NHTSA recall 21V035000
A recall listed here may apply to a vehicle of this year, make and model. Only the manufacturer can say whether it applies to one vehicle: check the VIN with the official lookups.
| Published by | NHTSA (United States) |
|---|---|
| Campaign number | 21V035000 |
| Manufacturer's number | SB-21-21-001 |
| Manufacturer | Tesla, Inc. |
| Reported | 2021-01-29 |
| Owners notified | 2021-03-29 |
| Component | VISIBILITY:DEFROSTER/DEFOGGER/HVAC SYSTEM; EXTERIOR LIGHTING:TURN SIGNAL; BACK OVER PREVENTION:SOFTWARE |
| Units potentially affected | 134951 |
| Report | Annual report 3, for 2025 quarter 1 to 2025 quarter 4 |
|---|---|
| Filed with NHTSA | 2026-01-28 |
| Vehicles in the campaign | 134951 |
| Reported remedied | 117716 (87%) |
| Reported unreachable | 0 |
| Reported removed | 0 |
These are the manufacturer's totals for the whole campaign at the end of 2025 quarter 4, as filed with NHTSA. They do not say whether one vehicle has been remedied: check the VIN with the official lookups. The reports are from data as of 2026-10-19.
What is wrong
Tesla, Inc. (Tesla) is recalling certain 2012-2018 Tesla Model S and 2016-2018 Model X vehicles with a center display equipped with a NVIDIA Tegra 3 processor and an 8GB eMMC NAND flash memory device. When the 8GB eMMC NAND flash memory device for the center display reaches lifetime wear, the eMMC controller will no longer be able to maintain the integrity of the filesystem, causing a failure in some of the center display functions.
What can happen
The eMMC controller wear-out condition can cause the loss of the rearview camera display, defrost/defog control settings, and exterior turn signal lighting, reducing visibility and increasing the risk of a crash.
The remedy
Owners should ensure their vehicles are operating firmware release 2020.48.48.12 or newer, which will alert owners if the eMMC is approaching lifetime wear. Tesla will notify owners, and will replace the VCM daughterboard with one containing an enhanced eMMC controller, free of charge. The recall began March 29, 2021. Owners may contact Tesla customer service at 1-877-798-3752. Tesla's number for this recall is SB-21-21-001.
Notes
Owners may also contact the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration Vehicle Safety Hotline at 1-888-327-4236 (TTY 1-800-424-9153), or go to www.safercar.gov.
A vehicle with no link is not in this site's catalog, which covers cars, multipurpose vehicles and trucks by model year. The campaign is from data as of 2026-10-19.
Investigated as EA20003
This recall followed 1 NHTSA investigation. An investigation is NHTSA looking into a possible defect. It is not a finding that a defect exists, and it does not say that any one vehicle is affected.
| EA20003 | Engineering analysis, opened 2020-11-12, closed 2024-05-02. Loss of rearview camera. BACK OVER PREVENTION: SENSING SYSTEM: CAMERA; ELECTRICAL SYSTEM:ADAS; EXTERIOR LIGHTING:TURN SIGNAL; VISIBILITY:DEFROSTER/DEFOGGER/HVAC SYSTEM. |
|---|
From NHTSA's investigation file, as of 2026-10-19. The JSON has NHTSA's summary of each.
Bulletins for the same vehicles and component
| SB1811001R1 | 2019-11-25. Service bulletin. On some Model X vehicles, the pinch sensor carrier and/or bump stop might scratch the paint in the interior jamb on the rear (Falcon Wing) door. |
|---|---|
| SB-17-17-002 R1 | 2017-08-04. Service bulletin. On some Model S and Model X vehicles with 2nd generation Autopilot, the forward facing camera pitch (vertical angle) might be out of the specifications required for some future Autopilot features. |
| SB-17-17-002 | 2017-08-04. Service bulletin. On some vehicles with 2nd generation Autopilot, the forward facing camera pitch (vertical angle) might be out of the specifications required for some future Autopilot features. |
A bulletin is the manufacturer's note to its dealers. It is not part of this recall.