Is Tesla Rigging Your Odometer? New Lawsuit Claims It's True
Published: April 21st, 2025.
When Nyree Hinton bought his used Tesla Model Y, he thought he was getting a piece of the future. What he didn’t expect, however, was that the car’s mileage would start climbing faster than his actual commutes—fast enough, he claims, to void his warranty early and stick him with a $10,000 repair bill. Now, Hinton is suing, and what he uncovered could have serious consequences for Tesla and their loyal customer base.
Odometer readings aren’t just a stat—they’re the basis for every automaker’s warranty coverage. Most vehicle warranties, including Tesla’s, are based on mileage. Cross the threshold—say, 50,000 miles—and your free repairs vanish. That’s why accurate mileage is crucial. For many owners, it’s between a covered repair and a five-figure invoice.
Hinton's lawsuit, recently moved to federal court in Los Angeles, claims Tesla is blurring that line with an odometer system that doesn’t track miles in the traditional sense. Instead, according to the complaint, it uses predictive algorithms, energy consumption data, and driving behavior to generate mileage figures—figures that, in his case, allegedly exaggerated how far he was driving by at least 15 percent.
The numbers, he says, didn’t add up. Hinton noticed that daily mileage began to spike not long after he took delivery of the vehicle. He had purchased the 2020 Model Y in December 2022 with just under 37,000 miles—comfortably within the bounds of Tesla’s 50,000-mile basic warranty. But he noticed the car was logging significantly more miles within months despite driving roughly the same routes. According to his calculations, the car reported 13,228 miles over six months—more than double the average of his previous vehicles during similar use.
To make matters worse, Hinton alleges that some miles were logged while the vehicle was idle at a Tesla service center for days. He took the car in multiple times between March and June 2023 for persistent suspension issues—problems that Tesla eventually said would cost him thousands to repair once the warranty “expired.”
By July, he had crossed the 50,000-mile mark. By October, the suspension was completely gone, leaving the car inoperable and needing a $10,000 repair. At that point, he claims, a Tesla service rep revealed that repairs are covered for one year, meaning the fix might’ve been free if Tesla hadn’t deemed his warranty expired.
That revelation led to a deeper dive and, ultimately, the lawsuit. The suit accuses Tesla of breach of contract, negligent misrepresentation, and unjust enrichment. By artificially accelerating odometer readings, it claims Tesla reduces their repair obligations, boosts service revenue, and pressures drivers into buying extended warranties sooner than necessary.
Other than moving the lawsuit to federal court in Los Angeles, Tesla has denied all wrongdoing and has not publicly commented on the case. It has previously denied similar allegations in related litigation, including lawsuits over exaggerated battery range estimates.
If granted class-action status, the case could involve more than a million Tesla vehicles in California alone. Hinton’s legal team says many other Tesla drivers may have been affected by the same odometer practices, especially if warranty coverage was unexpectedly cut short.
As the case progresses, it raises serious questions about how Tesla calculates something as fundamental as mileage and whether customers are footing the bill for data they can’t verify.