2016 Tesla Model S: sudden loss of power

Filed May 4, 2026 · Acceleration, Electrical · CA

I own three 2016 Tesla vehicles with the same known safety defect: two Model S P100D and one Model X P100D, all equipped with the Large Drive Unit (LDU). The component that fails is the rotor coolant seal in the rear drive unit motor. Coolant leaks internally into the motor and inverter, causing bearing wear, corrosion, isolation faults, and eventual complete drive unit failure. The affected drive units are still installed and available for inspection upon request. This defect puts my safety and the safety of others at risk because it can cause sudden loss of propulsion (especially at highway speeds), power reduction, or total drivetrain shutdown, potentially leading to a crash. Coolant in high-voltage areas also raises electrical fault/FIRE risks. The problem is widely reproduced and confirmed: Tesla service centers are familiar with it and replace failed units with updated “-U” revisions that include a coolant bypass. Independent EV shops confirm the exact root cause (rotor seal failure) via encoder inspections showing coolant intrusion and through disassembly. This is a documented pattern failure in all 2012–2020 LDU vehicles. No police or insurance inspections have occurred yet, as no crash or total failure has happened. Tesla is aware of the recurring issue through service records on similar vehicles. Early symptoms before full failure typically include rear motor whining/grinding (especially under load), reduced power warnings, “Rear Drive Unit Fault” messages, and visible coolant on the speed sensor. These can appear gradually. My vehicles have not yet experienced total failure, but the defect is known to be inevitable. I am proactively monitoring encoder sensors. Because this is a systemic design defect affecting thousands of vehicles with clear safety implications, I request the federal safety agency open an investigation and require Tesla to issue a recall for free repairs/replacements on all affected 2012–2020 LDU vehicles.

Filed May 4, 2026 · Acceleration, Electrical · CA

I own a 2016 Model S P100D equipped with the Large Drive Unit (LDU). The component that fails is the rotor coolant seal in the rear drive unit motor. Coolant leaks internally into the motor and inverter, causing bearing wear, corrosion, isolation faults, and eventual complete drive unit failure. The affected drive units are still installed and available for inspection upon request. This defect puts my safety and the safety of others at risk because it can cause sudden loss of propulsion (especially at highway speeds), power reduction, or total drivetrain shutdown, potentially leading to a crash. Coolant in high-voltage areas also raises electrical fault/fire risks. The problem is widely reproduced and confirmed: Tesla service centers are familiar with it and replace failed units with updated “-U” revisions that include a coolant bypass. Independent EV shops confirm the exact root cause (rotor seal failure) via encoder inspections showing coolant intrusion and through disassembly. This is a documented pattern failure in all 2012–2020 LDU vehicles. No police or insurance inspections have occurred yet, as no crash or total failure has happened. Tesla is aware of the recurring issue through service records on similar vehicles. Early symptoms before full failure typically include rear motor whining/grinding (especially under load), reduced power warnings, “Rear Drive Unit Fault” messages, and visible coolant on the speed sensor. These can appear gradually. My vehicles have not yet experienced total failure, but the defect is known to be inevitable. I am proactively monitoring encoder sensors. Because this is a systemic design defect affecting thousands of vehicles with clear safety implications, I request the federal safety agency open an investigation and require Tesla to issue a recall for free repairs/replacements on all affected 2012–2020 LDU vehicles.

Filed Feb 24, 2026 · Fuel system, Transmission · AZ

While driving in traffic, the vehicle displayed warnings stating “Unable to drive — Pull over safely.” The vehicle progressively lost power and became unable to propel itself, requiring me to stop in traffic. Additional warnings indicated reduced acceleration and performance. The vehicle remained powered (screens and electronics active) but could no longer drive. Tesla later diagnosed a high-voltage battery failure and provided an estimate for full battery replacement. The sudden loss of propulsion in traffic created a safety hazard because the vehicle could not accelerate or continue moving with traffic.

Filed Feb 11, 2026 · Transmission · MO

I am reporting a safety-related defect involving sudden loss of motive power on my 2016 Tesla Model S. During the drivetrain warranty period, the vehicle developed a persistent humming/buzzing noise from the rear drive unit. This noise was documented on video with a timestamp confirming it occurred while the vehicle was under warranty. At the time, there was no loss of performance or warning indicators. Due to the distance to the nearest Tesla service center (approximately 200 miles), the vehicle was not immediately inspected. When I later contacted Tesla Service, the vehicle was approximately three weeks outside the drivetrain warranty. Upon inspection, Tesla advised that the rear drive unit was failing and would require replacement at customer expense. Tesla declined warranty coverage despite evidence that the failure symptoms began during the warranty period. The rear drive unit later catastrophically failed while the vehicle was being driven uphill, resulting in a complete loss of propulsion. Prior to this incident, Tesla service personnel had advised that if the rear motor failed, the front motor would allow the vehicle to operate in a limp mode to reach a safe location. This did not occur. When the failure happened, the vehicle lost all motive power and was unable to maintain position on an incline. The vehicle nearly rolled backward into traffic. Police assistance was required (911 call) to redirect traffic so the vehicle could be rolled backward down the hill to a safe location. A minor child was present in the vehicle at the time. I am aware that failures of rear drive units on 2016–2017 Tesla Model S vehicles related to coolant intrusion have been reported by Tesla service personnel and other owners. This incident demonstrates a serious safety risk involving sudden loss of power and incorrect guidance regarding vehicle behavior during drive unit failure. I believe this represents a safety-related defect warranting investigation.

Filed May 14, 2023 · Acceleration, Fuel system · GA

While driving reduced power light came on. On Highway speed reduced to a crawl.

Filed Dec 26, 2020 · Driver assistance, Lights · 71,000 miles · FL

Prior to 10/2/2020 numerous reboots usually after being parked. Had to wait excessive time since I had pin to drive enabled. Disabled pin to drive since I was getting stuck. It is embarrassing and not a good reflection on tesla products to have to wait 5 minutes to move your car. Something is wrong. 10/2/2020 while driving on I 40 noted there was a lack of turn signal sounds. Noted navigation did not seem to be updating to current position. While on autopilot the car started to drift toward an exit. The autopilot had disengaged with no warning sound' nothing. Continued to steer manually. Screen went black. Ac stopped. After several minutes the screen rebooted. Had to re-input destination. 10/3/2020. Went to ashland nc supercharger to top off before getting on the blue ridge parkway. Was only getting 4 kw to start finally giving up after 30 minutes achieving a maximum of 10kw. When I unplugged I got a warning "reduced power, systems shutting down. Service required. Vehicle may not start". The screen went black and after time finally restarted and I was able to continue. Later in cherokee nc the screen again rebooted after charging at a j1772 station. 10/4/2020. While driving with on i95 near st augustine I noted the loss of turn signal sound again. The navigation was frozen again. Again there was no sound or warning disengaging or engaging autopilot. The screen went black. The AC went off. I observed the tesla t come up then the screen went black again. Then the tesla t came up a second time and after several minutes the controls started working again. Again at nov 19@ 7:03 pm: driving west in I-4 stanford, fl. Same as on 10/2. Loss of autopilot, loss of turn signal sound, loss of climate control, loss of music. Took 6 minutes to reboot. Took an additional 5 minutes for navigation to restore. There are more instances but I am out of characters.

Filed Nov 28, 2018 · Body, Steering · CA

The vehicle was in service for warranty issue. Tesla burbank service center denied to done the recall. Regarding to them, the recall is unnecessary and did not need to be done until raining. However, this recall is in needed for the power steering gear assist motor may move, causing the transmission belt to slip, and result in reduced or lost power steering assist.

Filed Apr 22, 2017 · Brakes, Steering · 2,000 miles · CA

Here is a discussion thread in which several owners report a broken ground connection causing a loss of power assisted steering and power assisted braking. Https://forums.tesla.com/forum/forums/alert-loss-steering-and-braking-while-driving also a youtube video of an owner reporting the same problem. Https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qm5z0dw60ke another discussion thread of a broken ground stud. Https://teslamotorsclub.com/tmc/threads/ground-stud-nut-over-torqued.86688/ loss of power assistance on such a heavy car is extremely dangerous. Many drivers would not have sufficient strength or skill to steer the car and apply the brakes hard enough. Once again the fanatical devotion of tesla owners is the reason that they fail to report these faults to the federal safety agency. Please investigate.