general problems of the 2018 Tesla Model 3 - part 1

Tesla full self driving (fsd) failed us, resulting in a side swipe with a tractor trailer and the likely total loss of our Model 3. We were under fsd for much of our trip from [xxx] to [xxx]. We were in [xxx], traveling north on [xxx] in the right lane with a tractor trailer in the center lane. The car made a sudden, violent turn to the right. The startled driver grabbed the wheel to bring the car back to the lane center, which resulted in a major grinding noise. The driver then brought the car to a safe stop on the shoulder. It became clear the left side of our vehicle had contacted the trucks right front wheel. The truck left the scene. I believe the truck either came close to its lane right line or actually was changing lanes. The car took evasive action. However, the car failed to communicate the situation to the driver, which is the reason for filing this report. It is possible that had fsd activated the horn, both driers would have acted more appropriately and the loss of our car might have been avoided. Other possibilities are for fsd to have some method to communicate what was happening or had refused to permit the driver to bring the car into contact with the truck. It may be beneficial for NHTSA to request a copy of the car’s data before it is deleted after the car is declared a total loss; especially since there isn’t any dash cam video of the incident. The dash cam’s most recent video was several weeks previous and includes gb of video taken in our garage. But nothing from the trip. I believe Tesla will record this as driver fault rather than fsd’s fault. Technically, at the time of contact, the driver was in control because, from the drivers point of view, fsd acted randomly. The real cause, in my opinion, was a failure of communication and poor handoff of control. There is a pennsylvanian state police report and we have filed with our insurance company, but I don’t expect either to investigate fsding’s role in this incident. Information redacted pursuant to the freedom of information act (foi.

Vehicle: 2018 Tesla Model 3 safety issue: the rearview camera display has failed and shows a black screen when the vehicle is shifted into reverse. This reduces rearward visibility and creates a safety concern while backing up. Recall history: my vehicle was previously repaired under the Tesla Model 3 trunk lid harness recall on March 31, 2023. The recall addressed wear and damage to the trunk harness wiring that could result in loss of the rearview camera display. Tesla installed recall retrofit components during that repair. The current failure presents the same symptom that the recall was intended to correct: loss of the backup camera image. Current problem: in September 2026, the rearview camera again began displaying a black screen. Tesla service has diagnosed the vehicle and quoted approximately $439 for repair. Tesla advised that the recall was completed in 2023 and that the repair warranty has expired, therefore the current repair is not covered. Reason for complaint: I believe this may be a recurrence of the same safety-related defect addressed by the original recall. Although the recall repair was completed, the same safety condition has reoccurred. I am requesting that NHTSA review whether the recall remedy adequately resolved the defect and whether owners should be responsible for subsequent repairs involving the same failure mode.

I was driving normally and drove in a dip in the road. The vehicle went completely into auto drive, leaving me helpless behind the wheel. It spun and swerved wildly for 30-45 seconds on a neighborhood street resulting in the left rear tire and the rim being mangled. When it was spinning out of control, the left rear tire was seemingly stuck, dragging in whichever direction it chose. Thankfully, no one, pedestrians or other vehicles were injured or damaged. This was a truly terrifying experience.

Driving tghe 2018 Model 3 with around 75k miles, the warning "front left safety restraint system issue" keeps popping up and staying on the center console. Tesla said car is out of warranty and have to pay upto $2000 to fix it.

Vehicle displayed a “safety restraint system issue - service required” alert (fault codes rcm_a056 and rcm_a032). Tesla diagnosed an open circuit between the driver-side curtain airbag and the left airbag controller, requiring replacement of the left body harness. Tesla quoted approximately $1,800–$2,200 for the out-of-warranty repair. This is a known, recurring pattern — multiple other 2018 Tesla Model 3 owners report experiencing this identical fault at nearly the same mileage (~78,000 miles), suggesting a design or component wear issue rather than isolated damage, similar to a prior Tesla trunk-harness recall (NHTSA campaign 21v-00d) that also stemmed from a wiring/harness defect on this same vehicle. I am requesting NHTSA investigate whether this represents a safety-defect trend warranting a recall.

High voltage fast charge contactors experienced partial weld failure (bms_a167_sw_fc_partial_weld) during routine supercharging, causing complete hv system shutdown (hvstate = hv_down). Vehicle also threw bms_a085/a086 pack and fast charge contactor mismatch codes. Tesla service is refusing to cover repair under the 8-year hv battery warranty, claiming fast charge contactors are not a warranted component despite being integrated into the hv battery assembly. Vehicle has been at duluth, GA Tesla service center since approximately June 8, 2025.

My vehicle should've been included in a recall. While exiting my garage to pick up my son from school, a loud mechanical banging noise came from the front of my car. I abruptly stopped and proceeded to reverse back into my garage to inspect my vehicle. While inspecting my vehicle and the surrounding area, I discovered a large bolt on the ground. A quick image search says "on a Tesla Model 3, this specific high-strength 10. 9 class metric hex flange bolt is a critical structural component that almost certainly backed out of [my] front suspension lower control arm/ lateral link assembly or the front subframe structural mounts. " so the loud banging noise came from my suspension falling apart after the bolt fell out. Upon further inspection, I confirmed that this was the issue and that a second bolt on the same side had partially backed out as well. My vehicle was not safe to drive, so I had to have my vehicle towed to the nearest service center for repairs. I took photos and video of the areas, as well as the bolt, which showed no signs of any damage to the head or threads - so the bolt simply backed out and appears to be a manufacturing/ assembly issue. After a quick search, we learned that there were previous NHTSA recalls (ie part 573 safety recall report 23v-235) for this particular issue, including for my same vehicle make, model, year (2018 Tesla Model 3) and production dates (Jan 5, 2018 - Mar 30, 2019). Unfortunately, I never received a recall notice. I barely drive my car, so bolts shouldn't just be backing out on their own. Unfortunately, my car is no longer under warranty, but was advised by the service managers to file a report and to get reimbursed thru ncds. This is a huge safety issue. I had no warnings or alerts from the car. My alignment was checked a year ago. My wheels and tires get checked often and are well maintained, so I didn't even need air or rotation, yet my suspension just fell apart on its own before 60k miles.

Following a professional suspension repair at a Tesla service center, critical underbody fasteners (bolts) became loose, causing the aero shield to sag and creating a potential road hazard. Upon inspection, the service technician confirmed the bolts were unsecured. The failure of these fasteners on a safety-critical system poses a risk of parts detaching while in motion or loss of vehicle control. The service center refused to acknowledge this as a workmanship failure under the 12-month repair warranty, despite the fasteners being last serviced by their technicians.

After downloading Tesla’s update (no. 2025. 44. 25. 4) software my heater (with the window defrost functionality) in winter stopped operating. I made my update while at my nearest Tesla service compound (location verifiable per system location log) on 01/25/26 when that same day software began throwing hvac error codes with blowing cold air, when previously my heat ran well. This is not coincidental; this is system design failure.

I received a safety alert on my car screen: front passenger safety restraint system issue. Service is required. The front passenger safety restraint system fault typically involves a malfunctioning occupant weight sensor in the passenger seat, which controls whether the airbag activates or deactivates evgoer. This is a serious safety concern because the airbag may be disabled at that seat location in the event of a crash. The issue is often caused by loose, broken, or unplugged harnesses or connectors under the seat, particularly related to the occupant classification system (OCS) Tesla owners onlinedigital ev doctor. Many owners report this happens because wires under the seat get crimped over time due to Tesla's "easy entry" feature that automatically moves seats. Since this a widespread Tesla Model 3 problem, I believe this should be a recall.

The rear doors do not have a manual release. If power is lost, you cannot open the rear doors. This is a severe safety concern. With 2 child seats in the rear seats, with a power failure, you cannot get the children out. Newer Model 3 vehicles, have a manual safety release. My 2018 does not.

Safety issue: defective interior cabin camera causes Tesla full self-driving (fsd) to disengage abruptly and without adequate warning at freeway speeds. I am a [xxx] driver. I purchased fsd capability with this vehicle in December 2018. In October 2025, I had the fsd hardware upgrade (hw2. 5 to hw3) installed at Tesla's encinitas, CA service center (b. A. R. License [xxx] ). Within days, fsd would became completely unusable due to a recurring "cabin camera unavailable — schedule service" alert that instantly disengages the system. The disengagement occurs on the freeway at highway speed, without meaningful advance warning. As a [xxx] driver, the sudden loud alarm and loss of assisted driving is genuinely alarming — it is not immediately clear in the moment whether the vehicle has lost power or experienced a critical failure. This is exactly the kind of dangerous situation driver assistance systems should prevent, not cause. Tesla's own diagnostic confirmed the defect (diagnostic invoice no. Xxx, November 27, 2025, encinitas service center): "cabin camera unavailable" alert verified intermittent stream exit faults detected in the selfie/cabin camera low-voltage circuit and wiring checks were normal — ruling out wiring conclusion: fault is within the camera module itself; technician recommended replacement the defect is fsd-specific. The cabin camera works correctly for sentry mode, live security viewing, and all normal driving. It fails exclusively when fsd is engaged and demands sustained driver monitoring. The camera housing also becomes extremely hot to the touch during fsd use, consistent with reports from other 2018 Model 3 owners describing identical symptoms after their hw3 retrofits. Information redacted pursuant to the freedom of information act (foia), 5 u. S. C. 552(b)(6).

The "front passenger safety restraint system" is prone to errors because the wiring for it beneath the seat is prone to getting knocked loose and electrical interference.

Mold, mildew and smelly odors are coming through the on-cabin ventilation system. This is the 3rd time since 2020, I had to purchase & replace the two air filters and spray the poorly designed duct & condensation accumulation. I inspected the self-installed air filters and there were no signs of moisture, mildew, mold or stains on the filters, which makes me think the problem was /is from the hvac condenser or coil area. Tesla had issued a 2019 software update to “run” the ventilation system longer after the vehicle was in “park” but the software update has not solved the mildew and bacteria odors that are vented into the cabin, and subsequently changed the hvac design in post 2021tesla models that corrected this problem with many pre-2021 Model 3s. Tesla service centers are still charging for the coil spray cleaning and not covering this mold & bacteria-creating hvac design problem of their earlier year vehicles CA as I had to pay Tesla for a pair of air filters change and now they want me to pay for a separate fee for spraying the condenser coils.

While driving on the 5 freeway, using autopilot, my car suddenly decelerated and came to a complete stop. Fortunately, we were not struck from behind, and I was able to get the car to accelerate again after approximately 10 seconds.

The car's horn only works sometimes and often not at all when steering wheel horn areas are pressed, hard or soft!! Tesla said they couldn't fix it!!.

No warning messages at all, all cameras/sensors stopped working all at once while driving, full self drive stopped working, lane assist, safety features of full self drive was degraded by this. Car software v12 (2024. 44. 25. 2 288ce84bb43e), according to the dealership the computer fried randomly.

Front suspension is making very weird and loud noises. Issue is associated with the front suspension links becoming loose.

Front suspension lateral link fasteners loosened, allowing the lateral link to separate from the sub-frame. I have a 2018 Model 3 and this seems to be the exact same issue that led to a recent recall with the help of the NHTSA. Recall no. 23v235000 sb-23-31-001 an expansion of previous recall number 21v-835. I noticed for months something was slightly off in the front right area of the car. I brought it into the Tesla service center, they drove it and didn't notice anything. About a month later the lateral link separated from the subframe rendering the car undriveable. I had it towed immediately.

I’m not exactly sure what’s wrong, the screen keeps failing on my car. It’s been taken to Tesla to service this issue 4 times. With the most expensive repair costing $2,200. Its poses a safety hazard because when the screen fails. You can’t see anything, speed, gear. You can’t adjust windshield wipers, seat or mirror positions.

Issue: ptc heater failed at 63,617 miles after 6 years of use warning message: "vehicle may not restart" contact: [xxx] [xxx] main contact for owner [xxx] . VIN: [xxx] make: Model 3 year: 2018 repair quoted: $1,104. 18 line items: ptc heater dualzone(1088218-00-I) hvac, ptc serviceassy(1107677-00-a) labor & diagnostics summary: Tesla Model 3 electric vehicle shut down into "asleep mode" and will not respond (turn back on). Locked out. Will not wake up. Will not respond to software nor car keys. All systems turned off. Will not charge. Will not release charger from charge port. Issue suddenly happened after [xxx] software load (deemed to not be the cause of issue). Dealership diagnostic shows ptc heater failure which cuts off the battery. Dealership quoted estimated repair (see below). This could have happened while driving causing the vehicle to be uncontrollable, and a major safety issue. Fortunately, my incident happened after I parked the car in the garage. Overnight there was a software install (supposedly not causing the problem). In the morning the vehicle would not turn on. Precedent: there were several small claims filings in canada for same issue. This was deemed a design flaw, and safety issue. (see [xxx] ) diagnostics: on-line debugging is pointing to resistance issue with 1 of the 5 heating elements in the ptc heater. Ptc heater cuts off supply to pcs which charges the 12v battery when there is an issue with the heater. This allows the 12v battery to drain, and the ev becomes unresponsive. Information redacted pursuant to the freedom of information act (foia), 5 u. S. C. 552(b)(6).

Front passenger safety restraint system fault error. Tesla is indicating this is out of warranty but seems this is a very pervasive issue with an important safety mechanism on the car.

I have an error on my car, have had this for almost a year now, front left safety restraint system fault. This seems to be a safety issue that Tesla should recall. I have seen thousands of online posts related to this same issue. .

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.

Seems that when brake pedal sensor can trigger a "pressed" reading when not actually being pressed. The only way to turn off the car manually is defeated by, you guessed it, depressing the brake pedal. This causes the vehicle to remain on and unlocked. Even if you are able to leave the vehicle in a locked park state, at any point, the sensor can register a "pressed" reading and essentially unlock and turn on the vehicle. I see this as a extremely serious safety issue. The issue seems to occur randomly at first and then more frequently. It can be confused with a known seat sensor issue which seems to also cause the same symptoms.

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.

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.

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).

Drivers door opens at. Random.

Front passenger safety restraint system fault. From invoice: Tesla to replace front passenger airbag and update vehicle configuration passenger airbag error malfunction!!! passenger airbag harness malfunction!!! correction: retrofit sbr in OCS equipped front passenger seat - remove and replace seatbelt issue!!! first row seat harness assembly - right hand first row - seat belt reminder sensor box clip first row occupancy sensor giving an error and now they are charging me to fix this defect in my Tesla Model 3.

The buttons in the interior seem to be degrading much quicker than it should be. The window levers become lose and can break off. This is a safety hazard as in not able to raise the window if it allows to lower it. One has to park in order to raise windows in the mobile application. The plastics are breaking too quickly. There is also an issue with levers for the seat adjusting. Also, when canceling service requests in their application, Tesla deletes or hides them without an ability to see what was written to show proof later of their faults.

I am reporting a safety concern with my Tesla Model 3. The vehicle is equipped with both a high and low horn, and the low horn in my car has failed. After discussing with other early production Model 3 owners, I’ve found that this is a widespread issue affecting many vehicles. A failing horn is highly unusual in modern vehicles, and I believe this issue should be addressed through a recall due to its frequency among Model 3 owners. Tesla has quoted $400 to repair the horn, which seems unreasonable for a critical safety feature. It's important to note that some owners may not report the problem if only one horn (either high or low) is affected. However, the failure of either horn poses a significant safety risk, as the reduced sound output may not be sufficient to alert other drivers in emergency situations. I believe this defect requires further investigation and should be considered for a recall. Thank you for your attention to this matter.

I engaged the vehicle's automatic parking function when prompted by the car. The process initiated as expected, and the car began to back into an open spot. In the process of parking, the automated system steered into a curb, damaging the left front wheel in the process. As an aside, the list of "problem parts" above should include "autonomous driving system".

Following an over-the-air software update, all audio in the vehicle stops working. This includes entertainment services, but more importantly turn signal indicator "clicks", forward collision warnings, parking assist chimes, shift confirmation and warning chimes, and various adas notification sounds. In some instances, the problem corrected itself within 24 hours. In another instance, it persisted for nearly a week before I discovered that unplugging the usb cable for the dashcam fixed the problem. The dashcam hard drive has been installed for over 4 years, per the instructions in the user manual, without problems until early 2024. There were no error notifications or anything else to indicate that there was a problem with the car's safety systems, or what the cause of the problem was, except for the lack of audio. I chatted with Tesla service about the issue. After discovering and sharing that disconnecting the usb drive fixed the issue, they were persistent in wanting to cancel my appointment without gathering any additional information. Here is the transcript of our interaction: unplugging my dascham hard drive from the usb port fixed it. Weird. Tesla: OH interesting. Good to know! do we have permission to cancel this appointment? since it keeps happening I'd like to keep it open. I turned on remote debugging in case that helps you to report the bug or something. Tesla: we have nothing else to diagnose if your vehicle is operating as expected. Ok. If it keeps happening I will still want to bring it in, so let's keep the appointment. And I wouldn't say it's operating as expected. Having to disconnect usb cable to get the turn signal to work properly isn't what I would expect. Tesla: I would hate for you to bring in your car, only for us to tell you that it is because of your third party accessory, and we charge you for the diagnostic time. I appreciate your concern.

Tesla is unable to remediate recall 23v-838; tc2023-657, the over-the-air software update will not install on my car and is asking me to pay at least $200 to diagnosis the issue and then potentially $1000 to fix failed hardware.