Tesla Model 3 Complaints (2023)

429 consumer complaints on file.

#11544288September 13, 2023
STEERING:RACK AND PINION
The contact owns a 2023 Tesla Model-3. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle inadvertently drifted into the left and right lanes. The contact then stated that while attempting to make a left or right turn, there was a clicking sound in the steering wheel. The contact also stated that the steering wheel failed to align with the front wheels. As a result, the vehicle failed to drive straightforward. the contact was concerned for his safety while operating the vehicle. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where it was diagnosed that the steering rack failed and need to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 3,387.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11543982September 12, 2023
SEATS
I just purchased this new 2023 Tesla Model 3. I am not reporting a failed or malfunctioning component but I have a safety concern. After taking delivery I noticed that there are no emergency door latch releases on the rear seats like there are on the front seats. This could make exiting the back seats very difficult or even impossible in the event of an emergency with loss of power to the vehicle. I cannot believe that this feature was omitted. I worry that people will die because they will not be able to escape a burning vehicle quickly enough. This seems like the door could be easily modified to correct this issue and make this vehicle much safer.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11543949September 11, 2023
STEERING
I picked up a new Tesla Model 3 on July 29, 2023. On July 31, I received a steering reduced alert as I was backing out of my driveway and could not move the steering wheel. After I did a hard power off, the alert went away. I called Tesla service, and was told that this was not a typical issue but to schedule a service appointment and cancel if the issue did not recur before the next available date (Aug. 23). Two days later, on Aug. 3, I saw news articles about an NHTSA investigation into the same steering issue in 2023 Model 3s. I called Tesla service again, and now was told that they could not say that my car was safe to drive, and that there was no "official" response from the Company. I was directed to emergency assistance, which told me that the car was safe to drive at least to the Milford, CT service center, and noted that had I waited until Aug. 23, the alert would have been deleted from the system. I brought the car to the service center on Aug. 4. I was told that my steering rack needed to be replaced, and they gave me a loaner because the repair would take a few days. Soon after I drove back home (which is 30 min. away), I received notice saying that the service was complete. The service center did not give a coherent explanation for why they did not replace the steering rack and the correction codes did not line up. I told Tesla that I wanted to return the car, including bc it seemed like Tesla was trying not to perform an expensive repair they had listed themselves in their own documents with NHTSA scrutiny on this issue. I received no response, but was told by TD Bank that Tesla had agreed to a flat cancellation on my auto loan as of Aug. 9, with title to be reverted back to the dealership, and to discuss next steps with Tesla. I then contacted Tesla to return the car and obtain my deposit, and received no response. Then TD told me that Tesla reapplied for the loan on Aug. 22, without my consent. This whole ordeal has been a nightmare.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11543824September 11, 2023
VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL, POWER TRAIN
The contact owns a 2023 Tesla Model 3. The contact stated that while their spouse was parking the vehicle and pressing the parking button, the vehicle suddenly accelerated. The vehicle jumped the curb, crashing into two different vehicles to eventually be stopped after crashing into a tree. The air bags did not deploy. There was damage to the other vehicles and to the tree. The driver received injuries to their neck and back. Medical attention was not needed. A police report was filed. The vehicle had been towed. The vehicle was taken to a certified mechanic who had not diagnosed or repaired the vehicle as of yet. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 500.
Crash:
Yes
Fire:
No
Injuries:
1
Deaths:
0
#11543738September 10, 2023
VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL, FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: ADAPTIVE CRUISE CONTROL, FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: AUTOMATIC EMERGENCY BRAKING
1. When vehicle is on autopilot mode. Vehicle will all a sudden brake by itself with no reason as to why, no cars in front of me intermitly. Mostly happens when driving at highway speeds and when approaching a overpass. 2. Could be crash from the rear. 3. Have not notified Tesla. 4. No inspections have been performed 5. No warnings and no beeping either just brakes by itself intermitly.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11543323September 8, 2023
STEERING
Lots of power steering. Unable to move vehicle…extremely unsafe.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11543030September 6, 2023
FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: ADAPTIVE CRUISE CONTROL
The vehicle slowed down at a very rapid rate when in cruise control for no reason. There were no other vehicles or obstructions anywhere near the vehicle. This happened 3 times. I reported these events to Tesla and they said it was a known issue called ghosting and there was nothing to repair. A rapid deceleration of the vehicle for no reason and with no warning is a safety issue that should be addressed immediately. Iv'e used cruise control on many other vehicles and have never had a problem.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11542837September 6, 2023
STEERING
The contact owns a 2023 Tesla Model 3. The contact stated that the vehicle failed to drive straight. While releasing the steering wheel, the vehicle would either veer to the left or the right. There were no warning lights illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer five times, where it was diagnosed that the vehicle was out of specification. The vehicle was not repaired. The contact was concerned about a possible crash due to the failure. The manufacturer was contacted, but no assistance was provided for over thirty days. The failure mileage was approximately 12.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11542543September 4, 2023
FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: ADAPTIVE CRUISE CONTROL, FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: AUTOMATIC EMERGENCY BRAKING
We were driving on cruise control on 7/24/23 between the hours of 6AM - 8AM on a completely open highway with no cars near and no objects in the road. Our car braked on its own when we were driving 74-77MPH bringing the car to an almost complete stop. The same thing occurred on 7/22/23 between the hours of 9AM - 2PM. It was extremely scary and an obvious malfunction/ defect of the car. We both have back pain now from the sudden stop.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11542223September 2, 2023
UNKNOWN OR OTHER
The steering feels extremely stiff and jerky
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11542213September 1, 2023
STEERING
Steering wheel could not turn after after parked and tried to drive again. Car could only go straight forward or backward. Also tried to restart the whole car computer, problem still persisted. The car screen displayed error message UI_a020 Steering assist reduced, Steering may require increased effort.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11542208September 1, 2023
FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: WARNINGS, FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: ADAPTIVE CRUISE CONTROL, FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: AUTOMATIC EMERGENCY BRAKING
The car makes unintended braking when there is no vehicle in front. The car made a sudden brake from 75 mph to near 0 mph such that the driver felt that the vehicle almost flipped.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11541231August 28, 2023
SERVICE BRAKES, ELECTRICAL SYSTEM, VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL
I was coming to a stop due to a train passing by. As I got closer to the other vehicles that were waiting for the train, I let go of the acceleration and then the vehicle on its own launched forward rear ending the car in front of me.
Crash:
Yes
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11540889August 26, 2023
VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL, FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: ADAPTIVE CRUISE CONTROL
I was on a road trip in South Dakota through I-90 and the vehicle stopped in middle of the road caused by phantom braking while running by its autopilot (7 times total). In multiple instances, there were vehicles not far behind. This is really scary as in any moment we could have been in a fatal accident on the 80mph road. Tesla needs to fix this ASAP. Not acceptable at all from a vehicle that costs this much.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11540483August 24, 2023
FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: ADAPTIVE CRUISE CONTROL, FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: AUTOMATIC EMERGENCY BRAKING
While driving westbound on US Rt 50 in Nevada with AutoSteer Beta engaged, car repeatedly decelerated rapidly with no audible or visual warning presented. This "phantom braking" could easily put vehicles traveling behind mine at risk of a collision. I have been able to reliable reproduce this in certain conditions - when a mirage is present on the roadway ahead and there are no cars immediately in front, the visual object detection system is apparently thrown off by the refraction of light and incorrectly detects cars, pedestrians, or motorcycles where none exist. As I see it, there are two major problems in play here - one is that the camera-based object detection system is easily confused by the presence of mirages on the road surface ahead and there are no other sensors in other portions of the EM spectrum (IR LIDAR or RADAR) to confirm the presence of visually detected objects. The second is the lack of audible driver warning before deceleration takes place. The only indication that occurs is the energy use indicator (a thin line at the top left of the screen) shows energy use transition to regeneration. Together, these constitute a serious safety hazard for anyone operating these vehicles and those following behind them.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11540339August 23, 2023
STEERING
Steering wheel locked up while operating not allowing me to turn the wheel. Loss of power steering and control. Screen displaying error "Steering assist reduced" when in reality was completely unable to steer. Vehicle still powered and accelerated however no control over steering.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11540124August 22, 2023
STEERING
Car lost power steering without warning
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11540086August 22, 2023
SERVICE BRAKES, VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL, FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: ADAPTIVE CRUISE CONTROL
While using cruise control on a highway traveling between 65 and 75 MPH the brakes slammed on when there was absolutely no traffic in front of or beside us, no overhead obstructions, no upcoming corners, nothing at all but straight road ahead. If anyone had been behind us we could easily have been rear-ended. The car had only 1500 miles on it the first time it happened. There were 4 such events in our short 400 mile road trip. Took it directly to Tesla service and have been told there is nothing wrong with the car!
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11540002August 22, 2023
STEERING
Steering wheel got jammed while driving on highway. Stopped vehicle on rode side and called for Tesla road side assistance. Tesla towed my vehicle and replaced steering rack. Invoice attached for details
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11539692August 21, 2023
STEERING
While driving yesterday night, I lost steering control. I stopped the car in the middle of the street and tried again but the steering wheel was very stiff. It took so much effort to change the lane and find a safe place to park. It was a scary moment for myself and my 2 kids. I was about to crash into other cars. A message appeared “ui_a020 - steering assist reduced”.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0

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