Used car safety, rank #118 of 188
Tesla Model S electric 4WD Safety Rating (2020-23)
Real IIHS driver death rates for the 2020-23 Tesla Model S electric 4WD, a large luxury car, compared with its class and with the current model.
IIHS 2026 edition Β· 2021β2024 crashes. Results apply only to the model years and drivetrain shown. Read the new release and its limits Β· Browse the older edition. Prices and reliability from older model years have not been carried forward.
The 2020-23 Tesla Model S electric 4WD has an IIHS driver death rate of 35 per million registered vehicle years against a large luxury cars average of 26, which is 35% above the class average. That places it #118 of 188 used vehicles with a safety score of 44.0/100.
What the Tesla Model S electric death rate means
At 35 driver deaths per million registered vehicle years, the Tesla Model S electric 4WD is 35% worse than the large luxury cars average of 26. The 95% confidence interval is 6 to 64, which overlaps the class average, so some of the gap may be chance.
The other-driver death rate of 53 measures the opposite risk: how many drivers of other vehicles died in crashes with a Tesla Model S electric. Its 95% confidence interval is 17β89. It is higher than the Tesla Model S electric's own driver death rate, the usual pattern for heavier vehicles. Remember that death rates describe vehicles and their drivers together: IIHS adjusts for driver age and gender, but not for where or how carefully people drive. Our score weights this model's own rate at 70% and its class at 30%; see how we rank used cars.
Compared with similar used luxury cars
The safest large luxury cars in the IIHS study, by our score, with the Tesla Model S electric 4WD highlighted. It ranks 1 of the 1 shown.
| Vehicle | Years | Death rate | Score | Reliability | Used price |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tesla Model S electric 4WD (this page) | 2020-23 | 35 (6 to 64) | 44.0 | n/a | n/a |
Class average for large luxury cars: 26 driver deaths per million registered vehicle years.
The new Tesla Model S electric
Death rates lag the market by several years. For the current Tesla Model S electric we score IIHS crash tests instead; here is how the latest model years rate on our new-car scale.
| Model year | Model | IIHS award | New-car score |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2027 | Tesla Model Y | TSP+ | 98.6 |
| 2026 | Tesla Model 3 | No award | 91.7 |
New-car scores use a different scale (crash tests, not death rates) and are not directly comparable with the 44.0 used-car score above.
Safety recalls for the Tesla Model S electric 4WD
We do not have a verified NHTSA recall lookup for this nameplate and model year. Check by VIN rather than treating that as a clean record.
Recall campaigns from the NHTSA recalls database, retrieved 2026-09-16. A campaign covers a range of build dates, not every car of the model year, and IIHS reports this nameplate across several years while these results are for one year. Confirm against the VIN. Recalls do not affect the death rate on this page.
Tesla Model S electric 4WD: Common Questions
Is the Tesla Model S electric 4WD a safe car?
Not on this measure: its drivers died at a higher rate than its class average. IIHS recorded a driver death rate of 35 per million registered vehicle years for the 2020-23 Tesla Model S electric 4WD, 35% above the class average (26 for large luxury cars). That earns a used-car safety score of 44.0 out of 100 and rank #118 of 188 used vehicles.
What is the Tesla Model S electric 4WD driver death rate?
35 driver deaths per million registered vehicle years, with a 95% confidence interval of 6 to 64. Drivers of other vehicles that collided with a Tesla Model S electric died at a rate of 53 per million. Source: IIHS driver death rates by make and model, covering 2020-23 models.
How does the Tesla Model S electric 4WD compare with other large luxury cars?
The large luxury cars class averages 26 driver deaths per million; the Tesla Model S electric 4WD sits at 35. Among the 1 large luxury cars compared above it ranks 1 by safety score.