What 748 owners told NHTSA about the 2022 Tesla Model 3 Bev

On 19 July 2023 at approximately 4am in the morning, while with my wife traveling north on I-95, I was driving approximately 77 mph and my 2022 Tesla Model 3 SLAMMED ON THE BRAKES. I had several cars directly behind me that had to slam on brakes and perform other evasive driving maneuvers as well. Luckily my reaction time was quick enough for me to SLAM ON THE ACCELERTOR to avoid a very serious wreck and pile up. This is the 3rd time this has happened but thankfully the first 2 times I did not have traffic directly behind me. Although I paid an extra $6000 for the Enhanced Auto Pilot, I do not use it, as I am now scared to death of this car at highway speeds. On the night/morning of 19 July, I was on just regular cruise control. The very next day (20 July) I applied for an appointment with the local Tesla Service Center here in the Richmond VA area. After a couple days, and I had not taken the car in yet, Tesla sent me a message and informed "that I am NOT to bring the car in." I have not heard from them since then... and today is 5 August 2023. Respectfully request that you weigh in to either get me a Refund for this car, or in some way restore my confidence in it. I am scared to ever put this car on the highway again. THANK YOU.

NHTSA ODI 11536636

Driving at speed limit (70MPH) on Interstate 5. Was using cruise control. On 5 occasions, driving N, then S 4 days later, car braked suddenly with no obstacle or vehicle within 50 yards.

NHTSA ODI 11536068

While driving on freeway with adaptive cruise control engaged, the vehicle suddenly slammed on the brakes with the wheels initially locking up (there was an audible screech from the tires). There was no traffic obstacle that would have suggested that there was a reason to do this. It was daytime and the weather was clear. I was able to immediately take control of the car and re-accelerate to prevent vehicles behind me from rear-ending me.

NHTSA ODI 11533607

The contact owns a 2022 Tesla Model 3. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle experienced phantom braking. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired by an independent mechanic or dealer. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 400.

NHTSA ODI 11533681

I was driving my 2022 Tesla Model 3 Long Range. This car does NOT have Autopilot (because we do not trust that technology). We were traveling eastbound on I-8 just east of Exit 61 from San Diego to Arizona on Sunday July 16 at about 2:30pm. The weather conditions were not an issue; it was sunny and warm. I was in the left lane doing 77mph with the Cruise Control on. I had passed a vehicle in the right lane and it was now maybe 500 feet behind us, still in the right lane. Suddenly, the Tesla Model 3 braked hard for no reason. The car braked so hard that the tires were starting to squeal. We were well inside the lane (had not drifted to either side). There were no obstacles in front of us. There was no discoloration on the highway from any repair or car fire. The road was completely visible. The car's speed had dropped from 77mph to about 57mph before I could press on the gas to resume normal driving. Had there been a car behind us, it's possible we could've been hit from behind. The car in the right lane did wind up passing us and I'm pretty sure they thought our driving was dangerous -- borderline insane. There were no warning sounds, no alerts on the monitor. It was completely random, completely sudden and completely dangerous. The car did this 2 more times before I disengaged the cruise control for the rest of the trip. I do not have a dashcam recording of this incident, but I do have one of a similar behavior from the car a few days earlier on July 13. It's hard to tell from the video exactly where it happens.

NHTSA ODI 11532650

While using cruise control on an interstate road trip, the emergency braking system repeatedly caused the vehicle to slow excessively to where I was almost rear ended. This occurred approximately 15 times over a period of 3 hours. While traveling at 75 mph, the vehicle almost came to a complete stop on the interstate and almost caused accidents. There was no object in front of me or vehicle that should have caused the braking system to engage. Tesla owners call this “phantom braking” and after experiencing it so many times while on my road trip, I believe this is a very serious issue that needs to be investigated further. I do not feel safe using the cruise control any longer because of this issue.

NHTSA ODI 11532159

The Tesla in vehicle navigation notified to turn the incorrect direction on to Canal Rd NW Washington, DC 20057 during one-way operation of the reversable parkway. The turn was notified from Clark Pl NW where there was no visual notification of the traffic being one-way. This culminated in a near head on collision in a 40 mph zone.

NHTSA ODI 11531950

Can not use cruise control on my Tesla model three 2022 because a phantom breaking

NHTSA ODI 11531723

We drove from Colorado to Minnesota and the car would phantom break while using cruise control. This happened about a dozen times during the trip. It would happen on an open road with no cars around. Very dangerous.

NHTSA ODI 11530696

My car was set on navigate on autopilot, and normally it decreases speed when detecting change in speed limit. But for last couple of times, it's been not decreasing speed. On july 4th, 2023, I was driving and it did not change the speed limit based on the changes on the road. The speed limit had changed from 60 to 55, and it didn't change in the car. Also, Tesla just abruptly slowed down multiple times without any warning. There's no obstruction in the road, but it just keeps slowing down without a reason. Like the speed limit would be 45, and it's slowed down to 20. The car ahead is faster, and no one is walking across. it's just random.

NHTSA ODI 11530751

Phantom braking of vehicle consistently around: 1. Emergency vehicles when driving in lane next to emergency vehicles flashing light. 2. Digital maintenance signs set and flashing messages on side of road. (Consistently when I pass a particular sign on a particular highway).

NHTSA ODI 11530226

The car, on 6 occasions, rapidly decelerated while using the Autopilot feature when no obstruction was present. This was on the freeway, on a sunny afternoon, and seemed to occur at random without regard to overpass shadows, hills, etc. This nearly caused a collision from a car following me on one of the occasions.

NHTSA ODI 11527454

I was driving on Interstate 25 north towards Santa Fe NM at about 75mph with the cruise control engaged. The car abruptly slowed down to about 60 mph for no apparent reason. The slow down was so quick that passengers were pushed forward in their seats. This has happened before when cruise control was engaged. I had hoped that this was resolved by Tesla. There was not any vehicles in front of me for the car to believe a slowdown was necessary. I reported this to Tesla for repair and they replied that a repair was not necessary. They gave me instructions to override the action by pressing the acceleration pedal. I don't believe that is the solution to the problem and fear that if another car was following to close behind me that an accident could have happened. This car was purchased with cruise control but I cannot utilize it for fear of this braking problem

NHTSA ODI 11525481

"Phantom braking:" Vehicle has braked Multiple times on the freeway while using adaptive cruise control, when no objects were In the vehicle's path. Typically occurs when driving on curved section of freeway at speeds above 50 mph.

NHTSA ODI 11524758

My car engaged the automatic emergency braking (AEB) when the car in front of me lightly tapped on their brakes-- When the AEB engaged, my car come to a complete stop... I tried to accelerate to prevent being rear ended, but my accelerator was disabled and I had no control of my car... Nearly causing me to get rear ended and probably causing a 5+ car collision. MANY Tesla drivers have experienced this, and it is absolutely TERRIFYING and NEEDS SERIOUS attention because lives are absolutely endangered due to this, and Tesla will not take responsibility, nor have they acknowledged the problem, at all. I've had this happen several times in the last week and I am just waiting to get in an accident at this point. This is unacceptable.

NHTSA ODI 11524180

While in cruise control the vehicle initiates braking rapidly for no reason. This happens at high speeds 55, 65 and 70 mph on clear roads. No vehicles in front of or coming from the other direction. There may be vehicles behind at times. It doesn’t happen all the time but happens enough to be a concern.

NHTSA ODI 11524186

On multiple occasions (100+) during a 4,000 mile road trip, (May 7-26, 2023) this vehicle slammed on its brakes while driving down the highway while using the adaptive cruise control feature. Speed reduction was up to 25 MPH from highway speeds of 65 - 80 MPH. This braking was quite dramatic, just short of locking the brakes up. Traffic conditions varied from very light (no vehicles in sight) to moderate traffic (vehicles in front, in rear and/or to the side). Weather was mostly clear, roads were mostly in good shape, there were no animals, people or other non-vehicle obstacles noted. Several instances were lodged in the vehicles "bug report" functionality, but not all, so Tesla should have a pretty good record of the status of the vehicle when several instances occurred. On more than one occasion we were very close to being rear ended because of this phantom braking. In contact with a Tesla Service Center, we were told this is a known issue but no fix had been found.

NHTSA ODI 11524199

During a 30 mile trip on a two lane highway I activated the cruise control. A number of times the car made significant slow downs. They seamed to be associated with oncoming trafic. I then shut off the cruise control. Later on when I could see there where no oncoming cars I again set the cruise control for 65 MPH. After only about 15 seconds the car made a rapid deceleation. The deceleration was rapid enough to cause an ice chest sitting on the passangers side of the front floorboard to roll over. I shut of the cruise control and did not use it again for the remainder of the trip

NHTSA ODI 11524252

While driving in cruise control, NOT AUTOPILOT, my car phantom braked. The road was clear, the weather was clear. I'm thankful there was not a car behind me. I was doing the speed limit at the time 70mph when the incident occurred. the date lised below is an approximate date. It has occurred several times. I drive 45 minutes to work Mon-Thurs and cruise control helps for the long drive

NHTSA ODI 11523625

Trip to California and back from AZ. Had several instances of severe braking. If I did not press the accelerator immediately, the car would slow down under what seemed like nearly maximal braking. No reason was apparent for this behavior. Some braking instances were on long straight stretches of I-40 with no other cars visible. This issue was only occurring if I had the cruise control engaged. Under normal daily driving without cruise control this issue of emergency braking does not occur. Each time this happens, it is totally unexpected and is extremely disturbing. I have stopped using the cruise control function on the vehicle out of fear of it causing an accident.

NHTSA ODI 11523492

CAR HAS PHANTOM STOPS ON CRUSE CONTROL THREE TIMES IN SIX MONTHS

NHTSA ODI 11523027

While driving on the highway at highway speeds, our Tesla Model 3 frequently will perform a phantom braking action, presumably due to incorrectly sensing a collision. Thankfully, so far the traffic has been light on the freeways. Otherwise, this could’ve easily caused a wreck. This has happened to us approximately 20 times in the past two days. We ensured the sensors are free of any dirt.

NHTSA ODI 11522683

The contact owns a 2022 Tesla Model 3. The contact stated while driving approximately 80 MPH with the cruise control set at 80 MPH, the vehicle independently slowed to almost a complete stop. The contact stated that she pulled the vehicle off the highway. The contact stated no warning light was illuminated. The contact returned the vehicle to the highway and engaged the cruise control and set the control to 80 MPH; however, the vehicle failed accelerate to the designated speed. The contact stated that the inadvertent phantom braking failure recurred. The contact turned off the cruise control and continued her trip. The contact had taken the vehicle to a local dealer, where it was diagnosed, and she was advised that the manufacturer was aware of the failure but a remedy was not yet available. The vehicle had not been repaired. The manufacturer had not been informed of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 9,000.

NHTSA ODI 11522734

When we're traveling on the highway at 55 mph plus and have cruise control engaged, the car will unexpectedly and suddenly brake for no reason. The problem is happening more often. This has even happened when there are vehicles behind us, but thank God they were not following closely. We may end up with whiplash, or worse, being rearended. We have complained to Tesla at least 3 times since February 2022 about this problem. The first time, they changed the front camera and said they thought that might help. It didn't. The next time, the service dept. said that there was no fix for the problem, but Tesla was working on it. Most recently in April 2023, the service tech., said there was no fix and he did not expect that there would be one anytime soon. This is unacceptable.

NHTSA ODI 11521234

When driving on a vacation and on a highway from Tucson, AZ to Laughton, Nev we experienced what is being called PHANTOM breaking traveling approximately 75 mph several times. Extremely lucky to have not been rear ended. It also has happened with the FSD Beta late last year when I leased the software for a month. Can supply dates.

NHTSA ODI 11521055