Problems · by component

2021 Tesla Model 3 lane departure problems

34 owner complaints to NHTSA about the 2021 Tesla Model 3 cite lane departure, 5% of all 674 complaints for this model year.

Complaints
34
5% of all complaints
Crashes
6
Reported by owners
Fires
0
Reported by owners
Injuries
1
Reported by owners
01 —Owner reports

What owners say about the lane departure

Verbatim from NHTSA complaints, newest first
“Immediately following the installation of over-the-air software version 2026.32.3, the vehicle's center touchscreen lost all driving visualization capabilities. The backup camera now displays a black/non-responsive screen, removing federally mandated back-over protection. Additionally, the vehicle no longer provides active safety alerts, such as forward collision warnings or blind-spot obstructions, and driver-assist technologies (Autopilot) are entirely unavailable. Official Manufacturer Diagnosis: A physical diagnostic review of the vehicle's alert and signal history by Tesla Service confirmed an internal hardware communication failure directly induced by the software rollout. The official service logs state that the secondary Autopilot processor, designated as "Processor Turbo-B," has suffered a fatal fault and is failing to communicate. Tesla documentation acknowledges that this software-induced hardware lockup prevents the car from completing future software updates and has permanently disabled the safety vision suites. Current Vehicle Status: A subsequent physical replacement of the 12V low-voltage battery failed to resolve or clear the faults, confirming…”
Owner complaint to NHTSAFiled Oct 24, 2026Visibility/wiper, Lane departure, Forward collision avoidanceODI 11773348
“Multiple watchdog daemon failures triggering every ADAS system to become unavailable at random. in one instance I had FSD enabled, mid turning a corner to freeway onramp FSD disengaged, provided no warning or alert, and almost caused me to run into another car (thankfully I have a habit of holding onto the steering wheel). I have reported the problem to tesla service which they acknowledge the multiple alerts/warnings on my car however it wont be seen by them for 15 days from 10/18/2026 The vehicle is available for inspection The warnings only appeared after failure occurs. sometimes its right away when car is put in drive, other times it happens without warning mid drive. I have not had back and forth correspondance with Telsa - I have an pending request for service visit, however due to backlog they wont see the vehicle for 15 days minimum.”
Owner complaint to NHTSAFiled Oct 18, 2026Forward collision avoidance, Lane departureODI 11771895
“After a Tesla-delivered over-the-air software update, my 2021 Tesla Model 3 equipped with Hardware 3 experienced loss of the rear-view camera along with other camera and Autopilot-related functions. The exact date the condition first appeared is unknown, but it occurred after the software update. Camera calibration later became stuck and resets/recalibration did not restore functionality. Tesla Service inspected and reproduced the problem. Tesla documented camera alerts, inability to activate Autopilot, alerts for both pillar cameras and the front-main camera, proper voltage to the cameras, no short to body, and no change after testing a known-good camera. Tesla concluded that the affected cameras share a deserializer path internal to the HW3 car computer and diagnosed an internal car-computer failure requiring complete computer replacement and camera calibration. The safety concern is loss of the rear-view camera and multiple camera-based driver-assistance functions, reducing rear visibility and eliminating features that rely on those cameras. Tesla did not identify the root cause of the internal HW3 failure or establish that the preceding software event could…”
Owner complaint to NHTSAFiled Sep 16, 2026Electrical system, Visibility/wiper, Lane departureODI 11764750
“I was driving down Interstate 635 Lane Departure Assist on my 2021 Model 3 pulls me into the lane it senses im departing into when system is set to "assist" (if vehicle sense im straying into the left lane as an example, it will pull me further towards the left lane markings and requires an abnormal amount of effort into recentering the vehicle within the lane I am in). Vehicle has since been driven in "warning" setting since this event with no further issues.”
Owner complaint to NHTSAFiled Aug 4, 2026Lane departureODI 11754632
“Component: Lane Support System — Emergency Lane Keeping (ELK) Part of standard Autopilot safety suite (not FSD) activated without valid lane detection data and pushed the vehicle into the oncoming lane of traffic on Ohio State Route [XXX]. The system then aborted mid-intervention (LSS_STATE_ABORT), leaving the driver in the oncoming lane. The resulting head-on collision killed both drivers — the [XXX] Tesla driver and the driver of the oncoming vehicle. Two people died because of this ELK malfunction. Tesla's own telematics data confirms the following sequence: 5At 23:51:17.420 UTC, the Lane Support System activated Emergency Lane Keeping (LSS_STATE_ELK). 6At 23:51:17.652 UTC (232 milliseconds after activation), the system logged ALC_UNAVAILABLE_NO_LANES — confirming it had no valid lane detection data during the intervention. 7At 23:51:17.755 UTC (335 milliseconds after activation), the system logged LSS_STATE_ABORT — the system cancelled itself mid-intervention. 8During the 335-millisecond intervention, the vehicle's steering angle reached -16.79 degrees leftward and lateral acceleration measured +1.200 m/s² leftward — both confirming the vehicle was pushed…”
Owner complaint to NHTSAFiled Jul 15, 2026Seat belts, Lane departureCrash reportedODI 11750627
“On July 1, 2026, the vehicle was serviced by the manufacturer for GPS and camera malfunctions, and the vehicle computer was replaced. On the morning of July 2, 2026, during the first use of Autopilot after that repair, the vehicle experienced repeated serious driver-assistance malfunctions over a short period while traveling on a highway. While Autopilot was engaged, the vehicle repeatedly moved/steered toward the center of the road and near the path of a truck in an adjacent lane. The truck nearly struck the vehicle. The driver had to manually intervene to maintain control and avoid a potential collision. Video of the incident is available upon request and shows the truck and manual intervention. The vehicle was returned to the manufacturer service center the same day. The service center reviewed logs, performed an inspection/test drive, and stated that no hardware faults or issues were found and that the test drive was normal. However, the incidents were intermittent, occurred during highway Autopilot use, occurred the morning after a computer replacement related to GPS/camera systems, and were captured on video.”
Owner complaint to NHTSAFiled Jul 2, 2026Forward collision avoidance, Lane departureODI 11748046

Showing 6 of 34 reports. Read every report on NHTSA.gov.

Data from NHTSA Complaints API (owner reports, unverified) · synced Nov 7, 2026NHTSA vehicle page

Complaints are unverified owner reports to NHTSA and are not normalized for sales volume. One complaint can cite several components.