What 748 owners told NHTSA about the 2022 Tesla Model 3

While using adaptive cruise control, the car would often brake for no reason. This seemed to mostly occur when going over the crest of a hill.

NHTSA ODI 11452376

Phantom braking on highways, multiple times on full self driving (auto pilot)

NHTSA ODI 11452415

I have approximately 3300 miles on the car since new. I cannot safely use the adaptive cruise control feature because the car randomly applies significant braking. This has happened about 10 times in a variety of conditions including completely clear with the car recently cleaned.

NHTSA ODI 11452421

There are two problems with our new 2022 Model 3. 1) The car randomly "phantom brakes". I counted on Monday-- 5 times in roughly 50 miles including twice from 75 MPH to under 40 MPH with maximum braking. All events were on a wide open freeway in a rural area with very light traffic and no movement or vehicles that would possibly explain it. The phantom braking is so bad that the car isn't safe to drive. 2) ABS malfunctioned resulting in a very slow speed impact. A car stopped abruptly in front of me, I hit the brakes where ABS kicked in, the car also automatically braked, but the deceleration was no more than just lifting my foot of the throttle. The ABS was chattering audibly and pulsing through the brake pedal so the ABS was definitely triggered but it appears it was falsely sensing wheel lockup when there was none. If I had been able to just lock the tires up or modulate the brakes myself to prevent lockup, the accident would not have happened. For ref, I'm 52, I've been driving since I was 15, and I have roughly 1,500,000 miles of driving experience. I ride motorcycles and am also a commercial pilot. This is the first accident involving another car I've ever had (never been hit or hit anyone). Tesla has refused to provide the crash data recorder info stating that they are not required to do so in Texas. Based on a conversation in person with a Tesla technician, it appears this is a very new policy with Tesla. At the risk of being accusatory, there are very few reasons Tesla would refuse to provide this data and most if not all of those reasons are to prevent owners from getting data that shows the car malfunctioned. I do have the camera video showing the accident and you can see at 20-25 MPH, I was in full ABS roughly 3 seconds before impact. This was on a dry, clean roadway. I'd guess I should've stopped in 1-2 seconds easily and my 8,000 truck can stop much shorter than what the Tesla stopped in.

NHTSA ODI 11452447

On multiple occasions while driving at highways speed on freeways, vehicles adaptive cruise control activates emergency braking when there are no obstacles in front of the vehicle. Cause of braking appears to be caused by high contrast shadows from overhead signs, billboards, and other tall vehicles that are on the road. This has caused moments where an accident could occur from the vehicles emergency braking activating when there is no actual reason that the system should activate. It also creates concern for the use of the cruise control system and autopilot while driving on the freeway.

NHTSA ODI 11452450

We have experienced 6 or more incidents of phantom braking in the few weeks we have owned the car. This mostly seems to occur on sunny days when there are distinct shadows in the road. This mostly occurs on highways at high speed and typically slows the vehicle down well below the speed limit prior to correcting itself. It has also occurred once at lower non-highway speeds. It is concerning mostly because it could easily cause an accident whereby the person behind me is unable to stop in time.

NHTSA ODI 11452456

When using the autosteer function and also the adaptive cruise control, the vehicle seems to have a phantom braking issue. The car will apply brakes in an aggressive manner when the vehicle is faced with oncoming traffic in the opposite lane headed the other direction on a 2 lane road. This seems to occur when a large truck such as UPS or semi tractor trailer is approaching in the other lane headed the other direction - the vehicle seems to recognize that as an imminent forward collision and begins to aggressively brake the vehicle, which could cause a following vehicle to rear end me. This has happened on several occasions with varying degrees or severity (how hard it applies the breaks)

NHTSA ODI 11452478

Have had several phantom braking espisodes when driving with cruise control on both at 45 mph. It brakes by itself and there is nothing in front of me that would of caused this

NHTSA ODI 11452503

The contact owns a 2022 Tesla Model 3. The contact stated while driving 60 MPH with the cruise control activated, the vehicle stopped independently and without warning. An unknown dealer was contacted and made aware of the failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 1,000.

NHTSA ODI 11452583

While driving with either cruise control or autopilot my car constantly brakes or “phantom brakes” for no apparent reason or brakes VERY hard when semis are approaching in opposite direction. This happens mainly on one lane country roads. On the freeway it’s less but it has braked for absolutely NO reason ( no cars around) at least a few times per month. My wife will not use cruise control due to this happening so often. I drive it most of the time and since I use cruise control or autopilot it “phantom brakes” every single day.

NHTSA ODI 11452626

Feb 14, 2022: 5:55 p.m. on cruise aka AP. Aggressive/phantom braked 31 mph to 0 in 1 sec heading west on Wildhorse Parkway between Caspian Spring and Buckskin Bend San Antonio 78254 with a car behind 3 lengths. 30 sec later control panel displays cruise control will not brake. Same day 724 p.m. set cruise to 39 mph braked very hard travelling northwest on Shaenfield Rd about 200 yards from McDonalds 8107 TX-Loop 1604 San Antonio TX 78254. Complete 17 sec video comments about cruise control brakes available. Unable to attach video. Feb 17 cruise or AP used twice at 2:00 to 3:00 p.m. and 9:00 to 9:30 p.m. No engagements with hard braking. Since ownership Feb 4-17 side repeater and back cameras indicate false distance of oncoming traffic making for unsafe condition and issue was raised with Tesla tech and he informed me since cameras are static, nothing they could do. Additionally, Feb 14, turn signal camera for blind spot detection did not come on during right turn signal but came on for left turn signal.

NHTSA ODI 11452644

car will put on brakes when in cruise control with no warning and without a danger of collision happens fairly frequently

NHTSA ODI 11452429

This issue happens only on one side of an highway (I-76E), otherwise I have not noticed it elsewhere. When using cruise control or autopilot, the vehicle changes the max speed from like 65 to 45 or 50 mph (in 65 mph highway). It happens in 4/5 places on the highway where it reduces the speed of the car abruptly. This may cause rear ending of the vehicle if there is a closely following vehicle.

NHTSA ODI 11452443

On two occasions I've been driving on a highway using autopilot at 70 MPH and the car started to brake for no reason. During one of the incidents the car also started to steer to the right and also cause a crash.

NHTSA ODI 11452487

Sudden unexplained braking while in cruise control on an interstate. Unexplained very, very loud warning alerts out of the blue. Usually happening when there was a an adjacent white truck in daylight conditions.

NHTSA ODI 11452499

My car suddenly braked for no reason. I was at risk of a rear-end collision. I called Tesla and they instructed me to reboot my computer. They said an engineer would review the computer records and get back to me. No follow-up has happened yet. No, the vehicle has not been inspected. Before the incident, I heard a warning signal.

NHTSA ODI 11452523

On several occasions, while using adaptive cruise control and/or autopilot, the vehicle sharply slowed or braked with no apparent obstruction or threat. It once happened while cruising at 80 MPH on freeway 10W in Phoenix, in the carpool lane. There were no vehicles within a concerning distance in front or behind me, so I was not necessarily at risk - but certainly would have put myself or others if there had been more traffic in the lane. The same happened while on a 3-lane road (Queen Creek Road between McQueen and Arizona in Chandler) this morning. Adaptive cruise control was set at 56 MPH when vehicle suddenly braked and slowed without any visible threat or danger. Again, there was not traffic near me (front or rear), so no significant risk. No warning chimes or messages were given prior to any instance of braking. The problem has not been inspected/reproduced/confirmed by a dealer or service center.

NHTSA ODI 11452526

The auto emergency braking consistently brakes for no apparent reason while using adaptive cruise control or autopilot. The Tesla Model 3 will consistently slow and brake while passing a semi or larger vehicle while myself and the vehicle I am passing are both within our lanes with no abnormalities. This "phantom braking" is the worst on a two way (one lane each direction) highway at night. It was so bad I could not use and trust the autopilot/cruise system because it was more unsafe to use it than to just turn if off. I feared that I would get rear ended or it could aggressively brake in a corner causing me to loose traction. I also had the vehicle brake with no vehicle approaching and no one behind. It just randomly applied the brakes and the collision warning went off. Literally nothing in front or behind me on a two lane highway (one lane in each direction). My cameras were clean

NHTSA ODI 11452530

On a two lane road doing 60 mph, with vehicle on cruise control, it slowed rapidly to about 30 mph all on its own. When I say rapidly like right now-I was afraid the vehicle behind me would not be able to stop. Then accelerated back to the set speed. NO WARNING…..this problem is easy to duplicate. As of now I cannot use cruise control too dangerous.

NHTSA ODI 11452598

The contact owns a 2022 Tesla Model 3. The contact stated while driving approximately 55 MPH and using the automatic cruise control, the vehicle inadvertently slowed down with a larger vehicle approaching from the opposite lane. The contact stated no warning light was illuminated however, a warning alarm bell chimed and the vehicle decelerated to 20 MPH. The contact reported that after the larger vehicle went by, the vehicle resumed the pre-set cruising speed. The vehicle was not taken to the local dealer; however, several scheduled appointments with the techs at the dealer had been canceled. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer had been informed of the failure and the contact was informed that the failure was a software issue known as Phantom Braking. The contact stated that the manufacturer recommended continued use of the cruise control in order to gather more data on the cause of the failure. The contact was concerned about the risk of a crash while using the feature. The failure mileage was approximately 200.

NHTSA ODI 11452214

While using cruise control, the car will very frequently hesitate and slows down a few miles per hour, but in addition, the car will suddenly, very forcefully try to stop. This happens more often after dark and with on-coming vehicles, especially trucks. There is no warning sound or chime as will happen if there is actually an obstacle. The vehicle simply tries to stop and I feel that I would have ended up into the windshield if not restrained. The touch pad also shows no warning notice as it does if there is an obstacle such as a car in the way. This has happened with other cars behind me, but not anymore as I no longer use cruise control, especially if there is any traffic at all. The vehicle has yet to be seen in any Tesla service center due to difficulty getting an appointment. On-line searches reveal that this is a problem for others as well. The vehicle has not been inspected by anyone else. This issue appeared very shortly after picking the care up on 12/31/21. I had a 2019 Tesla Model 3 which never did this.

NHTSA ODI 11452306

The contact owns a 2022 Tesla Model 3. The contact stated while driving approximately 65 MPH, the vehicle inadvertently started braking with the cruise control was activated. There was no warning light illuminated. The vehicle was not taken to the local dealer. The manufacturer was informed of the failure and was awaiting a response. The failure mileage was approximately 1,500.

NHTSA ODI 11452069

I was traveling northbound on a two lane highway with a speed limit of 55mph. I was traveling 60mph with Tesla autopilot to include autosteer engaged, it was light outside and partly cloudy. A tractor trailer approached traveling southbound in the opposite direction, my vehicle immediately slammed on the brakes, dropped speed to under 25mph, and the forward collision warning chimes and alerts on the screen started. It should be noted I was well within my lane of travel going northbound; the tractor trailer was also well within its lane traveling southbound. At no point did my vehicle or the tractor trailer veer towards each other, and at no point was there ever a chance of our vehicles colliding. This happened a total of two times, both times the circumstances were identical involving tractor trailers.

NHTSA ODI 11452143

Less than a month after I purchased my car, the whole diver's side headlight assembly stopped functioning, no blinker, no headlight, no running light. It's been over a month and Tesla keeps moving my service appointment to a later date. Tesla states it's a part issue, yet you continue to build cars with headlights ignoring current customers. I still have no working Headlight assembly.

NHTSA ODI 11451876

Power steering and full power to the vehicle failed - these failures can be seen upon requested inspection. Power steering failed during operation - meaning that while i was driving the vehicle i was not able to change the direction of travel at a high rate of speed. Then the vehicle came to a sudden stop, stranding the driver/passengers in the middle of the road which has a high speed limit. Since full power failed quickly afterward, hazard lights or other warning lights (brake lights) could not be activated. Emergency manual exits had to be used to exit the vehicle This problem has been reproduced in both Model 3 and Model Y and has been confirmed by a dealer service repair center. The vehicle has been inspected by the manufacturer and the problem has been confirmed - a full steering console replacement is required due to electrical and hydraulic issues in the steering system and battery system. There was no message prior to the vehicle failure, the error is sudden and unexpected which makes it even more dangerous

NHTSA ODI 11451950