Complaint volume
982 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
982 consumer-submitted complaints on record for the 2018 Tesla Model 3, grouped by component category.
982 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 115
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
982 total complaints on record
Latest complaints
| Date | Component | Summary | Severity | Mileage |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aug 2024 | ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,SEATS | RCM_a021 Front left safety restraint system fault RCM_a056 Front passenger safety restraint system fault I have been noticing this error on my Tesla Model 3. Also, I researched on it and found out numerous people are having same problem. So, since it’s safety related issue there should be recall to fix it. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Aug 2024 | AIR BAGS,SEATS | I started getting this alert on my screen a few weeks ago: RCM_a056 "Front passenger safety restraint system fault" Service Required. Tesla says the warranty only covered this issue up to 60,000 miles and I'm at 61,000. They are quoting like $2,000 to fix. They say they have to change something in the seat (sensor) and change the air bag since new sensor is not compatible with old airbag. Looked up issue and it seems to be common happening at before and after warranty for a lot of people. I see different quotes from $500 to $2000 (mine was the highest). This should be a safety recall. I do not suspect too many people getting this fixed on their own their due to the expense. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Aug 2024 | UNKNOWN OR OTHER | Tesla has completely changed the user interface on a few occasions. It is now dangerous for me to try to change the danged radio station if the car is in motion because of the amount of attention to the display needed to locate and select something, even stations I regularly listen to. In a prior version the ones I regularly used easily popped up in a small area. It takes multiple touches just to navigate through to the station I last listened to. This is the worst they've done, but they regularly change the User Interface for no particularly good reason/benefit. Cars should be easy to use. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Aug 2024 | AIR BAGS | Error message in passenger airbag restraint system. There is a known issue where the cable bundle in the seat wears with movement of the seat, causing a short. Tesla has redesigned the bundle and it’s using a new airbag, but will only replace the faulty bundle if it fails while under warranty. It is a >$1900 Repair for the customer. Upon my research, this happens frequently even in the first year of the car. My car has 39,000 miles on it is faulty already. They can’t replace the bundle because the new Improved bundle requires a different airbag, increasing the cost of the consumer | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Aug 2024 | AIR BAGS | For the fifth time since the car was purchased new, it is displaying a warning that there is a passenger airbag fault. This has been repaired previously four times by Tesla, on 8/04/20 (28980 miles, replace OCS filter module), 2/10/21 (35831 miles, replace front passenger seat), 1/06/22, and 5/08/23 (52891 and 82293 miles, both replace OCS filter module). It is now showing this warning again (106507 miles, 8/22/24) for the fifth failure. This is extremely concerning that an airbag may not deploy properly or even might deploy when not warranted. Since the car has been repaired so many times for the same recurring problem it suggests there is a systemic issue with this component which should be addressed properly. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Aug 2024 | STEERING,VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL,FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE | I recently took my car in for a recall for the trunk wiring harness and have never had any major issues since I purchased it in 2018. Since replacing the recalled harness, I’m starting to receive several alerts from my driver assistance system (emergency brakes, camera failure). I called a service tech who mentioned there’s either a failed camera or a failed wiring harness. Looking online, I was shocked to see hundreds of other owners with a 2018 model 3 also experiencing the same issue in 2024 (assuming after they replaced the recently recalled harness). I strongly believe that these two issues are related and that the camera should be replaced alongside the wiring harness. Several people on this forum have been quoted hundreds or thousands from tesla to replace the harness (including myself) and are taking matters into their own hands by replacing with after market parts. This is a serious safety issue since the cameras control all self driving functionality. I’m shocked that it’s not already been addressed through a recall! The first time my system had gone out while on Autopilot, the car flashed and sirened and asked that I take over. Since then all my driver assistance features including my rear camera are no longer functional. Please see this forum where several others are experiencing the same issue on their 2018 Model 3s [XXX] Attached are error messages from my car and screenshots from the forum above where people have described the DIY fix and the costs quoted by Tesla. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6) | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Aug 2024 | AIR BAGS | My Tesla has been displayed a warning error message "Front passenger restraint system fault". This is a safety issue, I searched online and it looks like this is a common problem for the 2017-2019 Tesla Model 3. Many of the owners were fortunate if the issue happened before the expiration of the warranty which Tesla fixed it for free. However, this issue happened after warranty expired. I took the car to service center, they estimated the fix would cost over $3200 (see attached). Tesla claimed that the fraudulent module cannot be replaced as it's no longer support the older version of the airbag system. To fix the problem, it will have to replace the airbag, seat cushion and harness system. This is clearly a defect with the original equipment where manufacture does not support or provide replace with original parts. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Aug 2024 | POWER TRAIN | If both brake and throttle pedals are depressed simultaneously for a fraction of a second the software does two things: 1) raises a warning to that effect on the computer display and, 2) greatly reduces motor output, limiting acceleration. Item two is the safety concern. Removing the foot from the left pedal does not immediately remove the power restriction. There is a few second delay for that to take place. As a result I find myself expecting to be able to merge rapidly or complete a turn, or cross in front of oncoming traffic but am left in a precarious position in traffic unable to move as expected to avoid a potential collision. This is a behavior that I have not experienced with a conventional engine powered vehicle. In addition when this two-foot power-down mode is waiting to clear, and I am sitting stationary on a steep up incline, the vehicle can slip backwards downhill. The only solution to this issue may be to push the park button on the right control stalk to stop this rolling. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Aug 2024 | AIR BAGS,SEAT BELTS,SEATS | I randomly received an alert indicating “Front passenger safety restraint system fault” on my Tesla’s display. When I look this up, it indicates that the airbag may not deploy correctly in the event of an accident due to a seat sensor malfunction. When I contacted the service center, they quoted me at $1500 to repair this critical safety issue (involves replacing the seat sensor and reconfiguring airbags so that they will properly deploy). I believe this should be a recall and not something customers have to pay out of pocket to drive their car safely. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Aug 2024 | SEAT BELTS | The contact owns a 2018 Tesla Model 3. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed, the seat belt warning light illuminated. The contact stated that the seat belt was inoperable, and the front seat restraint system failure message was displayed. The local dealer was not contacted. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was contacted, but no assistance was provided. The failure mileage was approximately 99,508. | Crash: No Fire: No | 99,508 |
| Aug 2024 | SEAT BELTS,UNKNOWN OR OTHER | Vehicle started to display error message of "front left safety restraint system fault" intermittently, then would come on after the vehicle runs for about 5 minute and stay on. According to online forums, this is a common issue with Tesla Model 3, primarily related to the frequent movements of the seat (use of easy entry function). There appears to be electrical wires / sensors that can be damaged or pinched from moving the seat. There is no other issues aside from the safety alert. Tesla quoted more than $700, mostly in labor, to evaluate root cause of the issues. This can be a potential safety issue (not sure how this affects seat belt and/or airbag deployment), and it is not due to negligence or misuse of the vehicle; rather, this appears to be related to the design and quality of vehicle and should be covered by Tesla as a recall to fix the issue. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Aug 2024 | SUSPENSION | During the first 5 years of ownership and while under warranty I experienced many creaks in the suspension that did not sound normal. I took it to the Tesla service center many times but was often unable to reproduce the sound when needed and told there was nothing they could do. When a technician did finally hear the sound, Tesla resealed the ball joints at no cost. This was a short-term fix and the problem persisted. After doing some research on my own I have found that this is a known defect in my car model along with the control arms often failing which can cause loss of control of the car. I am now over a year past my warranty and the control arm did in fact fail at 46,000 miles. I experienced a loud creak/rubbing sound when driving over any uneven surface. This happened overnight and was not due to any incident. When I brought the car for repairs and inquired about all of this I was told that this is normal wear and tear and that because it is such a heavy car it is not an unusual repair. I pressed the technician sharing the information I had researched and he said that he would not charge me for the labor. Because this is a known defect and I have read about many owners having to replace the control arms multiple times (often at very low mileage), I continued to argue for no cost to me which was finally granted. That being said, Tesla definitely knows it has a defective product and is doing everything it can to make owners responsible for any cost. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jul 2024 | AIR BAGS | My 2018 Tesla Model 3 is experiencing an intermittent "Front Left Safety Restraint System Fault". This error message, appearing on the main display, suggests an issue with the driver-side airbag, seatbelt pretensioner, or related components. The fault seems unrelated to seat occupancy or weight, as it occurs both with and without a passenger. While the error message eventually disappears after restarting the vehicle, its recurring nature is concerning and raises safety concerns about the airbag deploying unnecessarily or failing to deploy in an actual collision. This problem appears similar to those reported by other Tesla Model 3 owners, suggesting a potential systemic defect in the safety restraint system that warrants further investigation by the NHTSA. [XXX] INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6) | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jul 2024 | AIR BAGS,SEAT BELTS,UNKNOWN OR OTHER | Car reports RCM a056 error related to Occupant Control sensors. This is apparently a common problem for this year and model (related car forums and social media report > 100 such incidents that I can find), but is not covered ($1700 repair). This should be a safety recall. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jul 2024 | AIR BAGS,SEAT BELTS | Seat occupancy system failure received. June 27, 2022 Mobile service inspected for wiring damage, as common cause. recommended appt at service center. Sep 2, 2022, could not fix issue, had to replace entire passenger seat. July 23, 2024 took car to service center for seat occupancy system failure received. Tesla stated I needed to pay for lumbar seat occupancy system sensor as it was failing. This was the same part (seat that was replaced in Sep of 2022). This part was 22 months old. Parts and labor for this part was $955. In addition, they stated this new part is not compatible with the existing seat occupancy system sensor in the seat portion of the seat and also not compatible with the passenger air bag. These parts including labor were an additional $1,500. These parts were not defective. Tesla has developed a new part of the safety system which is not backward compatible with other parts of the safety airbag system. This is improper practice and the cost for upgrading their defective manufacturing practices of safety systems should not be passed on to the customer. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jul 2024 | SUSPENSION | the suspension: the control arms and lateral links suddenly stopped working. No trauma to car. Car only has 25, 000 miles. Very dangerous as car and steering could have stopped working suddenly and cause death and an accident. No warning lights went on at all. Only a sudden grinding and clanking sound. I had to pay over $2000 out of pocket to repair and I had to wait a full month before they were able to diagnose and repair it. It was diagnosed and repaired by a Tesla dealer. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jul 2024 | AIR BAGS | Front Passenger Safety Restraint System Fault continually chimes and then goes away again. Appears to have loose or faulty wiring. This is directly related to the passenger airbag system, so very concerning. -Tesla inspected this back in March 2020, with no repair, -Inspected it again in August 2020 and found an error related to the left curtain airbag connector and repaired under warranty using a Wire harness Repair Kit. -Same fault started again in 2023. Tesla recommended bringing into the shop for inspection and is quoting $800 to repair, so I have not taken it in yet as I believe this is a manufacturing defect that I should not have to pay for. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jul 2024 | ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,SEAT BELTS,SEATS | getting a "front left safety restraint fault" warning when moving the driver seat...is a known issue in tesla forums where the seat wiring harness is not secured properly and either a wire is crimped by the seat mechanicals or a wiring harness is pulled loose... | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jul 2024 | SUSPENSION | Front control arms are indicating loud noises suspected to be failure of these components. The vehicle handles poorly at speeds over 35 mph as a result. I contacted Tesla and they were to schedule a service appointment back in May but it hasn't happened. The internet shows this to be a very common issue with selected recalls for these components. I never received a recall notice. My car is out of warranty for both mileage and length of time. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jul 2024 | ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,AIR BAGS,SEAT BELTS | Starting Jun 15 2024 an error came up saying "Left Restraint System fault" after a remote software update for Model 3 2018 Tesla The Alert comes up intermittently & Tesla requires $359.50 to change First Row Seat Harness Assembly - Left | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jul 2024 | SUSPENSION | The contact owns a 2018 Tesla Model 3. The contact stated that after taking the vehicle for service, the contact was made aware that the front suspension lateral linkage bolt had detached and that the bolts were damaged. No warning lights were illuminated. The vehicle was repaired. After investigating the failure, the contact related the failure to NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V235000 (Suspension); but the VIN was not included. The manufacturer was notified of the failure, and a case was opened. The failure mileage was approximately 51,000. | Crash: No Fire: No | 51,000 |
| Jul 2024 | UNKNOWN OR OTHER | My Tesla Model 3 Made an Accident on [XXX] on [XXX] exit at [XXX] . The Tesla Model 3 is driving under Full Auto Drive. The Model 3 was waiting at traffic light at [XXX] exit at [XXX] . There is an other car stopped in the middle of cross road waiting on traffic. The light goes green, my tesla start to move trying to make left turn. But the other car still block the way. My car first stop and about 1 second the car suddenly run into the car and driver side mirror and door hit the other car’s tails light and rear bumper. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6) | Crash: Yes Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jul 2024 | VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL,SERVICE BRAKES,FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE | While driving on the highway with FSD on, the car severely amalfunctioned with sudden deceleration at 4 separate ocassions. At 68 mph when changing lanes, the car suddenly decelerated. There were several cars behind us and it could have been a major multi car collision. At all 4 ocassions, I immediately took over control on steering and acceleration, thus avoiding any accident. This problem has not been reproduced or confirmed by a dealer or independent service center yet. My vehicle or component(s) have also not been inspected by the manufacturer, police, insurance representatives or others yet. Additionally, there were no warning lamps, messages or other symptoms of the problem prior to the failure. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jul 2024 | AIR BAGS,SEAT BELTS | Apparently faulty sensor that then needs to replace airgbag and now it’s costing $1833! | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jun 2024 | AIR BAGS,SEAT BELTS,SEATS | Started receiving Error RCM_a056 Front Passenger Safety Restraint System Fault. The vehicle shows that the passenger airbags are DISABLED after the alert is issued. I am working under the assumption that all passenger airbags (front, side, overhead) are currently disabled at all times. This puts my family at risk if there were to be a collision. Tesla seems to know exactly what the problem is because the estimate came back shortly with a list of fixes required at a cost of $1,768.35 to 1) Correction: install an Occupant Classification System (OCS) filter Module, 2) Correction: Retrofit SBR in OCS Equipped Front Passenger Seat - Remove and Replace, and 3) Correction: Replace Front Passenger Airbag and Update Vehicle Configuration - Remove and Replace. Quick internet search shows this is a SYSTEMIC problem with a bad part (Tesla forums and search your own databases for the past year or so... these are the people who know to report this to you, there are probably a lot of others). I'm 6 months out of warranty for a sensor that should not have wear and tear. Furthermore a retrofit demonstrates that they are replacing a KNOWN problem part. Additionally, there is no rational reason to replace a perfectly good airbag. Replacing the airbag because it is incompatible with a retrofit sensor should be free. Retrofitting a sensor that has a known problem should not be a cost to the consumer for a part that is not subject to wear and tear. Adding a filter to a sensor line shows that the sensor is not an appropriate part or the filter should have been added to start with in original manufacturing. Note Tesla has a procedure already out to address the problem SB-23-20-002 which shows they already know it is a problem that needs to be addressed when the sensor failure shows up. Recommend and request an investigation into whether there is a lower cost fix for what seems like a known problem or require a recall to repair to a safe state. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |