s air conditioning system. Despite repairs performed last year and reassurances that a software update would resolve the issue, my AC still fails to cool so regularly temperature staying above 100. Today, while driving, the interior temperature reached 102°F, making it unsafe and extremely uncomfortable driving with kids on back seat.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11672083July 8, 2025
STEERING
Peeling steering wheel, eventually will need to replaced due to not being able to grab wheel and lose grip when I turn. Many others complain of the same problem with model x and Tesla wants $1800 to replace. I refuse to use my insurance to pay for this so they have not inspected it.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11671448July 6, 2025
STEERING
In many near hit collisions where I need to honk the horn, memory reflexes goes to press down the center of the steering wheel to alert but the horn button isn’t there on this vehicle. It’s put as a button on the right side but after 25,000 Miles and at least 4 times, I could not locate it quick enough. This is a serious safety issue.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11671065July 3, 2025
AIR BAGS
The contact owns a 2023 Tesla Model X. The contact stated that while the driver was driving at an undisclosed speed, another vehicle attempted to merge near the contact’s vehicle, which caused the passenger front end of the vehicle to collide into a pole. The air bags did not deploy during the incident. The contact also stated that the front driver's door became inoperable, and the contact had to break the front driver's window to be removed from the vehicle. No injuries were sustained, and no medical attention was provided. A police report was not filed. The vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic. The dealer was not contacted. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 38,000.
Crash:
Yes
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11663194May 27, 2025
STRUCTURE:BODY
It rained heavily overnight in Dallas Tx. The roads were almost like lakes. As you know, when a car drives through standing water, it creates loud noise from the tires and underside of vehicle. But I didn’t think much of it at the time. When I got home, I realized that both fender flares were completely gone. I believe this is a serious issue of durability. Even plastic model kits don’t lose parts just from water pressure. The damage to other cars is on me when the parts get blown away by water or something.and lot a model x owners same happened issue This design flaw problem
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11660760May 13, 2025
UNKNOWN OR OTHER
While entering an intersection, a vehicle with a stop sign decided to to not stop. I went to use the horn in my 2023 Model X, and slamming the airbag with my hand did nothing. EVERY car in the WORLD has the horn as the center via the airbag. Tesla must recall ALL vehicles without a horn in the center. Lack of use of the horn severely impairs my ability to operate my vehicle.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11657990April 30, 2025
UNKNOWN OR OTHER
In multiple cases in California. The small button for the digital horn was impossible to reach or activate an emergency situations. This occurred to me and my wife while I’m parking lots and on roads when other vehicles threatened to hit us. The mechanical horn was removed as a cross cutting measurein the model X and it is a major safety hazard.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11649939March 22, 2025
STEERING, UNKNOWN OR OTHER
On my 2023 Tesla Model X, the horn button is a capacitive touch button among several other buttons and it is difficult to use on a daily basis and impossible to find in an emergency. Yesterday, another car was drifting into my lane on the highway traveling at 70 MPH and I could not locate the horn in time to alert them. I had to drive evasively to avoid a serious accident. This has happened at least 7 separate times already. 2024 Tesla Model Xs now have the button in the center of the steering wheel where it is on every other car I have ever driven. Yesterday, I contacted Tesla service about this critical safety issue and demanded the replace my steering wheel with a center horn button because of the document safety issues. They refused. There needs to be a recall forcing Tesla to replace these defective steering wheels with the new and safe design before people get killed.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11647021March 7, 2025
STEERING
The horn is a button on the top right of the yoke steering. With a turning wheel the position is not stationary and in situations where it is warranted to warn other vehicle or person you keep looking for it and get distracted. I have had this vehicle for about three weeks and I find this as a serious safety issue. Today I contacted Tesla and it seems they have a new steering that come with manual horn in the middle but they would not replace it without charging $2000 for it or there is some defect like peeling on it. There are numerous online chats where people have got it replaced citing safety reason. In my view this should be under the recall especially when there is an option.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11646033March 3, 2025
UNKNOWN OR OTHER
The Horn location is not in center of steering wheel, rather a small button on the right side of the wheel. Cannot be found without looking down for button during a turn. Someone is going to get hurt.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11645907March 3, 2025
STEERING
The steering wheel doesn't comes with a horn. Meaning on a regular car, when you need the just press the airbag but in Tesla there a tiny button needs to press in order to get the horn which is impossible to do in case of an emergency.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11643690February 19, 2025
SEATS
The front passenger heat seat is automatically turned on whenever car is turned on from phone. This time when driving in the evening there was a burning smell for 1 hour which I thought was from the vents. Then the passenger seat started smoking and the fumes were so bad that I could not breathe. No one was in the passenger seat at that time thank goodness. It created a hole in the seat. Tesla will replace the seat under warranty, but service center is 2 hours away.
Crash:
No
Fire:
Yes
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0

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