Complaint volume
1019 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
2021 Tesla Model Y Complaints
1019 consumer-submitted complaints on record for the 2021 Tesla Model Y, grouped by component category.
1019 Total complaints
85 Crash reports
6 Fire reports
22 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 forward collision avoidance, vehicle speed control,forward collision avoidance, service brakes,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 85 crash reports, 6 fire reports, 22 injury reports, and 4 fatality reports. These fields come from complaint records and should be read in context.
Mileage clue
Mileage is available on 98 complaints, with an average reported failure mileage of 16,683 miles. Compare that with the mileage on the listing.
Questions to ask the seller
- Have you had any problems related to forward collision avoidance, vehicle speed control,forward collision avoidance, service brakes,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 2021 Tesla Model Y?
Used-car checklist
Use these complaints before the test drive.
Build a buyer checklist to turn these issues into questions and inspection points.
2021 Tesla Model Y
Build buyer checklist Compare with other years Sends year, make, and model to pre-fill your checklist.
How severe are the 2021 Tesla Model Y complaints?
85 Crash
6 Fire
22 Injury
4 Fatality
63 Towed
14 Medical attention
What are the most common 2021 Tesla Model Y complaint categories?
FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE 280
VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL,FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE 72
SERVICE BRAKES,FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE 70
UNKNOWN OR OTHER 64
VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL,SERVICE BRAKES,FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE 44
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM 34
SUSPENSION 30
FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE,LANE DEPARTURE 29
STEERING 26
VISIBILITY/WIPER 19
1,019 total complaints on record
Latest complaints
| Date | Component | Summary | Severity | Mileage |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Oct 2024 | SEAT BELTS | Seat belt does not buckle and stay attached. Tesla is saying that this is not a warranty issue. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Oct 2024 | UNKNOWN OR OTHER,FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE | This morning when operating on FSD trail version, at tye stop sign I had to make left. This is at intersection of Rueslane and Old bridge Turnpike of East Brunswick, NJ. My car started to make a left when there was an incoming car from the left, and they do.not have to stop. Thank fully the car on the left applied instant brakes and avoided tye accident. FsD failed to make right judgement if left turn was possible or not. Fsd version is v12.3.6 | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Oct 2024 | VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL,FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE | My Tesla still has the phantom braking problem. It is repeatable and consistent. I can tell when it will occur on a route that I drive regularly. Day or night does not seem to alter the occurrence. There is no indication on the touch screen when this occurs. Traffic volume does not matter. It always occurs at the same places so it should be relatively easy to fix if someone would just monitor my computer when it occurs. I regard this as a dangerous problem on the freeway because my car suddenly slows and if the person behind me is not paying attention, I am going to be rear ended. Such a serious fault for a vehicle that performs so well otherwise. Since Tesla does not have a service center in my town no one has offered to look at the problem but since it has been reported so often, I'm not sure they would. I would be happy to demonstrate the problem to a technical person who might be able to diagnose it. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Oct 2024 | STEERING,WHEELS | The bushing spontaneously separated from the axle/wheel making the car unsafe and undriveable. I cannot believe I am the only one. This needs to be investigated and the car needs to be recalled | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Oct 2024 | SUSPENSION | I noticed some alignment issues becoming progressively worse with my car. Suddenly in a parking garage my front right tire over rotated and became stuck in the wheel well. I was able to free the wheel and the car said "alighnment issues but car is safe to drive." I drove home with my sister and her baby on the highway. Then I got off the highway and the car did the same thing becoming stuck in the middle of an intersection. I was able to free the car and proceed carefully home. The next morning my front control arm completely broke free and was dragging on the ground leaving the car completely inoperable. I never had any accident or hit any curb with the car. In fact we brought it in 1 year ago to check alignment issues on the same front right suspension. In the shop now the service technician is saying this is a known issue on the MY resulting from not torqueing the bolts enough. I am shocked that the car has not been recalled for this known issues that is a major safety impact. I don't trust this car at all and frankly makes me question the oversight of NHTSA. When I look online apparently many people have been talking about this issue for over a year. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Oct 2024 | AIR BAGS,SERVICE BRAKES | The contact owns a 2021 Tesla Model Y. The contact stated that his wife was driving at 5 -10 MPH and traffic ahead was slowing down, the vehicle in front stopped and the driver depressed the brake pedal however the vehicle then unintendedly accelerated. As a result, the contact crashed into the rear of the vehicle in front. No warning lights were illuminated and no air bags were deployed. No police report was filed due to no injuries being sustained and the insurance company would be handling the incident. The vehicle was towed to a body center where it was diagnosed that the front air bag sensors were fractured in half and failed to activate the air bags but did activate the seat belts during the impact. The vehicle was not repaired, and the repair decision from the insurance company was pending. A dealer was not contacted. The manufacturer was informed of the failure via the app however the contact was still waiting for a return call to speak with a live agent. The failure mileage was 18,680. | Crash: Yes Fire: No Towed | 18,850 |
| Oct 2024 | UNKNOWN OR OTHER,SERVICE BRAKES,FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE | The issue appears to be an acceleration malfunction and brake failure in my 2021 Tesla Model Y. The vehicle is available for inspection upon request. On [XXX] at [XXX], while waiting for the garage door to open, the car experienced an unknown unintended acceleration malfunction, surging forward uncontrollably. It didn't wait for the garage to open, crashed through the garage into the family room, causing significant structural damage to the framing and door. The City of Eastvale declared the house unsafe, sealing it off. I am now homeless and staying with friends temporarily. During the crash, the airbags did not deploy, and the ABS system failed, preventing an emergency stop. The car stopped 4-5 feet away from my wife, who was on the sofa, posing a critical life-threatening situation. Thankfully, [XXX] and I survived, but this incident caused severe mental trauma for my family. We have not reported the incident to Tesla. The dashcam footage appears deleted during the crash and the car seemed to have only recorded footage before the crash and after. This issue has not been reproduced or confirmed by any dealer or service center, but further investigation needs to be done. The vehicle has not been inspected by Tesla or any service center. However, the police and insurance representatives have been involved. We are coordinating further inspections to find the cause of the acceleration and brake failure. We aim to invoke the Tesla Event Data Recorder (EDR) tool to investigate what exactly went wrong with the car. There were no warning lamps, messages, or symptoms before the incident. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6) | Crash: Yes Fire: No | Unknown |
| Sep 2024 | STEERING,LANE DEPARTURE | When driving on highways the car will jerk the steering wheel and cause the car to turn when the car is in the center of the lane. This causes the driver to counter the force from the steering wheel to keep the car on the road. This only happens when autopilot and full self driving are not being used. I have taken it to the service center twice. The first time they said it was an issue with the car alignment so they realigned the tires and the second time they said it was a problem with the car’s computer so they replaced the computer. This continues to happen and is dangerous. Sometimes it will give a lane departure warning while other times there are no warnings. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Sep 2024 | UNKNOWN OR OTHER | NHTSA Recall No: 22V-702, in 2022, was where there was supposedly an OTA update to stop the windows from increasing force in some situations when an object was stuck in the gap between the window and the frame. My 2021 Tesla received that update at the time, and I didn't think much of it...until January 2024 when it actually happened to me. I shut the door with my hand on the window, and at the moment it closed, the window went up to close the small gap. My finger was in there and as I tried to pull it out, the window was still trying to close, not allowing me to do so. Component that failed -- the window, supposedly fixed in 2022 Available for inspection upon request -- returned the leased car in September 2024 How was safety put at risk -- could not remove finger from gap between window and frame since window was continuously trying to close Has the problem been reproduced or confirmed by a dealer or independent service center -- I was ignored by Tesla HQ, and by my closest dealer. The Tesla dealer from which I leased the car (a different one) told me to make a service appointment. Has the component been inspected by the manufacturer, police, insurance representatives or others -- no Were there any warnings or symptoms -- no. No reason to think it would ever happen, then it did in January 2024. | Crash: No Fire: No Injuries: 1 | Unknown |
| Sep 2024 | STEERING | At 59k miles the steering rack failed, warranty expired at 50k miles. This was a $3,000 repair. A number of fellow Tesla owners have encountered this same failure. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Sep 2024 | ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE,LANE DEPARTURE | What component or system failed or malfunctioned, and is it available for inspection upon request? System computer. After a Over the Air (OTA) update, most driver assistive functions are inoperative. System feedback display sometime goes black (speedometer, controls, backup camera, etc). After manufacturer serviced car to verify and resolve issue, issue was not corrected. Screen continues to error, asking for a software update. Per the manufacturer this is a computer issue with the cache, and being told to replace computer. How was your safety or the safety of others put at risk? Since the driver feedback display and cameras are sometimes non-functional. Back up camera can be unusable, lane keeping, and cruise control are inoperative. Has the problem been reproduced or confirmed by a dealer or independent service center? Yes Has the vehicle or component been inspected by the manufacturer, police, insurance representatives or others? By an manufacturer repair center. Were there any warning lamps, messages or other symptoms of the problem prior to the failure, and when did they first appear? No, they appeared after an OTA update 9-AUG-2024 | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Sep 2024 | STEERING | My husband was driving the used Tesla we recently purchased from the Tesla dealership. We were driving on the highway with regular traffic and no issues around us. Autopilot was not on (we have never employed this feature). All the sudden, the car quickly jerked to the right on its own and then swerved back on its own. We were driving towards the sun so maybe the camera saw a shadow that wasn't actually there. We think either there is a steering issue or that the car might be reacting erroneously to something that isn't there. Just wanted to report this safety concern because I had my baby in the car and this could have caused a car accident. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Aug 2024 | ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,AIR BAGS,SEATS | The front passenger safety restrain system keeps switching off and showing an error randomly during driving, especially with younger passengers on the passenger seat. The problem was already fixed by Tesla 4 times and is appearing again. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Aug 2024 | SUSPENSION | Lower control arm bolt has backed out on the passenger side. Have found several similar issues on the same model vehicle the past few weeks. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Aug 2024 | SEAT BELTS | One of the rear seat belts will not latch. The buckle will go about 3/4 of the way in, but will not latch completely. It feels like there is something preventing the buckle from inserting compeltely. This puts our family at risk because one of our children cannot buckle their seatbelts when riding in the car. This has been present since we bought the car; it was delivered to us on August 11 and was not functioning upon delivery. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Aug 2024 | SEAT BELTS | Warning popped up for Faulty Passenger Seat Belt Tensioner. On checking, the seat belt tensioner was broken and the whole seat mechanism had come off. This surprised serious safety incident happened without anyone sitting on Passenger side or using the seat belt. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Aug 2024 | SERVICE BRAKES,FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE | Driving [XXX] enroute to Houston from Peoria, AZ, on cruise control, the auto braking activated aka ghost braking, causing the car to extremely brake. No other cars or trucks near us and no signs in area that might affect cruise control. I thought this was fixed! Totally unsafe. Luckily no one was behind us. This happened a lot back in mid 2021 and to have it still happen is hazardous. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6) | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Aug 2024 | SEAT BELTS | THE SEATBELT LATCH IN THE BACK CENTER SEAT IS NOT WORKING. I TRIED CLEANING IT OUT AND NO DEBRIS IS IN THERE AND IT STILL WON'T LATCH. TESLA DOESN'T HAVE AVAILABILITY FOR A MONTH FOR THIS SAFETY ISSUE. I HAVE THREE YOUNG KIDS. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Aug 2024 | UNKNOWN OR OTHER | My wife was driving the car on our downsloping driveway when the car suddenly accelerated without her pressing the accelerator pedal. She slammed on the brakes and was able to bring the car to a stop before colliding with the garage door. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jul 2024 | SUSPENSION | This is a manufacture defect. The windshield water comes down and fall dropping on the upper control arm. I Needed it to replace this every year. This is a well documented issue. It is all over the web. This is insane. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jul 2024 | UNKNOWN OR OTHER | Tesla Model Y's windshield is terribly and soft. A small stone fallen on the windshield it cracks right away. I had to replace my windshield every year or so. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jul 2024 | SEAT BELTS | Seat belt malfunction error was triggered. I reached tesla service in Springfield nj but can't get an appointment until mid September. Totally unacceptable... how am I supposed to use my car? | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jul 2024 | STRUCTURE,UNKNOWN OR OTHER,SERVICE BRAKES | Car was summoned and turned a sharp right directly hitting the car parked next to it while pulling out. The location was the parking lot of [XXX] on [XXX] . I have a full video of this which shows the car pulling forward then taking a sharp right impacting the vehicle parked next to it. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6) | Crash: Yes Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jun 2024 | ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,LATCHES/LOCKS/LINKAGES | On [XXX] my husband was taking our [XXX] son to the grocery store and put him in his car seat. He then shut the door and went to open the driver door and the car had locked and would not unlock leaving our [XXX] trapped in the car. We called Tesla immediately and they said the 12 volt battery had died and we needed to call 911. Luckily while I was on the phone with 911, one of the windows was slightly cracked and my husband was able to get the window down further so we could get our son out. You are suppose to receive 3 warning messages from Tesla saying the 12 volt battery needs to be replaced or is dying we did not receive a single one. This is life threatening and extremely dangerous. Our friends who had heard our story just sent us a news story that this happened to a grandmother and her grandchild recently in Arizona too. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6) | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jun 2024 | ELECTRICAL SYSTEM | The contact owns a 2021 Tesla Model Y. The contact stated after placing the children in the vehicle, he was unable to enter the vehicle. The contact stated that the vehicle lost electric power while attempting to open the door with the key fob and with the phone App however, the door remained closed. The local Fire Department was contacted, and the contact was advised to break the window to remove the children from the vehicle. The contact broke the driver's side front window to remove the children as recommended by the Fire Department. The contact stated that the 12-volt battery had overheated; however, a report was not filed. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, but the vehicle was not diagnosed. The contact stated that the window was replaced, and the 12-volt battery was also replaced. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 72,175. | Crash: No Fire: No | 72,175 |