What 592 owners told NHTSA about the 2019 Tesla Model 3 Bev

Component: Exterior Door Handle (Front Passenger) Incident Description: A latent manufacturing defect resulted in the structural delamination of the interior chrome plating on the front passenger door handle. This failure occurred after the last use of the handle, creating a razor-sharp metallic edge that was not visible during a normal approach to the vehicle. Upon contacting the handle to open the door, a passenger sustained a deep laceration from this jagged metallic blade. Safety Hazard: The defect transforms a primary vehicle touchpoint into a concealed cutting hazard. The chrome skin peels and curls into a sharp edge without warning or visible signs of wear, posing an ongoing risk of serious physical injury to any occupant. Manufacturer Response: Tesla Service (Los Gatos) was provided with photographic evidence of the razor edge and the resulting injury. While acknowledging the injury, Tesla refused a safety-based "goodwill" repair, citing the vehicle’s age (2019) and the absence of a formal recall. Tesla further attempted to attribute this structural material failure to cleaning products, despite the vehicle being garage-kept and maintained only with pH-neutral enthusiast-grade soaps. Tesla has since refused further discussion. Request: This defect poses an ongoing risk of serious physical injury to any occupant using the handles. I am reporting this to assist in identifying a trend of material failure in 2017–2020 Model 3 chrome door handles.

NHTSA ODI 11737862

There was a failure of a rear camera to detect the proximity of a closed garage door when in reverse in a driveway. The result was hitting the garage door and damaging the garage door as a result. This could be dangerous as there was no warning on the backup camera screen and no audible warning. This was a very expensive repair given the garage door was a unique color and design.

NHTSA ODI 11736150

The Tesla was hit on the passenger side by a Honda civic that ran a red light traveling more than 25 mph The Tesla spun 180 degrees after impact. No airbags deployed. Immediately after impact the Tesla turned on hazard lights. However the vehicle would not come to a stop after pressing on the brakes. After impact the vehicle was coasting backwards at probably less than 5-6 mph. It would not respond to brake presses. Oddly the vehicle had regen braking enabled which should have brought it to a stop, but it didn’t. The vehicle kept coasting backwards as if it was in neutral for about 20 meters until it hit a curb and stopped. BRAKES WOULD NOT WORK!!!

NHTSA ODI 11734115

The chrome lamination/sticker is peeling from the underside of the door handles. This peeling causes an extremely sharp edge that cut my finger. This issue is noted rather constantly over the internet. The sharp edge is hidden by the retracting mechanism of the door handles, and so you don’t see it until you grab it and cut yourself.

NHTSA ODI 11732300

I was involved in a collision while driving my 2019 Tesla Model 3. The incident occurred on April 2nd 2026 in [XXX] Prior to the collision, the vehicle was operating normally The crash resulted in damage to the front driver-side of the vehicle, including a destroyed headlight and body panel damage. At the time of the incident, weather and traffic was light and normal. The vehicle was set and supposed to head straight when suddenly at the intersection it jerked right and headed straight into another vehicle. I attempted to take control but was unable to due to resistance on the wheel and how quickly the incident occurred. There was no warning or emergency braking which should've also been expected from my tesla. I am submitting this report to document a potential safety concern and request review. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

NHTSA ODI 11729060

Brakes failed to stop the car. The car sat at Tesla service center for one month with no action from Tesla.My wife rear ended another car. The air bags deployed. No one was injuryed and the other was not damaged. Both people could have been seriously hurt or killed. Car was finally towed to Classic Collision November 24 by State Farm Insurance for repair. Estimate to be repaired January 8, 2026.

NHTSA ODI 11706446

The contact owns a 2019 Tesla Model 3. The contact stated that his wife was driving approximately 30-40 MPH at night with Full Self-Driving(FSD) mode engaged. The contact stated that the driver was exiting the highway to merge onto another highway that would close intermittently. The contact stated that the driver briefly looked at the navigation screen, and the vehicle suddenly crashed into the first highway closure gate, and the windshield shattered. The vehicle then crashed into a second highway closure gate. The contact stated that the Full Self-Driving(FSD) mode failed to operate as needed to prevent the collisions. The driver was able to stop the vehicle by depressing the brake pedal. The vehicle stopped in the middle of the highway, and there was no oncoming traffic. The contact's daughter was occupying the front passenger's side seat during the incident. The driver called 911, and the police officers arrived at the scene. A police report was filed, but the police report number was not available. The air bags did not deploy. There was no injury sustained. The vehicle was towed to a tow yard, where it was under evaluation. The contact related the failure to NHTSA Action Numbers: PE25012(Electrical System) and PE24031(Electrical System). The contact attempted to contact the manufacturer via phone, but the manufacturer was unreachable. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was 111,725.

NHTSA ODI 11692414

Vehicle in front stopped suddenly. The car gave NO alert AND did NOT stop whatsoever. The tesla collided with the vehicle in front. **I have dashcam footage of the incident

NHTSA ODI 11690831

Vehicle: 2019 Tesla Model 3 Dual Motor VIN: [XXX] Mileage: ~84,041 Software: v12 (2025.32.6 e575ed98d527), FSD Supervised v12.6.4 Date/Time: [XXX], ~[XXX] Location: [XXX] Incident Description: While operating Autopilot, I was stopped at a stop sign preparing to turn right. I lightly pressed the accelerator to prompt the turn. At that moment, the vehicle would not respond to steering or braking input. Despite applying full force on the steering wheel and brake pedal, the car continued straight ahead and struck a street sign. This represents a loss of manual override — I was completely locked out of steering and braking. Prior Behavior at Same Location: On prior occasions using Autopilot at this same intersection, the vehicle would attempt to make the turn but then immediately steer itself into the breakdown lane. I had learned to expect this and was prepared to take over. However, in this most recent incident, the vehicle did not allow me to take over at all, which created a far more serious hazard. Result: •Vehicle damage (front bumper, sensors) •Significant safety risk if pedestrians or cross traffic had been present •Demonstrates that Autopilot can both mis-execute turns and, critically, fail to relinquish control when the driver intervenes Action Taken: •Scheduled Tesla Service (Cherry Hill, NJ – Oct 7, 2025) •Requested Tesla to preserve all telemetry, camera footage, and Autopilot logs •Reported to my insurance carrier as a suspected manufacturer defect Request: I am reporting this as a serious safety defect. A system that prevents manual override of steering and braking is unsafe and could cause severe injury or death. Please investigate Tesla Autopilot’s behavior at this location and in similar right-turn scenarios. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

NHTSA ODI 11690186

See attached document for complaint.

NHTSA ODI 11686345

The accident happened in a parking lot. There was a tap of the bumpers going really slow. The passenger in the Tesla is claiming whiplash. The car is not safe if it cannot take a slight bump on the fender in a parking lot.

NHTSA ODI 11631768

Driving on Hwy 8 (Houston Beltway), going west, dog came out from left side, Tesla auto pilot was engaged and did not detect collision with the dog. Car did not stop, did not alarm, dog was hit, my front bumper was damaged, and car kept on going.

NHTSA ODI 11625893

Driver-side Airbags deployed for no reason. While my husband was driving, the Tesla screen showed that the crash had been detected, so airbags were deployed, and he was asked to call 911. However, no collision occurred. Attaching photos of the towed car. Police came and didn’t make a report since no collision was present. After the tow truck towed the car, and a couple of hours later, we went to pick up our belongings; we couldn’t access the trunk, the car was fully dead. However, the charge was 71% before the deployment of the airbag.

NHTSA ODI 11594695

The contact owned a 2019 Tesla Model 3. The contact stated that while driving with the autopilot feature enabled, the vehicle slid across the road and crashed into a concrete barrier. The contact stated that it was raining at the failure occurred. No Police or Fire reports were filed. The vehicle was towed to a local tow yard. The vehicle was condemned as a total loss. The contact stated after researching, the contact discovered NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V838000 (Electrical System). In addition, the vehicle was not inspected by Tesla to determine the cause of the failure. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 20,000.

NHTSA ODI 11571709

The NHTSA is forcing Tesla and other self-driving cars to come to a complete 0 mph stop at stop signs and according to Elon, only 0.5% of all drivers in their fleet actually do this and that seems inline with the general public also doesn't come to a 100% stop at every stop sign and as a result I got rear-ended because in a completely wide-open intersection the driver behind me thought I was going to do a rolling stop but didn't. The point of the NHTSA is to keep drivers safe and driving like a safe driver and not a robot that follows 100% of all road rules makes an unpredictable driver therefore an unsafe driver. The NHTSA has allowed car manufacturers like Volvo set max cruise control to 125 mph!!!! That breaks the speed limit on 99.999% of all roads in America but you've allowed it for years because everyone goes above the speed limit and that's ok with the NHTSA. Letting self driving cars slow to 1 or 2 mph before proceeding in an intersection where no other cars or people are present aligns with what over 99% of all drivers do so that would make them a predictable driver and therefore a safe driver. Not saying allow them to blow through intersections at 3+ mph but not come to a 100% stop, seriously no one does that!!

NHTSA ODI 11541458

I was at a toll booth paying for tow. All of a sudden the car accelerated forward by itself, ramming into the toll bar. At that time, my arm was still sticking out the window while interacting with the toll terminal. This incident is something that needs to be looked at. It certainly looks like this is a result of the accident avoidance feature. Not sure why it activated either. But I am 99.9% sure that I did not accidentally press the gas pedal because I had to slam on the brakes to stop. Currently contacting Tesla to see if they can get the log to prove whether I accidentally press the pedal or not. In addition to this, there were reports of inverter spikes causing acceleration issues. Please look into the linkage of these incidents. As an electrical engineer myself, this is very alarming.

NHTSA ODI 11539342

Multiple extreme braking so much where today actually hurt my neck it stopped so abruptly up a hill miscalculating that a walker was about to be hit by my car, the man was nowhere near being hit and the auto braking skid to a halt whipping my head forward and my sweatshirt choked my Adams Apple area. It was extremely abrupt, scared me, the walker and nearly caused a rear end collision with the car behind me. This has happened a lot in the past 3 months yet I’ve had the car for over 4 years so I am assuming something is wrong with the software updates - it’s super scary not to have control of your own car. Also, I can opt out of auto braking on my car yet that’s not what I’m reporting, I’m reporting the fact that it’s phantom braking miscalculating street situations and causing dangers to me, my passengers and others like I’ve described above. Also noticed recently, when I hit the gas, it’s often the car doesn’t “go” it pauses and then may go with similar miscalculation of street situations like pedestrians on a adjacent sidewalk or motorcycles in between cars yet literally the Tesla won’t let me move…this isn’t safe.

NHTSA ODI 11524916

On 10/17/2021 my son was killed along with his passenger in this Tesla. The car was thought to be going over 100 miles an hour on a city road Coconut Point Road in Estero Florida. The car was thought to have hit a tree with the rear tire and was sent flying through the air and hit another tree and split in half. My son knew this road well as it was close to his home and drove it on his way home from work. I feel strongly that this was an acceleration issue!! He has driven this car for 2 years, so knew the car well.

NHTSA ODI 11524321

My wife was dropping my kid in the school drop off line. The speed was probably about 5 mph. The Tesla suddenly went into a sudden spontaneous acceleration. When my wife tried to brake, the brakes did not work. There was no forward collision warning beeping sound that went off, which is supposed to. It hit the vehicle in front and finally hit a fence. so, both the accelerator and brake malfunctioned. The car will go to a body shop tomorrow. Since it was a school drop off zone, safety of a lot of people were put at risk. It was very hard to get Tesla on the phone. so, we went into a Tesla service center and a complaint was filed. They will be reviewing the data but I dont know how long it will take. A software update had been applied a week back. 2 hours after the accident, a software update screen popped up

NHTSA ODI 11522124

I was driving using beta full self driving feature, and the vehicle was involved in a collision

NHTSA ODI 11509538

The contact owns a 2019 Tesla Model 3. The contact stated while driving at 3 MPH and slowing the vehicle into his residence driveway, as he took his foot off the accelerator the vehicle accelerated at a high rate of speed forward. The vehicle crashed into the residence and entered the house. The contact stated he did not notice any warning lights. The contact was rendered unconscious and was transported by ambulance to an ER. The contact stated that the air bags did not deploy. The contact had sustained a broken back and had fractured his sternum. The vehicle was towed to an impound lot and had not been repaired. The manufacturer had not been informed of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 35,000.

NHTSA ODI 11504715

My Handicap Son, Devdutt Srivastava, on Cushing Parkway and Fremont Boulevard. Fremont, CA, on US October 24 Evening with no Auto Pilot or FUSD engaged. At threshold the light had turned Orange and my son proceeded with same pace as usual, without accelerating. A cross car with an Autistic Kid, most likely as my son is a Special Ed Masters and trained to spot one, rammed into the Tesla 3 which was fully wrecked. The Auto Collision Emergency Detection and Braking should have worked as it was Stop and Go Traffic at Peak Evening Hours between 3:50 and 4:30 pm. I have seen Toyota Prius Auto Collison Braking Work. Someone needs to stop Elon Musk and Tesla charging premium on false promises and taking toll on lives of innocent people trusting their marketing false propoganda and constant spinning on Auto Pilot and FUD with new additional confusion creating packages and options and moving features too and fro. This complicates the software and causes more bugs.

NHTSA ODI 11498887

The contact owns a 2019 Tesla Model 3. The contact stated that while his partner was driving at approximately 60 MPH in inclement weather, the lane departure feature malfunctioned, causing the vehicle to hydroplane and crash into the median. No air bags were deployed. The contact's partner sustained a sore neck and back; however, medical attention was not received. A police report was filed. The vehicle was towed to the contact's residence and was not yet deemed totaled by the insurance company. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 66,000.

NHTSA ODI 11498381

Major side impact. Vehicle struck 30-35mph perpendicular to direction of travel. Vehicle did a 180 and suffered significant damage. Side Airbags did not deploy and shattered glass projectiles were flung to the head area of rear occupant, as evidenced by glass shards caught in car seat head area.

NHTSA ODI 11494477

Yesterday I had the most frightening driving experience of my entire life. It was raining heavily and I was going about 35 mph on the local road in my model 3 standard, 3 years old. Suddenly I lost all traction and was slipping side to side +/-90 degrees from the direction of traffic. I immediately took my foot off the accelerator and tried to slow down but didn’t brake. I swung 180 degrees each way about 5 times. Luckily no one hit me but I was taking up all lanes as I careened all over the road. I can’t believe how easily the model 3 loses traction in the rain. This is unacceptable.

NHTSA ODI 11477733