general problems of the 2021 Tesla Model Y - part 1

- open rear passenger door and secured child in car seat. - try to open driver side rear passenger door - which would not open. - tried to open rear passenger door where child was in, and the door would not open. - car was powered off and none of the doors opened. - after approximately 5 minutes, front passenger door opened, and child was removed form the car through the front door. - requested roadside assistance with the diagnosis of 12v battery failure. - no warning that 12v battery was near end of life - software updated the previous night.

I was driving on the highway with my 2021 Model Y Tesla when control arm detached from the frame. Tesla said they could not confirm if it was covered on the warranty over the phone.

The main vehicle computer (mcu) failed. The problem first appeared in may 2024 with intermittent rear camera malfunctions. It has since worsened. Most recently (08/28/25), the center display went completely black and the vehicle became inoperable — I could not start or move it. This left me stranded in a dangerous neighborhood late at night and required the car to be towed. When the display fails, I lose access to the rear camera, climate controls (including defrost), and turn signal indicators. These are safety-critical systems, and in this case the failure also disabled the ability to drive the vehicle entirely. The problem has been reported to Tesla. They inspected the vehicle but claimed the earlier camera malfunction was unrelated to the current computer failure. No independent mechanic has inspected it. The failures are ongoing and reproducible. No warning lights or alerts appeared before the system shut down. The vehicle is available for inspection upon request. Being that this issue originally arose back in may, 2024- it should fall under Tesla’s warranty which expired in December 2024.

After 4 years of ownership, the hv battery has failed. This has put the car at risk it stopped charging and without charging the car was no longer drivable. The battery was overheating the car was very hot the ac stopped working. This put the car at risk when drive the battery dropped significantly while driving. Yes we got it inspected they said that the battery is failing and needs to be replaced. I have a quote about the replacment parts. There was a message at the end that the battery was unable to charge.

Brake line failed at the left rear tire. Corroded line. The line is corroded on the right rear also. These are my observations. The brakes failed when driving locally at lower speeds so the car was able to eventually stop due to the regenerative braking. Will be towed to the dealer for inspection/repair. Inspection/repair will occur on sept. 15, 2025. No warning until after the failure.

There is a latch sensor open kept coming on. I have been to the Tesla dealership twice and nothing has been resolved.

Vehicle: 2021 Tesla Model Y VIN: 5yjygdee4mf122832 date of incident: 06/29/2025 on the afternoon of Sunday 06/29/2025, while my Tesla Model Y was parked at home and charged to approximately 80%, both my wife and I attempted to enter the vehicle to attend an important appointment. Upon approach, we found the car completely unresponsive — no power, no screen activity, and we were unable to start the vehicle or release the charging cable. Despite this, both front doors could still be manually opened. However, the frameless windows did not automatically lower as they normally would when opening and closing the doors, as a result, when we attempted to close the doors, both front door windows shattered, as the glass was unable to lower and collided with the door frame. This incident clearly resulted from a critical system failure that disabled essential safety and design functions. The vehicle was not damaged prior to this event, and there was no impact or external force involved. This malfunction rendered the vehicle inoperable and directly caused costly damage. I am requesting the following: a full investigation into the root cause of the power system failure immediate replacement of both shattered front windows at no cost a written explanation of what caused the vehicle to become unresponsive this issue raises serious concerns about vehicle safety and reliability, especially when essential functions like glass auto-drop are disabled without any warning, leaving the glass vulnerable to breakage. Hani amin.

I was driving slowly at a parking lot of a supermarket and preparing to park on my right. When I saw a car on my left front backing up, I pressed on the brake pedal immediately and turned the wheel slightly to the right. All of a sudden, the Tesla accelerated on its own with a very strong force and high speed, with the wheel turned sharply on its own toward the right. The Tesla then run through the steel fence of the parking lot, flying past the sidewalk, and finally settled on top of a big rock on the ground (which is placed there to protect the supermarket building). All of these happened so fast with such a strong force and all in an unintended manner. I was not injured and luckily no other persons or vehicles were involved. However, the vehicle was totalled and there were damage of the supermarket property.

The bolts connecting the front upper control arm and steering knuckle may not have been tightened properly, potentially leading to detachment.   this causes the car to have squeaky, leaking noises when going over bumps and making turns.

[xxx] , my [xxx] son, was strapped in his car seat, wide-eyed and confused, as we sat trapped in our Tesla for thirty agonizing minutes. The battery had died without warning, leaving us locked inside our own garage. No power, no way to open the doors. I tried to keep [xxx] calm, singing his favorite songs, but my heart raced as I called for help. A tow truck finally arrived and jumped the car—not enough juice to start the engine, but just enough to unlock the doors. Freedom at last. Tesla’s response? no roadside service; they insisted the car be towed to their service center. Easier said than done—the tow truck couldn’t maneuver it out of the garage. Frustration mounted as I realized I’d have to miss work. Days later, I drove to the service center, where they replaced the battery. But the ordeal wasn’t over. The trim was damaged during the chaos, and now every drive is accompanied by relentless wind noise, a constant reminder of that day. [xxx] still talks about being “stuck in the car,” and I can’t help but feel let down by a system that left us stranded. Information redacted pursuant to the freedom of information act (foia), 5 u. S. C. 552(b)(6).

1. What component or system failed or malfunctioned, and is it available for inspection upon request? the 12v battery failed unexpectedly, causing a complete shutdown of the vehicle. The car became fully inoperable—doors, windows, touchscreen, and manual override systems were unresponsive. Yes, the vehicle is available for inspection. 2. How was your safety or the safety of others put at risk? my young child was inside the car at the time of the failure. Due to the system lockout, I was unable to open the doors or remove them from the vehicle. Emergency responders were called and had to break windows to safely extract my child. This situation posed a serious risk of heat exposure, panic, and injury. 3. Has the problem been reproduced or confirmed by a dealer or independent service center? the failure has been documented and attributed to a dead 12v battery, though Tesla has not formally inspected the vehicle as of this writing. I am working to have it evaluated by a qualified technician to confirm the cause. 4. Has the vehicle or component been inspected by the manufacturer, police, insurance representatives, or others? the vehicle was not inspected by Tesla at the time of the incident. Emergency responders did assess the situation on site. I plan to notify my insurance provider, and will make the vehicle available for inspection. 5. Were there any warning lamps, messages, or other symptoms of the problem prior to the failure, and when did they first appear? no. There were no alerts, notifications, or warning lights indicating the 12v battery was low or nearing failure. The malfunction occurred without warning.

Tesla refuses to clear this recall, despite the software having been rolled out via over-the-air updates years ago. I now have to sell my vehicle because I'm unable to import it to canada.

The heat pump stopped working twice, which requires a trip to the service center and the repair to restore function is a minimum of $3,000. The vehical has no heat at all, no defrost, no cabin heat nothing! this defect happens in the coldest parts of winter and leaves the owner stranded wherever this occurs. The first time was at 52,000 miles. It wouldn't turn on. The heat pump seized. The second time was on a trip, it blow out all the freon and stopped working in waterloo, iowa. I was 4 hours from home and it was -4f outside. The car had 136,000 miles. Many others have had heat pumps go out in the same situation. . . Dead of winter. The repair is $3,000 to get heat back into the car. The heat pumpscare clearly defective or not big enough and are destroying themselves every other winter in minnesota. This is 1. Dangerous because you can't defrost your windshield. 2. You cold freeze to death in very cold conditions. 3. A very expensive repair pn a part that should last mire than a 1 or 2 years. Home heat pumpsvlast 10- 24 years!!.

The pedestrian warning system and horn are speakers in newer Tesla's. The speaker is in the front right ahead of the wheel facing down towards the road. When it is raining or snowing, rain or snow get lodged into the speaker and it is completely inaudible. I stood 4 feet away from my vehicle and had someone honk the horn and couldn't hear anything at all. This is very dangerous. The pedestrian warning system is complexly inaudible also. Issue persists for approx. 2 days after rain. If it continues to rain for several days, the horn does not work the entire time. I have contacted Tesla support and they state there is nothing they can do to fix it since it is how it was designed.

After a snowstorm, I shoveled my driveway in front of the car which was facing toward the road (the driveway is on an incline, not steep), cleared the snow off the car and then pulled the car forward/put it in park so that I could shovel the rest of the snow. It took me and my 15 year old son 10 or so minutes to clear the snow behind the car. Then I started to salt the driveway behind the car and a snowplow driving by started honking. I looked up and the car was sliding down the driveway towards the road. Luckily it slowed and stopped, only slightly into the road and did not hit the snowplow, or anything else and I was able to get in and move it. I have a video clip of it which I am unable to upload here - the front tires were rotating while the back tires were locked in place.

Suspension noise, front suspension or steering squeak or groaning while turning. Tesla service identified lh half shaft was damaged and blaming it's due to outside influence because impact to the undershiled. This car should be still under 4 years and 50k warranty but Tesla service refused warranty on the parts.

This morning when operating on fsd trail version, at tye stop sign I had to make left. This is at intersection of rueslane and old bridge turnpike of east brunswick, NJ. My car started to make a left when there was an incoming car from the left, and they do. Not have to stop. Thank fully the car on the left applied instant brakes and avoided tye accident. Fsd failed to make right judgement if left turn was possible or not. Fsd version is v12. 3. 6.

The issue appears to be an acceleration malfunction and brake failure in my 2021 Tesla Model Y. The vehicle is available for inspection upon request. On [xxx] at [xxx], while waiting for the garage door to open, the car experienced an unknown unintended acceleration malfunction, surging forward uncontrollably. It didn't wait for the garage to open, crashed through the garage into the family room, causing significant structural damage to the framing and door. The city of eastvale declared the house unsafe, sealing it off. I am now homeless and staying with friends temporarily. During the crash, the airbags did not deploy, and the abs system failed, preventing an emergency stop. The car stopped 4-5 feet away from my wife, who was on the sofa, posing a critical life-threatening situation. Thankfully, [xxx] and I survived, but this incident caused severe mental trauma for my family. We have not reported the incident to Tesla. The dashcam footage appears deleted during the crash and the car seemed to have only recorded footage before the crash and after. This issue has not been reproduced or confirmed by any dealer or service center, but further investigation needs to be done. The vehicle has not been inspected by Tesla or any service center. However, the police and insurance representatives have been involved. We are coordinating further inspections to find the cause of the acceleration and brake failure. We aim to invoke the Tesla event data recorder (edr) tool to investigate what exactly went wrong with the car. There were no warning lamps, messages, or symptoms before the incident. Information redacted pursuant to the freedom of information act (foia), 5 u. S. C. 552(b)(6).

Summoned my car in parking lot. Vehicle showed on app that it planned to go straight then turn left but instead cut to a left and thus colliding with the car that was parked next to me. I have the footage if needed. Car should have stopped instead, or followed planned route. I was staring at the car the whole time and it looked that it was going straight, even after colliding, it looked like it was aimed to go forward. The car created a log of what happened if needed.

My wife was driving the car on our downsloping driveway when the car suddenly accelerated without her pressing the accelerator pedal. She slammed on the brakes and was able to bring the car to a stop before colliding with the garage door.

Car was summoned and turned a sharp right directly hitting the car parked next to it while pulling out. The location was the parking lot of [xxx] on [xxx] . I have a full video of this which shows the car pulling forward then taking a sharp right impacting the vehicle parked next to it. Information redacted pursuant to the freedom of information act (foia), 5 u. S. C. 552(b)(6).

Yes, available for inspection broken glass injury potential not reproduced not inspected yet no warning spontaneous breakage. On the morning of the 9th, went to garage to leave for work and fracture was present. This was not present when arriving home the previous evening. I work 1. 4 miles from home and travel surface streets with speed limit of 45mph.

Full self driving is not recognizing traffic signals. This results in the vehicle proceeding through red lights, and stopping at green lights. Without properly seeing/processing traffic signals, it approaches every intersection as if there are no traffic lights. Service center has had the car twice, without being able to remedy the problem. The 3rd appointment was cancelled by Tesla. I have called the corporate office and spoken with a service rep. He was unable to help provide resolution, saying only that my local rep would reach out. I have not been contacted. I've tried every other possible solution. Tesla doesn't want to fix it, or even acknowledge the problem, even though they've done a test drive with me and seen the issue with their own eyes.

Vehicle not acting safely, speeding up to pass stopped school bus with stop sign out and yellow lights flashing. This is a generic VIN as it applies to the current software on all fsd cars.

Lane departure warnings activate briefly when driving straight ahead. Sometimes results in disablement of lane departure assistance feature. Tesla has attempted several repair attempts but issue persists: calibrate radar replace steering rack correct steering angle.

Please look up my facebook post for public safety awareness. . Read more...

Tesla Model Y's windshield is terribly and soft. A small stone fallen on the windshield it cracks right away. I had to replace my windshield every year or so.

Since March 2024, fsd has failed to function as designed. Tesla denied any problem with the vehicle until October 2024, when a manager told me it's a known issue with no available fix. The issue started with fsd not recognizing traffic signals. Meaning that regardless of whether a traffic light was green or red, the vehicle would treat it like an 4 way stop. It would come to a stop and then proceed through the intersection if it didn't detect immediate cars. This was dangerous and Tesla refused to acknowledge the problem for months. Since then the issue has evolved with fsd only engaging in certain situations (interstate driving). As of the most recent update, fsd won't engage at all.

The horn placement on my car VIN (5yjygdef8mf178538) 2023 Tesla model s plaid is difficult to find when in an emergent situation. The horn is a small button on the right side of the steering wheel rather than the center of the steering wheel. Twice in the past week, I have failed to alert another car that they were about to hit me. I reflexively hit the middle of the steering wheel to alert the other vehicle. Given the horn doesn't reside in the middle of the steering wheel, I failed to get the drivers attention and had to swerve erratically to avoid an accident. The horn placement is dangerous, non functional and needs to be addressed by Tesla and NHTSA immediately. Tesla drivers who drive an updated steering wheel are essentially driving with no horn.

I often experience significant lag for rearview camera and the turn signal indicator lights. Sometimes it takes up to 10 seconds for the rearview camera view to come up. It's dangerous because it's hard to tell if the car is in reverse or not. Sometimes it takes multiple attempts to change gear. I have similar experience with the turn signal indicators. It takes multiple attempts for the signals to come up, or there is often significant delay on when I turn on the signal and when the lights actually come on.

Vehicle screen has phantom touches. Extremely unsafe as the vehicle will turn volume to max, turn heat/air up and down, and make other changes on its own and while driving. Almost caused several accidents. Tesla had made me wait for a month before they will fix.

Nhtsa recall 22v-702, in 2022, was where there was supposedly an ota update to stop the windows from increasing force in some situations when an object was stuck in the gap between the window and the frame. My 2021 Tesla received that update at the time, and I didn't think much of it. . . Until January 2024 when it actually happened to me. I shut the door with my hand on the window, and at the moment it closed, the window went up to close the small gap. My finger was in there and as I tried to pull it out, the window was still trying to close, not allowing me to do so. Component that failed -- the window, supposedly fixed in 2022 available for inspection upon request -- returned the leased car in September 2024 how was safety put at risk -- could not remove finger from gap between window and frame since window was continuously trying to close has the problem been reproduced or confirmed by a dealer or independent service center -- I was ignored by Tesla hq, and by my closest dealer. The Tesla dealer from which I leased the car (a different one) told me to make a service appointment. Has the component been inspected by the manufacturer, police, insurance representatives or others -- no were there any warnings or symptoms -- no. No reason to think it would ever happen, then it did in January 2024.

The front passenger safety alert system fault warning appears occupant classification system (OCS) of front passenger seat is faulty and Tesla said it’s not covered under warranty.

Water collects in the rear bottom trunk compartment. This flooding has resulted in moid. It appears as though the rear trunk is not properly installed and I have seen this reported on forums by other Tesla owners. . Read more...

After the latest recall (campaign #23v-838), the automated warnings while using autosteer becomes so frequently that it becomes distractingly dangerous. Even when I briefly avert my eyes while driving on an empty highway results in the warnings.