Complaint volume
983 consumer-submitted complaints are matched to this model year. Treat the count as a research signal, then read the actual summaries for repeated symptoms.
Complaint records
2018 Tesla Model 3 Complaints
983 consumer-submitted complaints on record for the 2018 Tesla Model 3, grouped by component category.
983 Total complaints
100 Crash reports
4 Fire reports
34 Injury reports
Complaint data reflects consumer-submitted reports. A complaint is not proof
of a defect, recall, or manufacturer fault. Enriched severity fields come
from official bulk records when the complaint can be matched by ODI number.
Buyer interpretation
How to use these complaints before buying
Complaint records are most useful when they turn into inspection points, seller questions, and comparison checks against nearby model years.
Pattern to inspect
The most common categories are suspension, unknown or other, forward collision avoidance. Use those categories as a test-drive checklist instead of judging the vehicle from the total count alone.
Severity flags
Enriched records include 100 crash reports, 4 fire reports, 34 injury reports, and 0 fatality reports. These fields come from complaint records and should be read in context.
Mileage clue
Mileage is available on 219 complaints, with an average reported failure mileage of 25,782 miles. Compare that with the mileage on the listing.
Questions to ask the seller
- Have you had any problems related to suspension, unknown or other, forward collision avoidance?
- Can I see recent maintenance and repair records?
- Has the vehicle ever been towed, involved in a crash, or repaired for the same issue twice?
- Can we also check the recall record for this 2018 Tesla Model 3?
Used-car checklist
Use these complaints before the test drive.
Build a buyer checklist to turn these issues into questions and inspection points.
2018 Tesla Model 3
Build buyer checklist Compare with other years Sends year, make, and model to pre-fill your checklist.
How severe are the 2018 Tesla Model 3 complaints?
100 Crash
4 Fire
34 Injury
0 Fatality
63 Towed
19 Medical attention
What are the most common 2018 Tesla Model 3 complaint categories?
SUSPENSION 116
UNKNOWN OR OTHER 82
FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE 73
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM 49
AIR BAGS 42
SEAT BELTS 39
SERVICE BRAKES,FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE 34
STRUCTURE 27
STEERING 26
AIR BAGS,SEATS 20
983 total complaints on record
Latest complaints
| Date | Component | Summary | Severity | Mileage |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jun 2022 | FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE | Multiple episodes of phantom breaking with the car on cruise control on the highway. The car was not on autopilot during the episodes. The car abruptly drops from highway speed with full braking until you can override it with the accelerator. This will cause accidents of someone is close behind you. As a result, I do not use cruise control. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jun 2022 | SERVICE BRAKES,FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE | Phantom braking, i.e. apparent engagement of brakes on car for no apparent reason during routine driving | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jun 2022 | VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL,FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE | I saw the reports on all the auto breaking issues with tesla, and i wanted to report for over a year my car does this ALL the time when auto pilot is engaged. I can remember hundreds of times where there is nothing around and all of a sudden the car auto breaks and its hard breaking as though im slamming on the breaks. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jun 2022 | FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE | Twice the car in Autopilot braked for no apparent reason. First time on an Interstate traveling at 65 mph in the center lane. As I was about to pass a truck located in the right lane that was going very slowly with its blinkers on, the Tesla abruptly decelerated from 65 mph to about 40 mph. Thankfully there were no cars behind me because I would have been rear ended. The second incident happened on a road inside my community that winds through a golf course. I put the car on Autopilot at 30 mph speed limit because there is radar hiding every. day. The car suddenly braked for no apparent reason . My hypothesis is there was a sign close to the road warning that golf carts cross here. There were no golf carts or people nearby and perhaps the sign was seen by the Autopilot as an object to stop the car. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jun 2022 | SERVICE BRAKES,FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE | The automatic emergency braking system activated when there was no collision imminent. (7:13am, 5/22/22) Neither cruise control nor autopilot was engaged at the time of incident. I was nearly hit from behind by a driver who did not expect me to stop as there was no hazard or other vehicle. Tesla inspected the vehicle and found no fault and claimed that I needed driver education. Also on a subsequent interstate trip with cruise control engaged, the automatic emergency braking system activated unnecessarily. It appears to be related to shadows on the road or pavement changes. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jun 2022 | FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE | When driving on undivided highways, the car will phantom / panic brake due to oncoming cars approaching in the opposite lane. At times, the car phantom brakes for no apparent reason at all as there are no cars nearby. At night, it gets much worse, with the car phantom/panic braking at nearly every oncoming car. My 2018 Model 3 is equipped with radar-assisted Autopilot, but newer Tesla vehicles don't have the radar hardware at all and instead rely on a vision-only system that uses the cameras alone. When I opted into Tesla's Full Self Driving beta, the new software disabled my car's radar and my car became a "vision-only" vehicle, like newer Tesla vehicles. At this point, phantom / panic braking became significantly worse. When radar was used, the braking was rare but still unsettling. With vision-only Autopilot, it's nearly unusable. Even with basic cruise control, phantom / panic brakes happen with the same frequency as if you're using Autopilot. I basically can't use any cruise control or autopilot when driving on undivided highways. On interstates and in-city highways, phantom / panic braking does still happen, but it's less frequent. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| May 2022 | FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE | I intermittently get an on-screen message “automatic emergency braking is disabled.” Adaptive cruise control and auto-steering are disabled and I am unable to engage either one. Randomly the problem will resolve itself with no intervention from me - usually a day or two later. I have taken the car to Tesla service twice and they are unable to resolve the issue. On the last visit the service technician said that it is a firmware issue. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| May 2022 | UNKNOWN OR OTHER | Recall not addressed by Tesla after 6 months | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| May 2022 | UNKNOWN OR OTHER | Main screen freezes up while driving multiple times per week requiring reset and unable to control safety items such as defroster. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| May 2022 | UNKNOWN OR OTHER | Tesla refusing to repair car to address the recall issued by NHTSA on Dec 2021. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| May 2022 | ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,BACK OVER PREVENTION,AIR BAGS | The contact owns a 2018 Tesla Model 3. The contact stated while driving 35 MPH, the warning message "Front Left Safety Restraint System Fault. Service Required." The contact continued to drive. The contact stated that the next day, the air bag warning light illuminated. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and informed the contact that a field mechanic would be sent to his residence to repair the vehicle however, the repair appointment was rescheduled several times. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. Additionally, the contact became aware that the VIN was included in NHTSA Campaign Number: 21V00D000 (Electrical System, Visibility, Back Over Prevention) however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufacturer was made aware of the issue. The contact had not experienced a failure. The failure mileage was approximately 21,000. Parts distribution disconnect. Defective airbag warning sign in red is also active. After repeated requests to Tesla they refuse to fix the issue and keep postponing the repair dates. | Crash: No Fire: No | 21,000 |
| May 2022 | ELECTRICAL SYSTEM | Power conversion system failure. Vehicle would not charge from a home wall charger. Issue was confirmed/reproduced by Tesla and the part was replaced outside of warranty coverage at 96,000 miles on the odometer. Failure was sudden with no error messages. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| May 2022 | EXTERIOR LIGHTING,VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL,BACK OVER PREVENTION | Vehicle center screen freezing multiple times per drive. Speedometer, turn signals, autopilot, battery percentage, backup camera, blind spot monitor, parking sensors, HVAC and garage door opener all repeatedly inoperative. Audio chimes also freeze up and previously-engaged “navigate on autopilot” functions continue to operate without any visual or auditory alerts. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| May 2022 | ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,ENGINE,FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM | For a growing number of Model 3 owners, components in the HV Battery Service Panel are breaking down, yet Tesla refuses to cover the repair under its Battery and Drive Unit Warranty. Specifically, the "power conversion system" (PCS) in that panel is failing, and reducing an AC charge from 48A to 32A to 16A to… zero. If an owner drives to a location to charge from a Level 1 or Level 2 charger, and the PCS has failed, that owner will be stranded, unable to operate the vehicle. I have submitted a request for mediation to the American Arbitration Association (case no. 01-22-0001-9026), but I deem it important to not only address the problem in my vehicle, but all the others experiencing this same breakdown. I am thus reporting it to NHTSA, as I purport that a recall is in order. I will attach a more detailed description of my dispute with Tesla, as well as my original Purchase Agreement with an Agreement to Arbitrate, and a copy of Tesla's most recent warranties. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| May 2022 | UNKNOWN OR OTHER | 2018 Tesla Model 3, 87,000 miles. While driving, the display computer went completely black and would not reboot or display any data. Tesla repeatedly rescheduled the repair and it did not take place for three weeks during which time I could not drive safely. There was no heating, AC, defrost, speed limit, navigation, audio alerts, or sound system. When Tesla finally fixed it, they did so by replacing the entire computer at a cost of almost $1800. They never told me why the computer failed. Tesla had similar failures in the Model X and S which were repaired at no cost up to 100K. The NHSTA should issue a recall and require Tesla to pay for all these failures at no cost. This is a huge safety issue. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Apr 2022 | ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL,UNKNOWN OR OTHER | The enhanced autopilot failed to recognize a divider/Jersey barrier or alert the driver of the obstacle, as the software is advertised and was relied on to do, at an exit ramp and ran into the barrier without any type of maneuver or breaking to avoid the collision causing substantial injury to the driver. This exit is a very busy exit on I-95 with many commuters going to work at this time. It was by sheer luck that no other vehicles were involved. The driver endured an immediate stop from above 50mph to 0 in about a second. As far as I know, no inspection was performed. There were no warning messages, symptoms or problems related prior to the incident. | Crash: Yes Fire: No Injuries: 1 Towed Medical attention | Unknown |
| Apr 2022 | ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,VISIBILITY,BACK OVER PREVENTION | The contact owns a 2018 Tesla Model 3. The contact received a notification for NHTSA Campaign Number: 21V00D000 (Electrical System, Visibility, Back Over Prevention) however, the part to do the recall repair was unavailable. The dealer was notified of the issue and confirmed that parts were not yet available. The manufacturer had been notified of the issue. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The contact had not experienced a failure. Parts distribution disconnect. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Apr 2022 | STEERING,SUSPENSION | Hello. I am writing this report to describe a dramatic decrease in steering responsiveness and vehicle front-end control over my ownership of this car from new. Over about the last year, I have noticed that the steering and handling of the vehicle is not nearly as composed as it was when new. Today, the car has difficulty staying centered in the lane. This unsteadiness is especially evident at Interstate speeds (60-75mph) while the car enters a curve and experiences suspension loading. It feels loose and floaty, almost like the toe is changing while mid-corner. This results in "hunting" or back-and-forth steering inputs just to stay on center. Furthermore, any type of road imperfection causes dramatic bump steer. This culminates into white-knuckled grip driving, since the car will sharply pull out of its driving line. Performance driving, long road trips, or higher-speed cruising are no longer possible with this uncertain steering. Safety is somewhat impacted and the driving and ownership experience is dramatically diminished. For example, a new driver has difficulty with this car due to the ambiguous steering. Over the year this issue has continued, the car has been inspected exactly one dozen times, nine visits to various area Tesla Service Centers and three to reputable and performance-oriented suspension shops. They have confirmed some type of pulling but have yet to adequately resolve the issue. Across all service visits, I have requested and completed replacements of many front-end parts: solid lower control arm bushings, upper control arms, and wheel hubs. Also, a dozen alignments, few balances, and new tires. I have attempted to make an appointment with Tesla for a rack-and-pinion replacement, but they continue to serve alignment estimates and show a lack of willingness to truly troubleshoot my issue. The vehicle has not been inspected by police or insurance. There have been no warning messages related to steering hardware, computer, or control systems. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Apr 2022 | EXTERIOR LIGHTING | Daylight running lights are not operating, a warning in the instrument cluster of not operating lights is not give. So the driver is not aware of the issue! Repair is not possible the entire light unit needs to be replaced ! This is a come issue with the Manufacture Tesla as I found a lot of complains on the internet with this specific issues | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Apr 2022 | SUSPENSION | The upper control arm, UAC, on my Tesla is rubbing against its joint causing significant noise such as squeaking and friction when turning the steering wheel due to normal wear and tear. More specifically, the lubricant inside the UAC has worn off. This is a known issue when researching online forums. However, Tesla refuses to acknowledge the defect and has "renamed" its part number. This has put myself and others at risk because of the high cost associated on repairing and replacing the UAC. DIY-ers that cannot afford this out-of-warranty repair are taking it in their own hands at an attempt to alleviate the noise and friction caused by a faulty and defective UAC. The problem has been apparently reproduced in this model yet the service center refuses to cover it. Simply put, anyone that sits inside of my car always asks, "I think your car is broken - why is it making that noise" yet Tesla has stated that the UAC needs to be replaced out of warranty to resolve the issue. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Apr 2022 | FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE | Car slammed on brakes as we were overtaking truck. Car may have mistaken truck's shadow for an object; this was around noon on a clear sunny day. Braking was sharp enough to cause an accident had someone been following us closely. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Apr 2022 | POWER TRAIN,VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL | The contact owns a 2018 Tesla Model 3. The contact stated while driving at a slow speed in ongoing traffic, the vehicle accelerated independently and bumped into the vehicle in front of her lane. The contact stated no warning light was illuminated. The contact stated no one was injured nor sought medical attention. No police report was filed. The contact stated her vehicle did not need any repairs but the other vehicle did. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. A dealer was not contacted about the incident. The contact stated she continued to experience the failure. The contact stated on November 2021, while she was driving at slow speed in a parking lot, the vehicle accelerated independently and she crashed into a concrete post. The contact stated no warning light was illuminated. The contact stated no one was injured nor sought medical attention. No police report was filed. The contact called the manufacturer and was referred to the body shop. The contact took the vehicle to the body shop and had the bummer, the passenger side headlight, the bender, and other front components. The vehicle was repaired. The contact stated she had experienced the failure on 4 different occasions in total to herself and once to her husband. The contact stated her husband ran into bushes but no damage to the vehicle. No one was injured nor sought medical attention. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. A dealer was not contacted. The manufacturer had been informed of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 17,000. | Crash: Yes Fire: No | 17,000 |
| Apr 2022 | ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,SERVICE BRAKES,FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE | Stopped in left turn lane. On green light car in front and I began our left turn. I was some distance behind the car when suddenly my brakes applied automatically and I came to complete stop. Luckily car behind did not rear end me. Also, my car started beeping and a warning said something to effect: automatic emergency brake activated. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Apr 2022 | AIR BAGS | screen shows "Front passenger restraint system fault Service is required" Tesla technician confirmed that "Occupant Classification System(OCS) Filter Module" needed to be replaced and the technician replaced it. Please see attached files. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Apr 2022 | ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,VISIBILITY,BACK OVER PREVENTION | The contact owns a 2018 Tesla Model 3. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 21V00D000 (Electrical System, Visibility, Back Over Prevention). The contact then attempted to ship the vehicle to Hawaii and was informed that all recalls must be serviced before shipment. The dealer was notified about the recall and informed her that parts were not available. The manufacturer had been notified of the recall. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The contact had not experienced a failure. Parts distribution disconnect. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |