Tesla Model 3 Complaints (2021)

674 consumer complaints on file.

#11467568June 4, 2022
FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: AUTOMATIC EMERGENCY BRAKING
On multiple occasions, my vehicle has experienced the same “phantom braking” problem other Teslas have. This has happened when cruise control (autopilot) was enabled. No cars or obstacles were directly in front of my vehicle and the immediate breaking was unnecessary
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11467511June 4, 2022
SERVICE BRAKES, FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: AUTOMATIC EMERGENCY BRAKING
Since purchasing my vehicle a year ago, it had has occasionally engaged the emergency braking system in situations where other cars have not been a threat or directly in front of me. This week, the system engaged when I was driving up an incline on the highway with no vehicles around me. Very disconcerting and DANGEROUS. As a result I deactivated the system. This is a flaw.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11467510June 4, 2022
VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL, FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: AUTOMATIC EMERGENCY BRAKING
The autopilot used for automatic cruise control regularly brakes for unexplained reasons when there is no immediate threat. This is not only scary but it could cause an accident if other cars were right behind me. There is one part of highway 470 in Highlands Ranch, CO, where it happens every time, like autopilot is expecting the speed limit to drop so it slows way down for me, but the speed limit hasn’t changed. Other times it just happens randomly. It will happen at least once usually every hour I use autopilot.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11467508June 4, 2022
UNKNOWN OR OTHER, FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: AUTOMATIC EMERGENCY BRAKING, FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: ADAPTIVE CRUISE CONTROL
I was in auto pilot (cruise control). The car was going at 78 mph. The brakes suddenly engaged for no reason. Slowing the car to 60 mph very quickly. It basically felt like I slammed on the brakes. This happened 3 times.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11467467June 4, 2022
FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: ADAPTIVE CRUISE CONTROL, FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: AUTOMATIC EMERGENCY BRAKING
While driving on the highway, , this car continues to phantom brake at high speeds which is dangerous. Both adaptive cruise control and “autopilot” experience this. It can be an overpass, cloud, or when the car sees it’s shadow. The phantom braking is a serious safety issue and makes me not want to use the feature. Tesla needs to improve this ASAP.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11467448June 3, 2022
SERVICE BRAKES, FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: ADAPTIVE CRUISE CONTROL
I’ve experienced the “phantom braking” most recently on may 29th, on highway. No cars around or anything that should have trigged it. I was in autosteer mode when it happened both times.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11467438June 3, 2022
FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: ADAPTIVE CRUISE CONTROL
Driving at night, using adaptive cruise control, about 70 MPH, no other vehicles near by, multi lane highway, when pavement changed from black tarmac to lighter concrete surface, the Tesla braked hard automatically. I accelerated and disengaged the cruise control. No loss of control.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11467433June 3, 2022
FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: AUTOMATIC EMERGENCY BRAKING
My car has on several occasions while using cruise control feature engaged, braked unexpectedly at highway speeds when nothing was in front of the car. My Tesla does not have Full Self Driving capabilities, it has also done this emergency braking with Autopilot engaged. It's happened so many times while the Autopilot is engaged, that I never use Autopilot anymore. I have twice nearly been rear ended, (with only cruise control engaged) by a car following me when this auto-braking happened in highway traffic, forcing me to have to immediately hit the accelerator pedal in response, to avoid being hit from behind after the brakes auto engaged.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11467415June 3, 2022
FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: AUTOMATIC EMERGENCY BRAKING
This happens to me all the time. Especially on interstates such as I-4 in Florida. The car will suddenly brake with no warning, slowing down dramatically. For example, if driving at 80 mph the car will suddenly for no reason slam on the brakes to 50mph, almost having other cars behind me rear end me. This issue has never been dealt with by Tesla and Tesla claims it's a normal problem to have. I've never had any other car with adaptive cruise control do this.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11467392June 3, 2022
FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: ADAPTIVE CRUISE CONTROL
When Autopilot is engaged the vehicle will sometimes rapidly slow down unexpectedly. There is no visual or audio warning to accompany the slow down to indicate what the vehicle detected to cause this. It is a rare occurrence but could potentially cause an accident in heavy traffic.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11467368June 3, 2022
SERVICE BRAKES, ELECTRICAL SYSTEM, FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: AUTOMATIC EMERGENCY BRAKING
While driving with cruise and steering control, car will emergency brake like something is in front of the car. Many call it "phantom" braking. One time on a 2 lane highway the car braked hard for no reason, it happened on the way to Vegas and a large group of bikers were behind us. Very scary at highway speeds. We let the bikers pass.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11467363June 3, 2022
FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: WARNINGS, SERVICE BRAKES, ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
Vehicle will engage breaks when there is no obstacle or while on a straight road when placed in cruise control.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11467304June 3, 2022
FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: ADAPTIVE CRUISE CONTROL, SERVICE BRAKES
Car brakes heavily and suddenly for no reason while using cruise control. Seems to be on 2 way roads when semi-truck is passing by in opposite lane. Has happened multiple times on different days under different conditions. Concerned about being rear-ended. I have not had this inspected and no crash has occurred. I stopped using cruise control on this vehicle due to safety concerns.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11467279June 3, 2022
FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: AUTOMATIC EMERGENCY BRAKING
While using cruise control on the highway, I was rounding a slight bend in the road and the automatic braking system actuated, immediately slamming on the brakes and scrubbing off significant speed. Luckily I was close to the accelerator pedal and was able to quickly react by applying throttle, but had there been another vehicle following closely, there could have been a collision. There were no visible objects in or around the road to cause an emergency braking event. I have not used the cruise control feature since this occurrence, but it had happened twice before with similar circumstances. Reference "phantom braking" phenomenon well documented by many other operators.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11466868May 31, 2022
FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: ADAPTIVE CRUISE CONTROL
Sudden unexpected deceleration. There was no car or obstacle in my lane and my car hit the brakes. It seems to have gotten worse with the latest firmware update. It seems like when a shiny object is on a mailbox near the side of the road the car hits the brakes. The truck behind me could have hit me and got very angry and sped around me. This is going to cause an accident if not fixed. It's happened multiple times now.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11466758May 31, 2022
VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL, SERVICE BRAKES, FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: ADAPTIVE CRUISE CONTROL
The car, when using its "traffic aware cruise control" exhibits extreme sudden breaking for no reason (phantom braking). On Thursday, I was on a major interstate in the middle of the day, perfectly marked lanes, no gradient changes, no weather or visibility issues, with absolutely nothing in front of me. The car would suddenly brake aggressively for no reason, sometimes hard enough to hurt my neck. If another car had been following me, I would have been immediately rear ended. Too add insult to injury, Tesla charges for the full self driving function which fully navigates the car on highways, and even though it is so dysfunctional that it is dangerous, they will not refund it after I reported this behavior. Tesla FSD and traffic aware cruise control, in it's current state, is a danger to the public.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11466741May 31, 2022
VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL, SERVICE BRAKES, FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: ADAPTIVE CRUISE CONTROL
The Tesla Autopilot system in my Model 3 repeatedly malfunctions by way of "phantom braking".The latest incident I was luckily able to capture on camera. In this incident, my vehicle is driving down a Nevada highway in the heat, with no oncoming vehicles and a vehicle in my lane well over a mile away and increasing (they had just passed me a few minutes prior). With the speed set to 74mph (driving 73 at the time) the vehicle proceeds to apply heavy brakes, and slows to 56mph for no reason (no vehicles behind, thankfully). My safety and the safety of other motorists is put at risk with these events as the unexpected braking not only whips around the passengers of MY vehicle, but also puts at risk any vehicles that may be behind me, expecting me to maintain my current velocity. The problem has not been reproduced by a dealer as far as I am aware, but the service department of my local Tesla dealer has confirmed the issue is caused by the "Tesla Vision" camera-only system. They (service team) claim that there is no issue with the system, and that it is behaving as expected. They do not view this as a malfunction, and merely view it as the system being extra cautious, which is simply lazy. This component has not yet been inspected by any entity mentioned above. There were no symptoms of this issue prior to it occurring, however this did occur repeatedly over the course of my trip to/from Las Vegas.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11466645May 30, 2022
LANE DEPARTURE: BLIND SPOT DETECTION
Side camera glare at night when signaling
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11466262May 26, 2022
FIRERELATED, STEERING:AUTOMATED/ADAPTIVE STEERING
The contact's son owned a 2021 Tesla Model 3. The contact stated that his son was involved in a fatal collision while driving at an undisclosed speed with the autopilot activated. The contact was informed by his son's friend, who was a passenger in the vehicle, that the autopilot malfunctioned, causing the vehicle to inadvertently drive off the road, hit a tree, and then catch fire. An unknown bright orange light was seen on the windshield right before the failure occurred. The contact's son's friend was able to exit the vehicle, but the contact's son was unconscious and was not able to exit the vehicle. The fire department was able to extinguish the fire. A fire department report was filed. The contact's son's friend received medical attention for burns and bruises on his legs. The contact's son's autopsy report stated that his son died as a result of intense thermal heat and smoke inhalation. The vehicle was towed and remained with the Highway Patrol. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was unknown.
Crash:
Yes
Fire:
Yes
Injuries:
1
Deaths:
1
#11466145May 25, 2022
SERVICE BRAKES, FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: AUTOMATIC EMERGENCY BRAKING, FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: ADAPTIVE CRUISE CONTROL
Referred to as "Phantom Braking," the vehicle decelerates dramatically when in "Autopilot" mode. This happens at seemingly random times and locations. It happens in the day or night, open or populated roads, multi-lane highways or single lane. The deceleration is so sudden that passengers in the car are thrown forward. One instance the car decelerated from about 75 MPH to 45 MPH in a matter of about 2 seconds. Thankfully no one was behind me. Others worry that if someone is following too closely, they could rear-end the Tesla... I don't think a vehicle would have to follow all that closely for this to cause an accident.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0

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