2021 TESLA MODEL 3 Complaints

View complaints related to 2021 TESLA MODEL 3. The complaints found here are submitted by actual consumers with first hand experience. There are more than 650 complaints submitted for the 2021 TESLA MODEL 3. You can submit your own complaint to the NHTSA or call the Hotline, Monday-Friday 8am to 8pm at (888) 327-4236, TTY: (800) 424-9153.

  • 2021 TESLA MODEL 3
    - garden grove, CA

    I was pulling up next to a curb inside a neighborhood to park my car. I released my foot on the accelerator pedal to slow and stop my car. I slowly stepped on the brake pedal to switch the gear into reverse and my vehicle sped up very fast and hit the parked car in front of me and ran over the curb, my steering wheel also shifted to the right as if it was trying to dodge an obstacle on the road. It happpend so fast that I could not avoid the impact. I could have ran into a pedestrian and put their life at risk, or injured the person in the car that was parked, and even hurt myself badly. I've been getting neck pain and headaches. This incident was very terrifying and traumatizing. I tried to reach out to Tesla Service Center, but my tesla app was not working after the incident. The Tesla app was frozen for 10-15 mins after the incident. I kept trying to reach out to Tesla Service center and kept getting an automated response to utilize the Tesla App. Finally, the app started working again, I left them a message regarding the accident and photos, and they responded two days after, but did not address the issue about unintended acceleration until I kept asking why are they ignoring my concerns about the uninteded accerlation, and then I received a phone call from a technician. He said that I do not have to bring my car for inspection, instead they will just check the logs and could take up to 8 weeks to see what happened. Estimated cost for exterior damages according to Geico Insurance is 5344.74. Tesla Service Center denied having the car inspected physcially for any sensor issues and malfunction issues, states that I don't have to bring my car in at all, they will submit a report for engineering team to review the driving logs at the time of the accident only. My car is currently towed to a 3rd party body shop that is Tesla certified. No warnings from my car screen alerts or anything prior to the accident.

    Source: NHTSA WEB SITE
  • 2021 TESLA MODEL 3
    - Canby, OR

    When driving with the adaptive cruise control on, the car will for no reason, briefly slam on the brakes for no reason. I have almost been rear ended twice because of this. check mark box above in this web page would not allow me to check the adaptive Cruise Control item.

    Source: NHTSA WEB SITE
  • 2021 TESLA MODEL 3
    - Arlington, VA

    When accessing the on-screen owner's manual, the Tesla screen freezes completely and no controls or signals are available. After the screen freezes, the air conditioning starts to blow at a full blast for about 30 seconds. The Tesla screen then goes blank for about two minutes, at which time the driver has no access to signals, speedometer, alerts, or any other car information detail. It is not clear if lights or doors are impacted. The car is able to accelerate and brake during this period, but the driver is essentially "driving blind." After approximately two minutes, the screen flashes a Tesla logo and reboots. Once the screen reboots, the screen - and car operation - appear to operate normally. This has occurred four times over a period of several weeks. This is a safety hazard. In one instance the screen went blank while driving on a highway on-ramp. It was frightening to have all car controls disappear. I appeared to have control of the steering wheel, accelerator and brake, but since there was no instruction or warning, there was no way of knowing if or when the car would simply stop on the highway. Since the speedometer, turn signal indicators, and traffic alert features disappeared, the car became hazardous to drive. In at least two of the incidents, there was no place to pull the car over while the car (hopefully) reset. Tesla automated software updates have not yet corrected this problem. The Tesla "bug report" was used to report the problem after the systems resumed function, but there has been no communication from Tesla on the matter. According to Tesla forums, other Tesla owners have experienced the same problem.

    Source: NHTSA WEB SITE
  • 2021 TESLA MODEL 3
    - Chandler, AZ

    When I was driving on highway the suddenly I lost power and if I press gas pedal it would not go. I applied brake to slow down and pull over but as soon as I applied the brake it corrected on its own and continued to go since I did had similar issue like this previously I called Tesla and asked them to tow it to the shop. This is the 3nd time that I'm having an issues with drivetrain that my car was towed to shop.

    Source: NHTSA WEB SITE
  • 2021 TESLA MODEL 3
    - Pompano Beach, FL

    Tesla: 2021 Model 3 (Standard w/Full Self-Driving Capability) Vehicle Safety Issues as of August 09, 2021: 1. Vehicle does not have interior rear manual door release to allow rear seat occupants to escape in case(s) of emergency or vehicle electrical power failure 2. Vehicle does not have an exterior manual release for all doors in order to allow first responders the ability to assist or rescue vehicle occupants and/or driver 3. Vehicle doe not provide regenerative charging of 12V batter used as the only primary source of power to operate all Onboard Computer and Diagnostics, as well as electronics 4. Vehicle does not provide redundancy to operate Onboard Computer and Diagnostics or to maintain the electronics in order to allow vehicle to keep satellite contact or radio beacon 5. Vehicle does not have a mechanical locking system and is unable to be opened in the event of failure of the 12V battery 6. Vehicle does not have any audible seatbelt warning 7. Vehicle does not shift into Park or Neutral when drivers door or passenger doors are open 8. Vehicle interior parts and exterior parts are not securely fastened or reasonably installed to a standard that provides protection to occupants in cases of side impact, rear impact, and frontal collisions 9. Vehicle does not adequately provide secure installation or covering of Side-curtain Airbags, as well as a poorly designed tether that can easily be pulled triggering the Airbags gas canister 10. Vehicle does not have any audible seatbelt warning 11. Vehicle does not shift into Park or Neutral when drivers door or passenger doors are open 12. Materials used in vehicle are both flammable and gaseous, as well as produce a toxic smell when ignited 13. Vehicle "Panoramic" glass roof provides UV protection and actually absorbs heat 14. Vehicle does not feature adequate detection of: moving objects(pedestrians, bicyclist) 15. Vehicle is unable to safely navigate streets or highways with out solid lines or objects to follow

    Source: NHTSA WEB SITE
  • 2021 TESLA MODEL 3
    - Chandler, AZ

    There was engine power loss while I was driving on the highway. So due to power loss I parked the car on the side and then put it back in to drive and it would go for approximately 10min then I lost power again, it started to do like these few times. Since it was unsafe I stopped the car and had the factory tow it to the shop.

    Source: NHTSA WEB SITE
  • 2021 TESLA MODEL 3
    - CAMBRIA HEIGHTS, NY

    After parking and leaving the car, I realize later the dashboard did not shut down. The dashboard was still illuminated, and I was also able to hear the sound from a tuned FM radio. I re-open and closed both the driver and the passenger doors in an attempt to shutoff the dashboard. Since I did not get the expected result, I decided to get back into the car. I sat down in the driver chair to investigate the problem when the car was instantly activated and switched to a sudden and uncontrolled acceleration. It crashed into a facing wall after a run of about 30 feet.

    Source: NHTSA WEB SITE
  • 2021 TESLA MODEL 3
    - San Diego , CA

    I previously reported unexpected acceleration on two occasions with this car. This follow up not is to inform NHTSA that Tesla has not been willing to provide any information or investigation results more than 8 weeks after my report to them. They told me they couldn’t discuss it and I would be contacted within 5 weeks. When I inquire now they just say it’s still under investigation.

    Source: NHTSA WEB SITE
  • 2021 TESLA MODEL 3
    - Silver Spring, MD

    Automatic cruise control (autopilot) has twice failed to decrease speed when it should have. The vehicle will also brake at a moderate to high rate on the highway with zero warning or message, with no obstacle or vehicle on the road, creating a dangerous situation with following vehicles. ACC also requires the use of automatic wipers and automatic high beams, both of which activate at random times and thus encourage their disuse (e.g. sunny clear day, or with obvious traffic in front of the vehicle, respectively). Automatic high beams turning on and flashing when they shouldn't is unsafe for other drivers. Finally, the use automatic wipers and high beams is not listed as a requirement for active safety features such as FCW and AEB to function. However, these two critical safety systems rely on the same camera array and systems with problematic functionality described above. It's hard to believe that these actual safety systems, listed as a feature of the vehicle, are able to function as required when the full array of sensors and logic, shared with autopilot, are unable to perform reliably.

    Source: NHTSA WEB SITE
  • 2021 TESLA MODEL 3
    - Chandler, AZ

    While I was driving on the state way at about 50 to 55mph, the car suddenly sped up and the ABS system kicked ON and the brake pedal became tight and when I fully pressed the pedal to stop the car, the car would not move after that and it gave some random error messages. Called 911 since I was blocking the road and the informed Tesla. They towed the vehicle to their workshop. The tow truck drive mentioned that the car would not even go in to tow mode.

    Source: NHTSA WEB SITE