Warnings problems of the 2021 Tesla Model 3

22 problems related to warnings have been reported for the 2021 Tesla Model 3. The most recently reported issues are listed below. Please also check out the statistics and reliability analysis of the 2021 Tesla Model 3 based on all problems reported for the 2021 Model 3.

1 Warnings problem

Failure Date: 05/01/2024

Tesla adas detects non existent objects and issues collision alerts and phantom brakes randomly if there is no cars in front of the Tesla, braking abruptly and almost getting me into rear end accidents. Tesla adas freaks out when making lane changes randomly, shaking violently and giving the driver and its passengers a fishtailing simulation. Auto wiper triggers randomly while it's sunny, distracting the driver and forcing an interaction on the center console to stop it. Auto wiper cannot be turned off as it reengages upon using Tesla adas. The rear view camera lags. It stutters and shows me a delayed view. Compounded by the Model 3's very small rear view mirrors and side mirrors, this is incredibly dangerous as I have no way of gaining sufficient visibility of the back of the car. Tesla service told me this is all normal.

2 Warnings problem

Failure Date: 04/21/2024

While using the full self driving mode (fsd) the vehicle will randomly and without warning slam on the brakes at highway speeds and decelerate to 30-50mph on an active highway. If the highway is multilane, the car will slow and attempt to change lanes. It appears the vehicle thinks that something is in the road, even if the road is clear. This happens multiple times on my longer road trips, and is very concerning. It did this yesterday with a semi-truck closely behind me. The vehicle has gone into service and I did bring up the issue, but the service team was unable to assist on this issue (screenshots attached). The software currently installed in my vehicle is 2024. 3. 15, the latest available from Tesla. This issues has been ongoing from every software update I have had in the car however.

3 Warnings problem

Failure Date: 04/03/2023

My full self driving computer has crashed for the 3rd time since owning the vehicle which controls all of the cars safety features. . Tesla says they won’t do anything because the car is past the warranty by 9,000 miles. . So I’m basically stuck with a 1980’s Tesla.

4 Warnings problem

Failure Date: 10/25/2022

In vehicle speaker system occasionally resets, keeping speakers from making noise during a 5-10 second window. This keeps in-vehicle chimes and collision warnings from sounding at appropriate volumes.

5 Warnings problem

Failure Date: 06/02/2022

Vehicle will engage breaks when there is no obstacle or while on a straight road when placed in cruise control.

6 Warnings problem

Failure Date: 05/06/2022

Tesla autopilot will disengage and brake when driving under a bridge or a freeway sign. Tesla detects the overhead object as an object on the road and logs a forward collision warning. This issue has been reported to Tesla and after multiple service appointments, Tesla has failed to fix the issue. Tesla logs forward collision warnings and determines safety score for insurance price, having multiple false forward collision warning reduced the score and increases the premium which in return benefits Tesla financially. I have video evidence for an instance that I have provided to Tesla to look into and the issue is still not fixed.

7 Warnings problem

Failure Date: 04/07/2022

The contact owns a 2021 Tesla Model 3. The contact stated while her son was at driving 70 mph on autopilot, when the speed reduced independently to 45 mph. The contact stated no warning light was illuminated. The driver was able to continue driving to his destination. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. A dealer was not contacted. The manufacturer had not been informed of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 8,900.

8 Warnings problem

Failure Date: 03/12/2022

The automatic emergency brakes would go off while driving on autopilot at highway speed, when there is nothing in front of the car. The brakes are very unexpected and aggressive, potentially putting the car at risk of being rare ended. Tesla states that I should press on the accelerator to override the brakes, but most times the braking is so aggressive that the override isn’t affective. Moreover, my car would give false forward collision warning if the car in front of me slows down even a little bit, even when there is at least a 5 car distance from me to the car in front of me, and we are no where near colliding. Tesla would use these false forward collision warnings to drive down my “safety score” and raise the premium of the insurance they offer me.

9 Warnings problem

Failure Date: 02/17/2022

On 2/17/22 at appx. 8:08am with adaptive cruise control engaged the collision warning alarm chimed and the car beaked quickly for 50mph to 30 mph. There was an SUV in the oncoming traffic lane. This has happened several times. The system sometimes does not recognize that approaching vehicles are in a correct lane. This happens with larger approaching vehicles such as large suvs and trucks. Additionally we have been getting many (dozens) of dashboard error warnings that one or more of the cameras are blocked or blinded. As Tesla has chosen to delete lidar and depend solely on cameras as safety system detectors this affects adaptive cruise control, automatic emergency braking, blind spot warning, forward collision warning, lane departure warning, lane keeping assistance, and cross traffic alert.

10 Warnings problem

Failure Date: 02/11/2022

Since we received the car in November 2021 on two lane roads when meeting large profile vehicles like semi's or ups it gives us a collision warning and hard brake, which in heavy traffic scares us of a rear end collision. It happens on both cruise and autopilot. Have been in touch with Tesla and they say everything is working correctly. They say they are trying to correct the problem but it's been four months and we are still scared to use the cruise on two lane roads.

11 Warnings problem

Failure Date: 02/04/2022

We recently purchased a new Tesla Model 3. This vehicle has Tesla vision and doesn't have the radar unit to assist with tacc or autosteer. With this vehicle, it has phantom braking on a frequently basis. For example, I drive on a two lane highway and in a 20 mile drive in clear daylight the vehicle will phantom brake anywhere from 5-10 during the trip. These phantom braking vary from random light braking for no reason to full on hard braking. Fortunately, we've been lucky not to have anyone behind us when these incidents occur. I've contacted Tesla and given them multiple dates and times. I was told that they were able to look at some data on the car and it appears everything is working as it should and it "should" get better with updates. I was also given a bunch of excuses why it was working as it should. I even sent Tesla a video of it doing a hard phantom brake and I was told that the highway was narrow. I've argued with them that this is occurring every day on every drive when we are on a two lane highway. I basically get told that it's functioning as it should, which clearly it is not. When I tell them I owned a 2019 Model 3 and we had zero phantom braking issues with it, but they have no answers. I feel their go to answers are it's a software issue and blame the engineers, which us customers don't have access to. This is going to cause a crash one day if this issue isn't taken seriously.

12 Warnings problem

Failure Date: 02/02/2022

Our 2021tesla Model 3, delivered in September 2021, has ongoing, repeated problems with sudden, unexpected braking, whenever cruise control or auto-steer is engaged. This happens regularly while driving on two lane highways, usually when a large sized vehicle is approaching in the opposing lane, but it also occasionally happens when there is no oncoming vehicle. Typically, an alarm also sounds and a warning light flashes in the car, warning of imminent collision risk. This happens every time we have used cruise control or auto-steer sometimes with nearly every large oncoming vehicle. This is unsafe because of the risk of a rear-end collision. The car dramatically slows. It also risks injury to the car occupants from being thrown forward unexpectedly. Along with the alarm and flashing signal, the braking is so dangerous and unnerving that it makes cruise control and auto-steer unusable. We have complained to Tesla of this problem. Tesla recently shipped the car to inspect more fully at its facility in honolulu, but so far has reported that it is operating within "normal parameters. " the rep suggested that the cruise control is not designed to work on a two lane highway such as we have on the big island of hi, although she says that it does not happen with every Tesla here. It occurs even on straight, level sections of wide, two lane highways with clearly marked lanes and wide shoulders. Tesla still has our car. When we read the washington post article explaining that many others are experiencing this problem, we felt we should report as well. We have advised Tesla that the cruise control and auto-steer functions in our car are unsafe and unusable in their current condition. We do not use cruise control or auto-steer except to test whether the problem has been fixed. We do not have full self-driving.

13 Warnings problem

Failure Date: 02/01/2022

Since my ownership, I have experienced multiple phantom braking incidents with my 2021 Tesla Model 3 long range. I would estimate that I experience 3 to 5 severe phantom braking incidents per week. It is nearly a daily occurrence during my daily commute to work. Sometimes there are multiple incidents during one leg of my commute. I have filed several requests for service with Tesla through their application and every time the technical support says the system is working properly. I have given them explicit details and information about the incidents which have helped them to identify the time and location but they have never fixed/changed/remedied the phantom braking issue. I have filed these requests for service to protect myself if I'm ever involved in a serious accident due to these phantom braking incidents.

14 Warnings problem

Failure Date: 01/23/2022

Driving on the interstate in autopilot with nobody in front of me but there was somebody riding my rear. And the vehicle decided to phantom break which almost caused the guy to rear end me while going 75 mph it could have been lethal.

15 Warnings problem

Failure Date: 01/20/2022

Any time I have the car in autopilot, it unexpectedly phantom brakes. Even when I'm not using autopilot, and I am using cruise control, the phantom braking still occurs. In several instances I have had people come close to hitting my car's rear. The braking is not subtle. It is rapid and aggressive. This issue creates a major danger for anyone in my car and others on the road.

16 Warnings problem

Failure Date: 12/31/2021

Recently, at least it was noticed starting in Dec 2021, while driving on two lane highways under cruise control or self driving, the vehicle would brake hard at vehicles approaching in the opposite lane. Large trucks especially triggered the response. The braking response definitely put the safety of the occupants and following vehicles at risk. I have not taken it to a dealer or service center. There were no warning lamps, messages or any symptoms prior. I have stopped using those features while on two lane roads. I certainly am hoping for a software update to solve this issue.

17 Warnings problem

Failure Date: 11/15/2021

"traffic aware cruise control" (aka autopilot) applied full braking and sounded collision warning when no collision was imminent. Had traffic been following closely, a rear-end collision could have occurred. Several other similar "ghost braking" incidents have occurred but this was the worst and most dangerous. Vehicle has not yet been taken to a repair facility. Vehicle has not needed inspection by law enforcement nor insurance company.

18 Warnings problem

Failure Date: 11/07/2021

Autopilot constantly brakes due to automatic emergency braking on two-way highways at night. Every time a car passes in the other direction, the car starts braking, often as soon as the headlights are visible. This is a significant safety issue and resulted in me disabling aeb, which re-enables automatically every time I drive. I needed to go out of my way and ensure no one was tailing me because the car would brake check them. This wasn't an isolated incident. Every time I've been on a two way highway and sometimes even on multi-lane unlit highways, I have these braking issues constantly. I was driving under the speed limit.

19 Warnings problem

Failure Date: 11/01/2021

Vehicle slams brakes on with on coming traffic when cruise control activated. Have attempted to contacted Tesla several times. Tesla actually canceled a mobile service stating they did an update to fix the issue. It did not. In fact it made the problem worse. The are not answering my emails or texts, calling the service line does no good the say they can’t see the issue in their data.

20 Warnings problem

Failure Date: 10/24/2021

System erroneously sounded forward collision warnings about once per minute. Automatic emergency braking faulted and could not be enabled. Firmware version 2021. 36. 5. 2.

21 Warnings problem

Failure Date: 09/01/2021

Purchased my Model 3 in August 2021. Autopilot and cruise control features worked flawlessly for the first few months of ownership. In September of 2021 after a software update, the vehicle started to perform unsafe reactions while on autopilot or cruise control. If any large vehicle like a semi-truck or vans were traveling in the opposite direction of travel on any two lane road, cruise control or autopilot will slam on the breaks and activate the forward collision warning tones. Reactions like this from driver assist technology could easily result in a multi-car accident. While commuting on a busy road (10 miles) on cruise control/autopilot, this issue could occur over 10 times on one drive. While making contact with Tesla service in September, a representative said that Tesla's autopilot software team was aware of the issue affecting Model 3's similar to my VIN. The representative ensured that the team was working on a software update to fix this issue. This problem continued until January 13th when I had a service appointment where I stated the same issue. The technician wanted a ride to experience the issue the car had. After getting the issue to reoccur, the technician stated that "he had never seen this problem before. " after he fixed an unrelated issue with the car, he reassured me that the issue is know by Tesla and they were working on a software update to resolve the issue. After over three months with this major safety defect, I am reporting this issue to NHTSA.

22 Warnings problem

Failure Date: 08/15/2021

While driving on c-470 westbound going 70 mph with the car on autopilot, the car braked hard dropping the speed to 40 mph. If a car would have been behind me, they would have hit the back of my car. This issue is happening frequently, from neighborhood side streets, city streets, and on the interstate highway.



Safety Ratings of Model 3 Cars
Model 3 Service Bulletins
Model 3 Defect Investigations