Tesla Model Y Complaints

4,325 consumer complaints on file.

#11550996October 20, 2023
STEERING
While driving, steering wheel locked! Prior to locking there were no warnings. While wheel locked, warning popped up-“ steering assist reduced.” I was going up a curved parking garage ramp when wheel locked, I was unable to turn my vehicle causing my car hit curb, scraping my rims. Cars were honking behind me, there was no where to move. I was scared, causing me to have a panic attack. I had to turn off/on car twice for steering to go back to normal. I took vehicle to Tesla and had to pay $387 for diagnosis. I was 4,000 miles over warranty. Tesla is saying it could be a possible steering rack replacement and cost $2,500. Tesla will not pay for rim damage or pay for fixing the steering issue, which is a major safety problem. Tesla needs to do better!
Crash:
Yes
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11550766October 19, 2023
SERVICE BRAKES, VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL, FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: AUTOMATIC EMERGENCY BRAKING
While driving at night with the cruise control on, the emergency braking system engaged. It appeared that the road surface went from dark to a lighter color.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11550499October 17, 2023
SERVICE BRAKES
To the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), I am writing to formally file a complaint regarding a recent experience with my 2021 Tesla Model Y, which is still under warranty. While using the vehicle, I observed an abnormal sound when reversing. After seeking Tesla’s service, I was informed that the rotors on my car needed replacement. What greatly concerns me is that, despite the car being under warranty, Tesla charged me an amount of one thousand dollars for this repair. It is essential to note that this malfunction wasn’t due to any negligence or external factors on my part. I have video evidence that captures the sound the vehicle made while reversing, further emphasizing the unexpected nature of this issue. My understanding of the warranty terms led me to believe that such unforeseen defects should be covered without any additional charges. It is deeply unsettling to be presented with such a significant expense for a problem that, in my view, should have been resolved under the warranty’s purview. I am reaching out to the NHTSA to shed light on this matter, as it brings forth concerns about the potential for similar experiences faced by other Tesla Model Y owners. I request the NHTSA’s assistance in investigating this incident to ensure consumers like myself are not unduly burdened with unjustified costs. Your attention to this matter is highly appreciated. I am hopeful for a just resolution that aligns with the NHTSA’s dedication to safeguarding consumers and ensuring vehicular safety standards. Sincerely, [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
#11550382October 17, 2023
SERVICE BRAKES, VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL, FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: ADAPTIVE CRUISE CONTROL
When on autopilot mode with traffic aware cruise control (TACC), the Tesla model Y car gets unexpected unpredictable random sudden slowing down with braking causing panic, inability to react, unsafe for the following car the rear. Appears to have unexpected unnecessary phantom braking unsafe for driver, passengers and the rear following car.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11550322October 17, 2023
VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL, FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: AUTOMATIC EMERGENCY BRAKING
Car was on TACC. It was early evening so the sun was making a lot of shadows on the road from trees. Car kept repeatedly slamming on the brakes approaching each tree shadow. The road was absolutely clear of any real hazard. Almost caused car behind me to collide into the back of me, and then they passed me while honking and very angry. I can't blame them.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11550317October 17, 2023
STEERING, LANE DEPARTURE: ASSIST
During the week of October 09 2023, I started receiving two failure alerts on my 2023 Model Y. The first is that lane keeping assist was unavailable. In spite of this alert, the system continued to function properly. The second warning was a Steering Assist Reduced warning. At first, this also seemed to not corollate to a noticeable issue with the vehicle. On the evening October 15, when leaving a supercharger station, I noticed a momentary stutter in the steering wheel that accompanied the above mentioned alert. No other issue was observed. On the afternoon of October 16, when leaving from work, after putting the vehicle in gear, I had no steering ability at all, it was a similar feeling to the steering wheel lock on older vehicles. The wheel would move approximately 1" in either direction. I immediately shut the vehicle down and performed a reset by holding in both scroll wheels on the steering wheel. This did not clear the code, but did return steering ability. Since I could not predict when the steering might go out again, I contacted Tesla and had the vehicle towed to the nearest service center.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11550304October 16, 2023
FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: AUTOMATIC EMERGENCY BRAKING, FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: ADAPTIVE CRUISE CONTROL
I had 3 incidences where my Tesla braked hard while using basic cruise control. There was no car in front of me in all cases. One time there was a car to the side of ne. The incidences happened on October 15, 2023 while driving on I-15 and I-70 through Utah. It happened around 1 pm, in sunny weather. The car braked hard for now apparent reason, and this is very dangerous if a car was behind me. The passengers in the car became scared. I looked for settings to disable the automatic braking when using cruise control, but changing the various settings gs did not help. The random braking did not happen if cruise control was off. I had to stop using cruise control for fear of my safety. There should be a way to turn off auto-braking when using cruise control.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11550243October 16, 2023
STEERING
Steering wheel locks frequently, especially when driving on busy road. Very dangerous.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11550065October 15, 2023
SERVICE BRAKES
Component/System Failure: Brakes spuriously slam on when traveling at freeway speeds. Safety concerns: People behind me possibly slamming into me, in addition, my terrified reactions to an unexpected/unseen concern. Vehicle has not been confirmed by dealer or independent service Vehicle has not been inspected my manufacture, police, or insurance representative there is no warning as to when they may happen. first appeared in March 2023 and has happened about five times throughout the various months since then,
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11550010October 15, 2023
FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: AUTOMATIC EMERGENCY BRAKING
Phantom breaking while on autopilot. The car slows down abruptly with no vehicles or obstacles ahead. This is a new issue that started after a recent update. Also since latest update Autopilot has became more sensitive(in a good way) to situations that do require speed reductions. But, the phantom breaking is scary and frustrating.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11549975October 14, 2023
VISIBILITY/WIPER
We have had our Tesla back at at Tesla service center twice pertaining to the HVAC system not delivering airflow needed for proper cooling and defrosting of the windshield. Tonight we were unable to drive because the front window was fogged over and the HVAC system would not de-fog the glass. There was little or no heat being applied to the glass in HI defrost mode. It was necessary to use a rag to wipe the glass so we could continue driving. We live in Northeast Ohio and I’m afraid that when we get snow or ice on the windshield that we will have a serious safety issue.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11549956October 14, 2023
FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: ADAPTIVE CRUISE CONTROL, FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: AUTOMATIC EMERGENCY BRAKING, FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: WARNINGS
Phantom breaking problem with Tesla Y occurred on I90 between Rapid City and Sioux Falls SD, June 2nd between 1 and 2 pm when my wife and I were traveling across country. I was passing a semi-truck in the left lane and traveling at about 80 mph (the speed limit) with a pickup truck following me. I was using TACC (assisted cruise control) without the Autosteer function, when the Tesla Y slammed on the breaks. It was a panic type of stop and everything in the back seat flew forward and both my wife were shaken. I quickly pressed on the accelerator and was able to increase our speed quickly, but we were almost rear ended by the pickup truck that was following us. I noticed the semi-truck was all red on the Tesla screen and I assume the Tesla computer thought it was a potential collision. After passing the truck I pulled into the right lane. The pickup behind passed me pulled into the right lane and then proceeded to break while he was in front of me. He was not happy and I could not blame him. This almost caused a road rage incident as well. thankfully nothing happened but it was very close to becoming an accident.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11549924October 14, 2023
VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL, SERVICE BRAKES, FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: WARNINGS
Two times in one week with two different drivers driving the same vehicle the vehicle experienced sudden unintended acceleration while parking. In the first incident this resulted in damage to the bumper into a wired fence which the vehicle did not alert but rather accelerated instead of applied regenerative breaking. Four days later the same incident happened with sudden unintended acceleration occurring while parking the car. When sending the car to Tesla for service due to the safety concern and damage this resulted in they said this was a user error which can’t be the case as this incident happened with two different drivers driving the same vehicle. When reading about this there have been numerous complaints which have shown that there is an electrical “ They show that the sudden unintended acceleration of Tesla cars may have been caused by negative voltage spikes that are logged as a fully depressed pedal, fooling both Tesla and the NHTSA investigators that there has been no hardware or software defect.”
Crash:
Yes
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11549869October 13, 2023
BACK OVER PREVENTION:DISPLAY FUNCTION
The contact owns a 2023 Tesla Model Y. The contact stated while attempting to reverse the vehicle, the screen failed to display a rearview image, compromising the back over prevention system. After restarting the vehicle, the vehicle returned to normal functionality. No warning lights were illuminated. The vehicle was not taken to the dealer or an independent mechanic. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 7,500. The VIN was not available.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11549689October 12, 2023
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
The contact owns a 2021 Tesla Model Y. The contact stated that, while attempting to enter the vehicle, he was unable to access it via the remote access key fob. Upon gaining access to the vehicle through the rear passenger door, it then failed to start. No warning lights were illuminated. The contact also stated that the battery management system had failed to properly notify him of the impending failure, either through the vehicle instrument panel or the Tesla vehicle phone application. The vehicle was towed to the dealer, who diagnosed a failure with the battery management system and determined that the low-voltage battery required replacement. The vehicle was repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure but provided no assistance. The failure mileage was unknown.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11549502October 11, 2023
VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL, FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: ADAPTIVE CRUISE CONTROL, FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: WARNINGS
I received this new car 11 days ago - it has none of its safety assist driving features and Tesla is not responding to my requests for assistance. I can't get a response to my requests for help. The clearly is absent of multiple points of functionality. Thank you
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11549439October 11, 2023
FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: ADAPTIVE CRUISE CONTROL
Full self driving (FSD), when engaged on the freeway, occasionally causes needless hard braking (phantom braking). This happens randomly and without warning. When this occurs, I and others road users are at increased risk of an accident and serious injury and/or death. Since there has been no accident the vehicle has not been inspected.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11549280October 10, 2023
UNKNOWN OR OTHER
The horn is not working properly. When pressing the left side horn button the horn does not activate. The right side horn button does work properly.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11549203October 10, 2023
VISIBILITY/WIPER
Windshield cracked while driving on the highway The vehicle is not available for inspection as we have taken it to Tesla Service center to replace the windshield The cracked appeared in the top center. if it had happened on the driver side it could have resulted in an accident. The manufacturer is denying faulty product. The warning signs were there all along. About a few weeks back we could hear the cracking sound from the windshield. Since we could not pin-point the location we didn't think it was a faulty windshield.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11549197October 10, 2023
FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: ADAPTIVE CRUISE CONTROL, FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: AUTOMATIC EMERGENCY BRAKING
Driving on Highway 46 in California at a speeds ranging from 65 to 75 mph in both adaptive cruise control and autopilot when the car suddenly braked abruptly for no reason. There wasno traffic or obstruction. This occurred several different times on this highway in both directions and on different days during daylight hours with both light and moderate traffic.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0

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