2023 Tesla MODEL X problems and owner complaints
Explore the records behind recurring owner reports.
Key facts
192 owner complaints analyzed
17 distinct recall campaigns
3,071 mi median reported failure mileage
Scope: 2023 model year. Data snapshot: . 10 complaints include usable failure mileage.
Most common problems
Unknown Or Other is the most frequently named component, appearing in 90 of 192 complaints (46.9%). A complaint can name multiple components.
| Topic | Matching reports | Share of complaints |
|---|---|---|
| Steering behavior | 100 | 52.1% |
| Braking behavior | 24 | 12.5% |
| Electrical and battery issues | 8 | 4.2% |
| Engine operation | 2 | 1.0% |
| Transmission and shifting | 1 | 0.5% |
Topic matches use published keyword rules. They describe mentions, including negations or comparisons, and do not confirm a diagnosis. Read the matching rules.
Component breakdown
Number of unique complaints naming each component. Top eight shown.
| Category | Count |
|---|---|
| Unknown Or Other | 90 |
| Steering | 46 |
| Electrical System | 21 |
| Forward Collision Avoidance: Adaptive Cruise Control | 13 |
| Service Brakes | 10 |
| Structure:Body | 10 |
| Air Bags | 8 |
| Seat Belts | 8 |
Unknown Or Other: 90; Steering: 46; Electrical System: 21; Forward Collision Avoidance: Adaptive Cruise Control: 13; Service Brakes: 10; Structure:Body: 10; Air Bags: 8; Seat Belts: 8
Reported problems by failure mileage
Complaint counts in mileage bands. These are not failure rates per vehicle or mile.
| Category | Count |
|---|---|
| Under 25,000 | 8 |
| 25,000 to 49,999 | 2 |
| 50,000 to 74,999 | 0 |
| 75,000 to 99,999 | 0 |
| 100,000 to 149,999 | 0 |
| 150,000 and above | 0 |
Under 25,000: 8; 25,000 to 49,999: 2; 50,000 to 74,999: 0; 75,000 to 99,999: 0; 100,000 to 149,999: 0; 150,000 and above: 0
Under 25,000 miles has the most reports with usable mileage (8). 182 complaints have missing, zero or invalid mileage.
Complaints over time
Year the complaint was filed, not the vehicle model year or incident year. The snapshot year is partial.
| Category | Count |
|---|---|
| 2023 | 31 |
| 2024 | 115 |
| 2025 | 31 |
| 2026 | 15 |
2023: 31; 2024: 115; 2025: 31; 2026: 15
Pattern summary
Unknown Or Other leads the component reports. Steering behavior appears in 100 complaint narratives. Braking behavior appears in 24 complaint narratives. Electrical and battery issues appears in 8 complaint narratives. Use these patterns to inspect individual reports and prepare questions for a mechanic.
Calculated from recorded counts. An AI narrative has not been published for this selection.
Complaint evidence
Examples provide context, not a representative sample or a verified diagnosis.
Owner report 11501570 · 2023-01-13 (January 13, 2023)
The car has a little button to press for the horn rather than having the horn be in the center of the cars steering wheel. Per Tesla this is possible but is locked and needs a firmware upgrade to be active. This was announced almost 1 year ago. When driving yesterday a car began merging into my lane. I tried to honk but could not find the button without taking my eyes off the road which i didn't want to do. My natural reaction was to mash the center of the wheel, but that of course doesn't work. If tesla just needs to activate this, i don't und…
Owner-reported narrative. Look up ODI 11501570 at NHTSA ↗
Owner report 11515672 · 2023-04-05 (April 5, 2023)
The windshield wipers, which are automatic only do absolutely NOTHING when it is raining. The only thing I can do is hit a button on the steering wheel each time I need the wipers to clear the windshield. Tesla claims is it working as intended...which apparently is not at all. When it began raining the last time I drove the car, it was nighttime and I had to stop in the middle of the road because the car gets overwhelmed when you hit the wiper button too many times in a row and it stops wiping entirely. This is very unsafe. And here is the muc…
Owner-reported narrative. Look up ODI 11515672 at NHTSA ↗
Owner report 11500509 · 2023-01-06 (January 6, 2023)
There is an issue with the GPS in that the location is not accurate, sometimes it is off by 10-20 feet, enough to put it on a different road, sometimes it's off by 100s of feet. This is very dangerous as when using Autopilot, it uses map data to set the cruising speed, and if the GPS is reporting the car is on a different road, the speed can change to being faster or slower than the actual road the car is on. This results in sudden braking. The car will be on the highway, traveling at 55MPH, and then all of a sudden the GPS thinks its on a side…
Owner-reported narrative. Look up ODI 11500509 at NHTSA ↗
Owner report 11525814 · 2023-06-07 (June 7, 2023)
My vehicle has had a multitude of errors for 5 months now about the safety systems being disabled, seat controls malfunctioning, etc. Tesla refused to repair the car (despite only being months old) because I had requested a buyback due to other electrical issues with the vehicle. The driver facing errors (ones shown on the screen that the driver would see) simply said "Safety systems disabled". I contacted Tesla about this months ago and after they pulled the logs from the car, I was assured it was just a generic error and assured me that the c…
Owner-reported narrative. Look up ODI 11525814 at NHTSA ↗
Owner report 11561295 · 2023-12-21 (December 21, 2023)
The contact owns a 2023 Tesla Model X. The contact stated that while attempting to park the vehicle in a parking lot, the vehicle independently accelerated and crashed into a supermarket door without warning. The air bags deployed upon impact. The contact was taken to the hospital for a checkup but did not sustain any injuries; no other injuries were reported. A police report was filed. The supermarket door was damaged as a result of the accident. The vehicle was towed to a dealer where it remained in their possession. Recently, the contact rec…
Owner-reported narrative. 100 miles reported. Look up ODI 11561295 at NHTSA ↗
Owner report 11594660 · 2024-06-16 (June 16, 2024)
It has been hard for me to signal right and left in a timely manner due to the fact that the turn signal stall has been replaced with two buttons on the left side of the steering wheel. To make this new design even more complicated to learn, when the steering wheel is turned 180 degree (ie when parking or exiting a parking space) the right/left signal buttons are on the opposite side of the wheel and in reverse positions. Second, the only way that I know of to honk the horn, is to press a small button on the right side of the steering wheel. …
Owner-reported narrative. Look up ODI 11594660 at NHTSA ↗
Owner report 11718694 · 2026-02-18 (February 18, 2026)
On February 17 at approximately 9:30 AM, while my wife was driving uphill, the vehicle abruptly shut down and became completely disabled. It began rolling backward despite her attempting to accelerate. Multiple warning alerts activated simultaneously, and the vehicle would not respond to forward input. Our [XXX] child was in the vehicle at the time. A total loss of power while in motion, combined with unintended rollback on an incline, represents a catastrophic safety defect. This was not a minor malfunction , it created a direct and immedia…
Owner-reported narrative. Look up ODI 11718694 at NHTSA ↗
Owner report 11557819 · 2023-12-01 (December 1, 2023)
The contact owns a 2023 Tesla Model X. The contact stated that while driving 70 MPH with the cruise control feature activated, the braking system erroneously activated causing the vehicle to abruptly stop in the middle of the highway. During the failure, there were no other vehicles or objects nearby. After shifting into park, the contact was able to restart the vehicle and continued driving. The cause of the failure was not yet determined. The local dealer was contacted. The manufacturer was not yet notified of the failure. The failure mileag…
Owner-reported narrative. 4,200 miles reported. Look up ODI 11557819 at NHTSA ↗