Complaint volume
749 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
2022 Tesla Model 3 Complaints
749 consumer-submitted complaints on record for the 2022 Tesla Model 3, grouped by component category.
749 Total complaints
52 Crash reports
3 Fire reports
27 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 52 crash reports, 3 fire reports, 27 injury reports, and 1 fatality report. These fields come from complaint records and should be read in context.
Mileage clue
Mileage is available on 56 complaints, with an average reported failure mileage of 14,263 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 2022 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.
2022 Tesla Model 3
Build buyer checklist Compare with other years Sends year, make, and model to pre-fill your checklist.
How severe are the 2022 Tesla Model 3 complaints?
52 Crash
3 Fire
27 Injury
1 Fatality
34 Towed
22 Medical attention
What are the most common 2022 Tesla Model 3 complaint categories?
FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE 262
VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL,FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE 76
SERVICE BRAKES,FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE 72
VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL,SERVICE BRAKES,FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE 48
UNKNOWN OR OTHER 35
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM 16
UNKNOWN OR OTHER,FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE 14
VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL 14
FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE,LANE DEPARTURE 12
SERVICE BRAKES 11
749 total complaints on record
Latest complaints
| Date | Component | Summary | Severity | Mileage |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jul 2022 | FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE | I'm looking for an update to the reported Tesla "phantom braking" issue when on Autopilot. We experienced this at least 5 times during an April 2022 road trip from SLC to Vegas, so bad we didn't feel comfortable enabling Autopilot (cruise control) on the drive home to SLC. This made for a very difficult 6 hour drive as Tesla's are very hard to keep a consistent speeding since they are so quiet/powerful...w/out some sort of auto speed regulation. I didn't know where to report this and was simply waiting for an over-the-air update for this to be addressed by Tesla and have seen none and no follow up news reports. I'm assuming this must be affecting 100's of thousands of Tesla owners. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jul 2022 | SERVICE BRAKES,FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE | Under Adaptive cruise control, the car slowed from 80mph to 55mph on the highway. There were no cars or objects in front of us. We tried to hit the "gas" pedal but the car would not let us override it. The car behind us came extremely close to us and flashed his lights at us. Bug report submitted to tesla. We were traveling downhill with a slight right curve. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jul 2022 | FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE | "Phantom braking" occurred on multiple (30 or more) occasions while the adaptive cruise control was engaged. These phantom events happened during a long road trip across west Texas. These events seemed to occur whenever there were few or no cars visible in front of my vehicle and as I was cresting over small rises in the highway, meaning the brakes would engage just after the car reached the high point and started to descend slightly, perhaps because the cameras briefly lost visibility of the road and could not register any oncoming traffic. ALL of these events happened during daylight hours and, on more than one occasion, there were drivers traveling behind my car. Also, there is no way to engage the cruise control without also engaging the "adaptive" feature that uses the cameras to brake in case of emergency. This is a very dangerous flaw in the technology. It causes the passengers within the car to be lunged forward unexpectedly and is very unpredictable for drivers who are traveling behind the car. These phantom braking events most often occurred when the road was completely clear and visibility was at or close to 100%. Tesla needs to do better. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jul 2022 | FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE | Since purchasing this vehicle new, I have experienced no less than 40 different incidents of Phantom Braking where, while using Tesla's adaptive cruise control (and ONLY adaptive cruise control), my car has suddenly and violently applied the brakes while traveling at highway speeds (between 65-75 mph) on interstate highways where there were no obstructions or other vehicles that posed any risk. I have extensive experience driving other (non-Tesla) vehicles with adaptive cruise control, so I understand some of the potential limits regarding when radar/cameras might mistake an obstruction or a gap in observations for something that would require braking, but that is not what is happening with my current Tesla. Instead, on wide-open interstates, with no other cars for hundreds of yards around me, the vehicle with suddenly violently apply brakes, forcing me to have to take protective and corrective actions to avoid swerving or becoming a hazard to other vehicles, all of which are also driving at highway speeds. I have NOT had a crash due to this, but the sudden braking and deceleration has forced other cars around me to have to suddenly brake and swerve.This has happened about 10 times on EACH of the following dates, each of which was a one-day leg of a drive anywhere from 500-800 miles: (5/26/2022, 5/30/2022, 7/1/2022, and 7/5/2022). I am just going to add one of these dates below, but I am happy to be contacted to provide more details. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jul 2022 | FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE | Hello, I purchased a Tesla Model 3 in March 2022. The car will randomly brake while on cruise control and the auto pilot on the highway , there is nothing on the road in front of me when this happens. I am very concerned that I may get into a car accident or cause others behind me to brake abruptly in response to my car resulting in potent accidents.I feel this is quite unsafe. The phantom breaking has happened multiple times. I am driving from Texas to NC where the cruise control is crucial but am worried about the braking problems. I have not had the opportunity to take it to the dealer yet about this problem. It’s unknown to me if the manufacturer inspected this component. There were no warning signs of any type prior to the phantom braking happen. Any insight or guidance you can provide would be appreciated. I appreciate you taking the time to read this. What component or system failed or malfunctioned, and is it available for inspection upon request? Autopilot navigation and cruise control, yes it is available for inspection upon request How was your safety or the safety of others put at risk? Vehicles behind have to brake every time the phantom breaking happens putting everyone at unnecessary risk to avoid a crash. Again, there is no need for the sudden breaking when it occurs. Has the problem been reproduced or confirmed by a dealer or independent service center? No. Has the vehicle or component been inspected by the manufacturer, police, insurance representatives or others? No. Were there any warning lamps, messages or other symptoms of the problem prior to the failure, and when did they first appear? No. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jul 2022 | FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE | The autopilot feature suddenly braked without any alerts (visual or audio.) This happened multiple times (about 10-15) on a two thousand mile road trip. The phantom braking occurred only at high speeds on expressways. It seemed to occur more frequently when driving up a hill. It may also have been triggered by shadows. It created a dangerous driving environment in that the speed decreased drastically without warning for the Driver as well as other drivers on the road. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jul 2022 | FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE,LANE DEPARTURE | my brand new tesla model 3's adaptive cruise control is unsafe and unusable while driving on a two lane highway, I took a 500 mile road trip last night and the entire time i was experiencing random hard breaking while driving. I have stopped using it since but it has me worried about my safety as well as other when using this program. I am also having issues with my lane keep assist activating despite it being fully disabled in settings, it pulls my steering wheel back into the lane when i am changing lanes, even with a turn singal, and the computer system screams like crazy telling me im departing my lane. This almost caused me to crash one time as I had to overcome the computer pulling me back into the lane I was already in, despite me intending to change lanes. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jul 2022 | VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL,FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE | While driving on a highway with adaptive cruise control set and no visible vehicles or obstacles on the roadway, the vehicle slammed on the brakes and slowed to about 2/3 the speed. I disengaged the cruise and took over and was able to then speed back up. My concern is that had someone been close behind me they would have for sure ran into me! At highway speeds this could seriously injure or kill someone. This happened 2 times on July 10th, on my 360 mile trip and also happened on the way to this location 1 time but was a quick brake incident only slowing 10 mph and then went back to the speed I had set…that was the first time and that date was July 7th. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jul 2022 | FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE | TESLA "auto pilot" (adaptive cruise control) has activated breaking, with no object in front. Last event was 7/9/2022 on the highway going about 77 miles. Because the break are activated unexpectedly I almost lost control of the vehicle, and the vehicle behind me almost collided with us. I this time I have discontinued using the autopilot. Using the autopilot on this vehicle is extremely dangerous. Please help | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jul 2022 | FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE | On several occasions while my Model 3 was under cruise control the vehicle brakes for no reason. From 65 mph to 25 mph in moderate to heavy traffic nearly causing a rear end collision each time. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jul 2022 | FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE | Driving 1-25 south in clear and sunny weather at posted speed limit, clear road in front of us, automatic brakes engages for no reason. Car behind us had to take evasive maneuver to avoid collision. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jul 2022 | VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL,FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE | Just completed road-trip from Florida to New England and back. Experienced 4/5 phantom braking events while using cruise control at highway speeds. When traveling in traffic at highway speed, this abrupt braking came very close to causing a collision. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jul 2022 | SERVICE BRAKES,FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE | While driving 2022 Tesla Model 3 with cruise control, the car phantom braked with nothing around vehicle. This happened approximately 20-30 times while driving for about 8 hours. The phantom braking occurred while cruise control was set a 75 mph and and went to around 65 mph. This has occurred at varying speeds. It also occurred while using the auto-pilot feature. This happened the next day numerous times. It also braked on a two lane highway after a vehicle passed our car. There was no warning or indicators before, during or after. I am really concerned that this will occur with a vehicle behind my car and cause a rear end collision. Need to see Tesla dealership when return from current trip. Any help would be greatly appreciated. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jul 2022 | LANE DEPARTURE | On a recent round trip between Reno and Salt Lake City on I-80 over the July 4th weekend I experienced several incidents (3 incidents driving from Reno to SLC and 5 incidents on the return trip) while using Tesla Autopilot where the car suddenly slowed from the posted speed limit of 75 or 80 mph to approximately 45-50 mph for no apparent reason. Both legs of the trip occurred in clear weather with light to no traffic and there was no type of warning preceding each of the events. I have used Autopilot for limited periods around the Bay Area without incident prior to this trip and this was the first extended road trip I have taken with the car. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jul 2022 | SERVICE BRAKES,FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE | I was driving in our new 2022 Tesla doing 55 mph using the adaptive cruise control, not on auto pilot. We were on a divided highway, a few cars coming from the opposite lane, nothing in front of us when without warning the car heavily braked. It frightened us and I pressed the accelerator and the car continued without any further incident, but the episode was scary because earlier in the day we were driving on a heavily traveled interstate where such an episode could easily have caused a collision | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jul 2022 | FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE,LANE DEPARTURE | Phantom breaking system continuously is stopping out of no where. Happens when vehicle is on autopilot and also happens when vehicle is on cruise control. It slams the brakes and lowers speed approximately 20 MPH’s in a matter of a second. Seriously increasing the chance of being rear ended. It’s enough braking power to send you forward in your seat. On my current trip driving through Nevada to Idaho it happened approximately 5 times within 20 miles before I gave up and turned it off. I have also experienced problems before where the car merges lanes on the freeway but does not take into consideration the car in the lane that it’s merging into. Accident waiting to happen. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jul 2022 | SERVICE BRAKES,EQUIPMENT | The contact owns a 2022 Tesla Model 3. The contact stated that the vehicle inadvertently activated the brakes independently after an image appeared on the display screen. The contact stated that the brake failure warning light was illuminated. The contact related the screen detection failure with a sensor failure, causing the brakes to independently apply. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 728. | Crash: No Fire: No | 728 |
| Jul 2022 | VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL,FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE | While driving on the interstate and having the adaptive cruise control enabled, the vehicle unexpectedly and suddenly decelerated with no vehicles in front of us. This happened 3 times over a two day period, with a total time of about 3 hours having the cruise control on. The 3rd time it happened, we were traveling at about 75 mph with another vehicle behind us, no more than two seconds behind. No vehicle was in front of us, but our car suddenly decelerated by about 20 mph. If the driver behind us was not paying attention, they would’ve rear ended us. I sent in a service request to Tesla. The answer was, in summary, they are aware of this issue with their beta version of adaptive cruise control and are working on a firmware update to fix it. The solution given, in the meantime, is to disengage the cruise control when it happens. This is unacceptable to me, as the consequences of sudden, unexpected deceleration will have already happened. I am not going to use the cruise control until it is fixed. For such an expensive car, still under warranty, an unusable and dangerous feature should be fixed. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jul 2022 | UNKNOWN OR OTHER,FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE | Driving on I8 between San Diego and Phoenix with no obstacles or vehicles around with cruise control on, vehicle was brake hard for no apparent reason. This happened multiple times. Disabled it as we were concerned we would get rear ended. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jul 2022 | VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL,FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE | Recently, while traveling on the freeway with light traffic conditions (no cars near me to the front, sides or rear -- possibly no cars even visible) the car automatically applied the brakes causing the speed to drop by more than 30 miles an hour. This happened three times over the course of two minutes, with one of the incidences being particularly severe (throwing me forward in my seat as the brakes were applied). Had a car been behind me, I'm sure I would have been rear-ended. At the time, the weather was clear, and the time was near noon, putting the sun nearly overhead. I did not detect any shadows or unusual road patterns at the time of the incidences, nor was I near any overpasses. At the time of the incidents, the car had its "traffic aware" cruise control engaged with the lane following feature active. Later that same day I experienced a similar incident with heavy, unexpected braking (same freeway, now heading in the opposite direction, about one hour from sunset), with traffic aware cruise control engaged but without lane following engaged. I have experienced milder versions of unnecessary automatic braking about 6 times. They were annoying, but not a safety issue. In at least one of the incidences described above, the braking was so severe, I do think it could have gotten me killed if a vehicle had been close behind me. I'm now afraid to use the feature in moderate traffic, which is a shame, because it is in under exactly that circumstance that the feature is most useful. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jul 2022 | VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL,FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE | I engaged cruise control on my 2022 Tesla model 3 at 70 mph while traveling on flat level terrain, and after about 1 to 2 miles in cruise, braking automatically occurred slowing my speed down to 50 mph in less than 2 seconds. I've read that this is considered phantom braking which is considered common on the newer 2022 Tesla model 3. There were no warning signals and no visible objects on the road, and the time of day was about 4:30 pm. I took the vehicle to the dealership for another issue, but they didn't have time to take it for a test drive. I was thrown forward in my seat when the incident occurred, and fortunately there were no other drivers immediately behind me. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jul 2022 | VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL,SERVICE BRAKES,FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE | While the car is in Auto Cruise control, especially in the 72 mph and above range, the brakes engage for no reason. This happens repeatedly on long travel days. There is no notice of the slowdown. It can be abruptly and be extreme. The accelerator has to be used to disengaged the braking. We see it called phantom braking. It certainly is not safe. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jul 2022 | FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE | When driving using cruise control on highway, car suddenly applied brakes with no other vehicles or obstructions present ahead or beside us. Car went from 80mph to 60mph. Had there been a car behind us, there may have been a rear-end accident | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jul 2022 | FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE,LANE DEPARTURE | While driving on a two lane road, I was utilizing Tesla Autopilot to maintain speed and keep the vehicle centered in the lane at 60mph when the vehicle slammed on the brakes for no apparent reason. No error messages, beeps or chimes went off to indicate to me why it was slowing down very quickly. I have had this happen several times in my first 3 months of owning this vehicle and there have been times that the car has slammed on the brakes when another vehicle was following closely which could have resulted in me getting rear-ended. Tesla Autopilot can be extremely helpful, but at the same time it is not reliable and may result in an accident at some point. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jul 2022 | FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE | Numerous times, my Tesla Model 3 has randomly slammed on the brakes or rapidly reduced its speed while on Autopilot. This has happened several times even when driving on flat level ground and no vehicles around me nor was there any debris in the road. It has also happened numerous times within several minutes while on the same flat road. The car also has a tendency to brake or turn off Autopilot when coming up to a hill that it seems to interpret as a car or object in the road. This can be very jolting and scary and if you aren’t ready on the accelerator pedal to speed back up there is a very real chance to get rear-ended. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |