Tesla Model 3 Complaints (2022)

773 consumer complaints on file.

#11475124July 21, 2022
FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: ADAPTIVE CRUISE CONTROL
I bought my car new from Tesla in March of 2022. I drove it off their lot in Minneapolis and was my way home back to Bismarck, ND. Within 10 miles of being on I-94 with basic cruise control on, the car suddenly and unexpectedly slammed on the brakes. I had the cruise set at 80 mph and the stop was so sudden that I went down to around 45 mph within a second or so. It happened a few more times within the next 20 miles or so, so I called the service number. The lady on the service team told me that I just needed to "recalibrate my cameras". So I pulled over and did what she said all to no avail. It continued so I just did not use cruise control. Over the next few months, every single time I would go on a highway and use basic cruise control - I would get the same thing and experience extremely dangerous "phantom braking". And each time I would call Tesla service and they would remote dial into my car and tell me the same thing: there is nothing we can see and nothing appears to be wrong. Essentially saying I'm imaging this all happening. At the end of June or beginning of July, I spoke with a Tier 2 tech and he asked me to be very specific if I could and next time it happens to log exactly when, where I was, etc. this happens next. On my way back from Denver it happened so frequently that I again turned off the cruise - but I did what he mentioned and I documented the exact times and whereabouts as requested. I submitted that info a few days ago - they just responded last evening saying again that nothing is wrong and "it is the drivers responsibility to stay aware and alert at all times". So I responded by saying nothing of this was ever disclosed as a known risk to me before I bought the car and the fact that you are now claiming that essentially nothing is wrong, you are therefore suggesting that this phantom braking is not a real issue. The concern with this answer is their apparent refusal acknowledgment suggests no fix is coming.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11474999July 20, 2022
FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: ADAPTIVE CRUISE CONTROL
Adaptive cruise control kept abruptly decelerating and/or braking whenever a car passed in the opposite direction on a two lane highway. It also sometimes did the same thing when going over a rolling hill. As the feature exists now, it is completely unusable on certain roads. There is a risk of a rear end collision if the car brakes for no reason when using adaptive cruise control. At the very least, there should be an option to disable the adaptive feature of cruise control when the system is unable to work properly.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11474918July 20, 2022
VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL, FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: ADAPTIVE CRUISE CONTROL, FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: AUTOMATIC EMERGENCY BRAKING
When driving at highway speeds on open roads with light traffic with the adaptive cruise control ON the car would severely brake at random. I have seen this referred to a "Phantom Braking" in other reports. This happens several times an hour and the brakes are severely applied automatically, reducing the speed from 70-80mph to 40-50mph before I can intervene by stepping on the accelerator pedal. It is a frightening experience and can throw the driver and passengers up against the seat belts. This is a critical safety issue because it can result in a rear end accident if a car is following too closely. I have not taken the vehicle for inspection yet but I see there are many reports of this same problem on social media and the NTSB has already opened an investigation on this problem. The vehicle is only a few weeks old and it became noticeable during a long distance open road trip through the open highways in Utah, Idaho and Nevada.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11474596July 18, 2022
SERVICE BRAKES
While driving on the highway with the "cruise control' on, the car automatically braked two times during my travels. No other cars were around me.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11474563July 18, 2022
SERVICE BRAKES
Ever since I have had this car.....Dec 2021; phantom breaking is a real problem. I am just driving along with out autopilot on, it will slam on the brakes and I nearly got rear-ended numerous times. This has happen so many times that it is very frustrating. I reported this to you back months ago and nothing has been done. THIS IS VERY DANGEROUS! WILL THIS EVER GET RESOLVED? [XXX] INFORMATION Redacted PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6).
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11474490July 18, 2022
FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: AUTOMATIC EMERGENCY BRAKING, FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: ADAPTIVE CRUISE CONTROL, FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: WARNINGS
Phantom braking at highway speed nearly caused an accident. Happened several times over a 400 mile trip. Tesla's "Navigate on Autopilot" feature apparently confused other vehicles on the highway for hazards, and slammed on brakes, creating a collision risk for cars behind me. It also happened when the painted line on a highway ended and the road split. The car may have confused this for the road ending altogether, and it slammed on brakes while I was going at 65 mph. This is a new car (3 weeks old).
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11474357July 17, 2022
SERVICE BRAKES, FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: ADAPTIVE CRUISE CONTROL
While using Tesla adaptive cruise control on the Ohio Turnpike on a sunny day, the brakes engaged , causing the vehicle to slow quickly. There were no obvious obstructions, other vehicles, road conditions, or formations that should have caused the system to brake. There was a large green and white reflective road sign along the right side of the road. I was able to press the accelerator and return to speed. If I hadn't been able to return the car to speed quickly, a large truck behind me would have had to brake hard to avoid a collision.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11474215July 15, 2022
SERVICE BRAKES, FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: AUTOMATIC EMERGENCY BRAKING, FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: ADAPTIVE CRUISE CONTROL
Under Adaptive cruise control, the car slowed from 80mph to 55mph on the highway. There were no cars or objects in front of us. We tried to hit the "gas" pedal but the car would not let us override it. The car behind us came extremely close to us and flashed his lights at us. Bug report submitted to tesla. We were traveling downhill with a slight right curve.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11474120July 15, 2022
FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: WARNINGS
I'm looking for an update to the reported Tesla "phantom braking" issue when on Autopilot. We experienced this at least 5 times during an April 2022 road trip from SLC to Vegas, so bad we didn't feel comfortable enabling Autopilot (cruise control) on the drive home to SLC. This made for a very difficult 6 hour drive as Tesla's are very hard to keep a consistent speeding since they are so quiet/powerful...w/out some sort of auto speed regulation. I didn't know where to report this and was simply waiting for an over-the-air update for this to be addressed by Tesla and have seen none and no follow up news reports. I'm assuming this must be affecting 100's of thousands of Tesla owners.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11474080July 15, 2022
UNKNOWN OR OTHER
May 29,2022, while I was parking in front of La Fittness in Escondido, Ca, I was in zero speed, adjusting my parking to make sure I was in right spot, suddenly car accelerated with unbelievable speed and struck the car located in the parking lane on the other side of my car which in turn struck another car and that car struck another car in front. I suspect the sudden unintended acceleration was due to a defect in the electronic system, thankfully no body got injured and the other cars involved in the accident were parked and unoccupied. I reported this problem on May 31, was promised Tesla will investigate the problems and report back to my within 3 to 4 weeks, after many follow up emails and phone calls, I have not received any response from Tesla, two cars was totaled and I am having nightmares since accident with no car, since we got solar to buy electric cars, nothing is available to buy right now.
Crash:
Yes
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11474035July 15, 2022
SEAT BELTS, SEATS
When seat is wet or damp (from a wet water bottle or sweat), passenger restraint light comes on and system is confirmed to not work properly when that happens.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11474007July 14, 2022
FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: ADAPTIVE CRUISE CONTROL, FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: AUTOMATIC EMERGENCY BRAKING
"Phantom braking" occurred on multiple (30 or more) occasions while the adaptive cruise control was engaged. These phantom events happened during a long road trip across west Texas. These events seemed to occur whenever there were few or no cars visible in front of my vehicle and as I was cresting over small rises in the highway, meaning the brakes would engage just after the car reached the high point and started to descend slightly, perhaps because the cameras briefly lost visibility of the road and could not register any oncoming traffic. ALL of these events happened during daylight hours and, on more than one occasion, there were drivers traveling behind my car. Also, there is no way to engage the cruise control without also engaging the "adaptive" feature that uses the cameras to brake in case of emergency. This is a very dangerous flaw in the technology. It causes the passengers within the car to be lunged forward unexpectedly and is very unpredictable for drivers who are traveling behind the car. These phantom braking events most often occurred when the road was completely clear and visibility was at or close to 100%. Tesla needs to do better.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11473965July 14, 2022
FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: ADAPTIVE CRUISE CONTROL, FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: AUTOMATIC EMERGENCY BRAKING
Hello, I purchased a Tesla Model 3 in March 2022. The car will randomly brake while on cruise control and the auto pilot on the highway , there is nothing on the road in front of me when this happens. I am very concerned that I may get into a car accident or cause others behind me to brake abruptly in response to my car resulting in potent accidents.I feel this is quite unsafe. The phantom breaking has happened multiple times. I am driving from Texas to NC where the cruise control is crucial but am worried about the braking problems. I have not had the opportunity to take it to the dealer yet about this problem. It’s unknown to me if the manufacturer inspected this component. There were no warning signs of any type prior to the phantom braking happen. Any insight or guidance you can provide would be appreciated. I appreciate you taking the time to read this. What component or system failed or malfunctioned, and is it available for inspection upon request? Autopilot navigation and cruise control, yes it is available for inspection upon request How was your safety or the safety of others put at risk? Vehicles behind have to brake every time the phantom breaking happens putting everyone at unnecessary risk to avoid a crash. Again, there is no need for the sudden breaking when it occurs. Has the problem been reproduced or confirmed by a dealer or independent service center? No. Has the vehicle or component been inspected by the manufacturer, police, insurance representatives or others? No. Were there any warning lamps, messages or other symptoms of the problem prior to the failure, and when did they first appear? No.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11473938July 14, 2022
FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: ADAPTIVE CRUISE CONTROL
Since purchasing this vehicle new, I have experienced no less than 40 different incidents of Phantom Braking where, while using Tesla's adaptive cruise control (and ONLY adaptive cruise control), my car has suddenly and violently applied the brakes while traveling at highway speeds (between 65-75 mph) on interstate highways where there were no obstructions or other vehicles that posed any risk. I have extensive experience driving other (non-Tesla) vehicles with adaptive cruise control, so I understand some of the potential limits regarding when radar/cameras might mistake an obstruction or a gap in observations for something that would require braking, but that is not what is happening with my current Tesla. Instead, on wide-open interstates, with no other cars for hundreds of yards around me, the vehicle with suddenly violently apply brakes, forcing me to have to take protective and corrective actions to avoid swerving or becoming a hazard to other vehicles, all of which are also driving at highway speeds. I have NOT had a crash due to this, but the sudden braking and deceleration has forced other cars around me to have to suddenly brake and swerve.This has happened about 10 times on EACH of the following dates, each of which was a one-day leg of a drive anywhere from 500-800 miles: (5/26/2022, 5/30/2022, 7/1/2022, and 7/5/2022). I am just going to add one of these dates below, but I am happy to be contacted to provide more details.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11473709July 13, 2022
FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: ADAPTIVE CRUISE CONTROL, FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: AUTOMATIC EMERGENCY BRAKING
The autopilot feature suddenly braked without any alerts (visual or audio.) This happened multiple times (about 10-15) on a two thousand mile road trip. The phantom braking occurred only at high speeds on expressways. It seemed to occur more frequently when driving up a hill. It may also have been triggered by shadows. It created a dangerous driving environment in that the speed decreased drastically without warning for the Driver as well as other drivers on the road.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11473462July 11, 2022
LANE DEPARTURE: ASSIST, FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: ADAPTIVE CRUISE CONTROL, LANE DEPARTURE: WARNING
my brand new tesla model 3's adaptive cruise control is unsafe and unusable while driving on a two lane highway, I took a 500 mile road trip last night and the entire time i was experiencing random hard breaking while driving. I have stopped using it since but it has me worried about my safety as well as other when using this program. I am also having issues with my lane keep assist activating despite it being fully disabled in settings, it pulls my steering wheel back into the lane when i am changing lanes, even with a turn singal, and the computer system screams like crazy telling me im departing my lane. This almost caused me to crash one time as I had to overcome the computer pulling me back into the lane I was already in, despite me intending to change lanes.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11473407July 11, 2022
VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL, FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: ADAPTIVE CRUISE CONTROL, FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: AUTOMATIC EMERGENCY BRAKING
While driving on a highway with adaptive cruise control set and no visible vehicles or obstacles on the roadway, the vehicle slammed on the brakes and slowed to about 2/3 the speed. I disengaged the cruise and took over and was able to then speed back up. My concern is that had someone been close behind me they would have for sure ran into me! At highway speeds this could seriously injure or kill someone. This happened 2 times on July 10th, on my 360 mile trip and also happened on the way to this location 1 time but was a quick brake incident only slowing 10 mph and then went back to the speed I had set…that was the first time and that date was July 7th.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11473242July 10, 2022
FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: ADAPTIVE CRUISE CONTROL, FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: AUTOMATIC EMERGENCY BRAKING
TESLA "auto pilot" (adaptive cruise control) has activated breaking, with no object in front. Last event was 7/9/2022 on the highway going about 77 miles. Because the break are activated unexpectedly I almost lost control of the vehicle, and the vehicle behind me almost collided with us. I this time I have discontinued using the autopilot. Using the autopilot on this vehicle is extremely dangerous. Please help
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11473240July 10, 2022
FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: AUTOMATIC EMERGENCY BRAKING, FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: ADAPTIVE CRUISE CONTROL
Driving 1-25 south in clear and sunny weather at posted speed limit, clear road in front of us, automatic brakes engages for no reason. Car behind us had to take evasive maneuver to avoid collision.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11473238July 10, 2022
FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: ADAPTIVE CRUISE CONTROL
On several occasions while my Model 3 was under cruise control the vehicle brakes for no reason. From 65 mph to 25 mph in moderate to heavy traffic nearly causing a rear end collision each time.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0

← Back to Tesla Model 3