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Tesla Model S

The most recommended of 5 electric sedans

Owners praise its fast acceleration, long range and durability, with many reporting cars still running well after a decade. Critics point to build quality and touchscreen-heavy controls.

Owners praise its fast acceleration, long range and durability, with many reporting cars still running well after a decade. Critics point to build quality and touchscreen-heavy controls.

114 people gave an opinion

recommend it
55
criticize it
59
approval share
48%
Each figure is one person. RecommendsCriticizes

Recommended in 12 of 13 months

  1. November 2025: recommended
  2. December 2025: recommended
  3. January 2026: recommended
  4. February 2026: recommended
  5. March 2026: recommended
  6. April 2026: recommended
  7. May 2026: recommended
  8. June 2026: recommended
  9. July 2026: recommended
  10. August 2026: recommended
  11. September 2026: recommended
  12. October 2026: recommended
  13. November 2026: not recommended (month in progress)

Owned for 10 years

Median of the 11 owners who said how long they have had it.

Each square is one year.

Why it doesn’t carry the badge

  • 55 people recommend itNeeds 10 or more, met.
  • 0.9 recommenders for every criticNeeds 2 to 1 or better, not met.
  • Recommended in 12 of 13 monthsNeeds 4 or more, met.

The same three rules apply to every product, and the badge can’t be bought. How the badge works

What people say about it

The reasons people give, with the number of comments that give each one. Open a reason to read what they said.

Why people recommend it

Each mark is one comment

  • Lasts a decade with few repairs

    “Only wiper fluid and tires and had to change out break disks in the front but besides that, nothing.”

    Comment from 13 Sep 2026 in “Global shortage has led to motor oil rationing at Costco”

    “after eight years of EV driving (2015 Tesla S 70D) I am not anticipating any problems.”

    Comment from 25 Jan 2026 in “BU-808: How to Prolong Lithium-based Batteries (2023)”

    “My 2013 Model S is still going strong, still gets software updates.”

    Comment from 18 Mar 2026 in “Honda is killing its EVs – and any chance of competing in the future”
  • Quick acceleration and high top speed

    “Tesla model S accelerates faster and has a higher top speed, and also more range on a smaller battery”

    Comment from 26 May 2026 in “Jony Ive's Ferrari”

    “incredible acceleration, and looks pretty normal and practical”

    Comment from 14 Sep 2026 in “Volkswagen Just Built an EV That Can Go Nearly 900 Miles on a Charge”

    “Tesla has completely dominated acceleration vs ice cars”

    Comment from 21 Jan 2026 in “Porsche Sold More Electrified Cars in Europe in 2025 Than Pure Gas-Powered Cars”
  • Long range on the battery

    “My ancient 2015 Model S 70D would do that 300 mile journey with less than an hour of charging in the middle.”

    Comment from 25 Sep 2026 in “Toyota is taking the Corolla electric”

    “one of the most (if not the most) practical electric vehicles on account of range alone”

    Comment from 29 Jan 2026 in “Tesla ending Models S and X production”

    “still 320 miles of EPA range which is a lot better than many other EVs”

    Comment from 24 Feb 2026 in “Tesla registrations crash 17% in Europe as BEV market surges 14%”
  • Roomy, comfortable, quiet ride

    “the S is roomier, the seats are more comfortable, the dash screen is helpful, the ride is plush and quiet”

    Comment from 2 Feb 2026 in “Tesla ending Models S and X production”

    “Bigger battery, larger center console and the cabin is slightly more premium.”

    Comment from 29 Jan 2026 in “Tesla ending Models S and X production”

What people warn about

Each mark is one comment

  • Poor build quality and fit

    “my model s, supposedly a good build year is absolutely crappy and feels like a cheap piece of plastic”

    Comment from 27 Nov 2025 in “The Tesla Model Y Just Scored the Worst Reliability Rating in a Decade”

    “Terribly put together. Awful interface. And so utterly fucking distracting it was a liability.”

    Comment from 14 Mar 2026 in “Elon Musk pushes out more xAI founders as AI coding effort falters”

    “Even people paying $100K for a Model S Plaid end up with things coming unglued or misaligned.”

    Comment from 26 May 2026 in “Jony Ive's Ferrari”
  • Controls moved to touchscreen, disliked

    “Tesla did test out the new steering yoke and removing the control stalks in the S: both features were met with tepid reception and partially rolled back.”

    Comment from 29 Jan 2026 in “Tesla ending Models S and X production”

    “Lucid does something similar to Tesla where too much (IMO) is controlled through the touchscreen.”

    Comment from 29 Jan 2026 in “Tesla ending Models S and X production”

    “Terribly put together. Awful interface. And so utterly fucking distracting it was a liability.”

    Comment from 14 Mar 2026 in “Elon Musk pushes out more xAI founders as AI coding effort falters”
  • Owner reports of malfunctions and waits

    “several reviews have not exactly been kind, along with lots of comments from owners about annoying issues and malfunctions”

    Comment from 29 Jan 2026 in “Tesla ending Models S and X production”

    “A friend of mine just sold his Model S because he'd been waiting over 7 months for the shop to source a replacement part.”

    Comment from 11 Feb 2026 in “Rivian R2: Electric Mid-Size SUV”

    “my model S chimed at me to drive into the intersection while sitting at a red light”

    Comment from 20 Feb 2026 in “Tesla to pay $243M judgement over Autopilot crash”

Other electric sedans people recommend

The four most recommended other electric sedans, with the same counts for each, so you can compare like for like. The tick on each bar marks the 2 to 1 line the badge needs.

Tesla Model S compared with 4 alternatives
ProductRecommendCriticizeApprovalMonthsOwnedBadge
Tesla Model SThis page555948%1210 yrs11 owners—
Xiaomi SU720483%8—Approved
BYD Seal18482%8—Approved
Hyundai Ioniq 610283%8—Approved
Lucid Air9469%6——
See all 5 electric sedans, ranked

What people said

40 of the 143 comments that mention it, newest first. Each links to the original comment.

“My ancient 2015 Model S 70D would do that 300 mile journey with less than an hour of charging in the middle.”

RecommendsComment from 25 Sep 2026 in “Toyota is taking the Corolla electric”

“Tesla transformed the world in terms of rolling out electric cars.”

RecommendsComment from 21 Sep 2026 in “Why do we need human mathematicians anymore?”

“incredible acceleration, and looks pretty normal and practical”

RecommendsComment from 14 Sep 2026 in “Volkswagen Just Built an EV That Can Go Nearly 900 Miles on a Charge”

“Only wiper fluid and tires and had to change out break disks in the front but besides that, nothing.”

RecommendsComment from 13 Sep 2026 in “Global shortage has led to motor oil rationing at Costco”

“There are cars with Cd around 0.2 (Xiaomi SU7, Lucid Air, Tesla S, Hyundai Ioniq...)”

MixedComment from 24 Aug 2026 in “Nearly 3M Teslas recalled in China over hidden door handles”

“The big portrait screen on the old Model S being firmly embedded in the dashboard makes it much easier to use.”

RecommendsComment from 13 Jul 2026 in “Car touchscreens are cheap, not good”

“Neither of those are a problem in my 2015 Tesla Model S for the buttons that control the climate control or media player.”

RecommendsComment from 6 Jul 2026 in “Car touchscreens are cheap, not good”

“the original Model S proved that you can have a nice electric car that looks nice”

RecommendsComment from 26 May 2026 in “Ferrari shares fall after launch of first EV as Jony Ive design proves divisive”

“Even people paying $100K for a Model S Plaid end up with things coming unglued or misaligned.”

CriticizesComment from 26 May 2026 in “Jony Ive's Ferrari”

“they still don't know how to make actual quality that is present the models you listed above”

CriticizesComment from 26 May 2026 in “Jony Ive's Ferrari”

“Tesla model S accelerates faster and has a higher top speed, and also more range on a smaller battery”

MixedComment from 26 May 2026 in “Jony Ive's Ferrari”

“It has had three success stories which are all pretty banal”

MixedComment from 24 Apr 2026 in “Tesla (TSLA) discloses $2B AI hardware company acquisition buried”

“the Prius and then Model S kickstarted the EV revolution”

RecommendsComment from 23 Mar 2026 in “General Motors Is Assisting with the Restoration of a Rare EV1”

“My 2013 Model S is still going strong, still gets software updates.”

RecommendsComment from 18 Mar 2026 in “Honda is killing its EVs – and any chance of competing in the future”

“I literally spent practically nothing for 11 years.”

RecommendsComment from 17 Mar 2026 in “Honda is killing its EVs – and any chance of competing in the future”

“Terribly put together. Awful interface. And so utterly fucking distracting it was a liability.”

CriticizesComment from 14 Mar 2026 in “Elon Musk pushes out more xAI founders as AI coding effort falters”

“Literally there isn't a single combustion car which comes anywhere close to this improvement.”

RecommendsComment from 24 Feb 2026 in “Tesla registrations crash 17% in Europe as BEV market surges 14%”

“still 320 miles of EPA range which is a lot better than many other EVs”

RecommendsComment from 24 Feb 2026 in “Tesla registrations crash 17% in Europe as BEV market surges 14%”

“the lack of demand makes them pretty cheap at the moment”

RecommendsComment from 24 Feb 2026 in “Tesla registrations crash 17% in Europe as BEV market surges 14%”

“my model S chimed at me to drive into the intersection while sitting at a red light”

CriticizesComment from 20 Feb 2026 in “Tesla to pay $243M judgement over Autopilot crash”

“A friend of mine just sold his Model S because he'd been waiting over 7 months for the shop to source a replacement part.”

CriticizesComment from 11 Feb 2026 in “Rivian R2: Electric Mid-Size SUV”

“I haven't had a car payment since 2017 and won't have another one till 2036”

RecommendsComment from 11 Feb 2026 in “Rivian R2: Electric Mid-Size SUV”

“I'm quite pleased to know that my Tesla S will assist me in braking when I stamp on the pedal.”

RecommendsComment from 10 Feb 2026 in “Hard-braking events as indicators of road segment crash risk”

“316 Wh/km somewhat worse than my ancient (2015) Tesla Model S”

MixedComment from 9 Feb 2026 in “The First Sodium-Ion Battery EV Is a Winter Range Monster”

“the S is roomier, the seats are more comfortable, the dash screen is helpful, the ride is plush and quiet”

RecommendsComment from 2 Feb 2026 in “Tesla ending Models S and X production”

“its ten-year-old Autopilot (autosteer and cruise control with lane shift) is actually smoother and more reliable than many of its competitors current offerings.”

RecommendsComment from 30 Jan 2026 in “Tesla's Robotaxi data confirms crash rate 3x worse than humans even with monitor”

“Lucid does something similar to Tesla where too much (IMO) is controlled through the touchscreen.”

CriticizesComment from 29 Jan 2026 in “Tesla ending Models S and X production”

“one of the most (if not the most) practical electric vehicles on account of range alone”

RecommendsComment from 29 Jan 2026 in “Tesla ending Models S and X production”

“several reviews have not exactly been kind, along with lots of comments from owners about annoying issues and malfunctions”

CriticizesComment from 29 Jan 2026 in “Tesla ending Models S and X production”

“Bigger battery, larger center console and the cabin is slightly more premium.”

MixedComment from 29 Jan 2026 in “Tesla ending Models S and X production”

“Tesla did test out the new steering yoke and removing the control stalks in the S: both features were met with tepid reception and partially rolled back.”

CriticizesComment from 29 Jan 2026 in “Tesla ending Models S and X production”

“the S has always been the flagship model with all the best features and the top performance”

RecommendsComment from 29 Jan 2026 in “Tesla ending Models S and X production”

“after eight years of EV driving (2015 Tesla S 70D) I am not anticipating any problems.”

RecommendsComment from 25 Jan 2026 in “BU-808: How to Prolong Lithium-based Batteries (2023)”

“The regen braking is amazing for avoiding mechanical braking.”

RecommendsComment from 25 Jan 2026 in “Adoption of EVs tied to real-world reductions in air pollution: study”

“Tesla has completely dominated acceleration vs ice cars”

RecommendsComment from 21 Jan 2026 in “Porsche Sold More Electrified Cars in Europe in 2025 Than Pure Gas-Powered Cars”

“the Plaid's 'yoke', both of which were silently shelved after buyer dissatisfaction”

CriticizesComment from 6 Jan 2026 in “Volkswagen Brings Back Physical Buttons”

“just asked my wife and she said the first thing she looks when she is deciding to buy a car are giga castings”

RecommendsComment from 5 Dec 2025 in “BMW PHEV: Safety fuse replacement is extremely expensive”

“Get out of any other car and you forget you can't just walk away from it and it'll shut itself off and lock the doors.”

RecommendsComment from 5 Dec 2025 in “BMW PHEV: Safety fuse replacement is extremely expensive”

“my model s, supposedly a good build year is absolutely crappy and feels like a cheap piece of plastic”

CriticizesComment from 27 Nov 2025 in “The Tesla Model Y Just Scored the Worst Reliability Rating in a Decade”

“I think the model s, model 3 or the previous model y look great.”

RecommendsComment from 5 Nov 2025 in “Tesla's German car sales more than halve in October as wider EV sales jump”

Counts come from 1,795,640 Hacker News comments, November 2025 to November 2026. How we count. Report a mistake.