Problems · NHTSA complaints

2023 Tesla Model 3 problems

Owners filed 429 complaints about the 2023 Tesla Model 3 with NHTSA between Nov 2022 and Oct 2026. The most-cited component is forward collision avoidance (179).

Complaints
429
Filed with NHTSA
Crashes
73
Reported by owners
Fires
1
Reported by owners
Injuries
50
People reported injured
Deaths
1
Reported to NHTSA
01 —By component

Complaints by component

One complaint can cite several components
  1. Forward collision avoidance179
  2. Steering89
  3. Vehicle speed control69
  4. Service brakes54
  5. Electrical system51
  6. Lane departure28
  7. Structure22
  8. Suspension19
  9. Air bags18
  10. Visibility/wiper12
  11. Power train10
  12. Seat belts10
  13. Wheels9
  14. Back over prevention9

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

Data from NHTSA Complaints API · synced Nov 3, 2026NHTSA vehicle page
02 —Trend

When complaints were filed

Does it get worse with age? Complaints per calendar year filed
View as table
Model yearComplaints filed per calendar year
202211
2023211
2024104
202555
202648

Mileage at failure isn’t a structured field in NHTSA complaint data, so we don’t chart it. Some owners mention it in their reports below.

03 —Owner reports

Top problems in owners’ words

Verbatim from NHTSA complaints, newest first

Forward collision avoidance

179 reports31 crashes1 fire
“On September 23 2026 at night I was driving my car under FSD and am in full control of vehicle my car is on speed of 54-55mph and in the middle of the road without any obstacle present on the road the car did the super ghost breaking and my car stopped 100% with the screen turning red with a warning of collision w am thankful to god that no one is coming from behind otherwise it might be loss of lid or serious medical emergency . We are aware and keeping on checking the surroundings but it’s very hard or nearly impossible to go to 50 mph from 0 mph in 0 seconds.”
Owner complaint to NHTSAFiled Sep 25, 2026Unknown or other, Forward collision avoidanceODI 11766979

Steering

89 reports15 crashes2 related recalls
“Vehicle: 2023 Tesla Model 3 RWD, VIN 5YJ3E1EA3PF556059. Since the FSD software update from V12 to V14.1 (Supervised v14.1 Lite) in early August 2026, the vehicle repeatedly issues false 'apply steering wheel force' warnings while my hands are on the wheel, followed by sudden disengagement of Full Self-Driving without apparent cause. This has happened multiple times, including at highway speeds, which I consider a safety hazard. The Tesla service center in Miami Gardens has been unable to fix the problem after multiple visits. I emailed Tesla's North America service team on September 23, 2026 (with a photo of the in-car warning) and sent a follow-up on September 30, 2026; I have received no response.”
Owner complaint to NHTSAFiled Oct 5, 2026Steering, Lane departureODI 11768933

Vehicle speed control

69 reports21 crashes
“Tesla has done away with a set maximum speed control when on FSD and uses speed profiles. These profiles can have the car speed at huge differences from the actual speed limit. Tesla previously gave the driver the option to control the maximum speed but eliminated it with version 14 FSD software.”
Owner complaint to NHTSAFiled Sep 29, 2026Vehicle speed controlODI 11767747

Service brakes

54 reports21 crashes
“I have a group of individuals that are hacking all of my accounts and trying to steal my car. They first hacked my emails then my Tesla account and now they are actually on the Teslas computer system and have been in the vehicle accessing the screen. After they hacked the system and stopped updates the car started having a bunch of safety concerns and alerts.The breaks were not working and the vehicle would freely roll when full pressure was applied. The collision system in the car was not working properly. Thinking it was possibly going to be hit by another car it would avoid nothing and jerk me out of the lane and nothing was around at all potentially causing an accident. Then the collision system stopped working all together. The steering system would not communicate properly with the system and kept requesting to be reconfigured with the system. The power train system kept throwing alerts. The tire pressure sensors stopped working and will not retrain now. They keep stopping the software updates now and have an IT admin portal device management program on the system and have complete control of the car’s system. Recently they were checking into enrolling in…”
Owner complaint to NHTSAFiled Sep 14, 2026Power train, Service brakes, Forward collision avoidanceCrash reportedODI 11764076

Electrical system

51 reports9 crashes3 related recalls
“The vehicle was purchased pre-owned directly from Tesla. On the day of pickup and five days later, while operating on Full Self-Driving (FSD), the vehicle phantom-braked abruptly and then dangerously accelerated through a solid red light into cross-traffic intersections. The driver had to forcefully override the vehicle to prevent a crash. Tesla Service Center was notified but dismissed the issue, performing only a camera recalibration and charging a fee. Following the service appointment, the red-light running behavior stopped, but the vehicle continues to suffer from aggressive, sudden phantom braking multiple times on every single trip, creating a severe and continuous risk of a rear-end collision on public highways.”
Owner complaint to NHTSAFiled Jun 20, 2026Electrical system, Vehicle speed control, Forward collision avoidanceODI 11745364

Lane departure

28 reports7 crashes
“I was traveling east on I-215 in [XXX] , exiting on [XXX] . I was in the RH lane, signaling to turn Rt. A small commercial van was in the two lanes Left of me with no turn signal on. Suddenly the van began coming into my lane. I turned my steering wheel slightly to the Rt to avoid a collision. Suddenly the autocorrect turned my wheel sharply Rt, then sharply Left. The car was rocking so sharply I feared a rollover or collision. The blind spot camera on the driver’s side did not pick up the van on my Left.”
Owner complaint to NHTSAFiled May 19, 2026Lane departureODI 11738836
Data from NHTSA Complaints API (owner reports, unverified) · synced Nov 3, 2026

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