2018 TESLA MODEL 3 Forward Collision Avoidance Adaptive Cruise Control Problems

There is no checkbox for Full Self Driving (Supervised): 3 times in the last 4 weeks, my Tesla has become impatient at long red lights and lurches out into the intersection. I am very concerned because one of those times (first time) it did not creep forward, but just took off thru the red light. I had to accelerate thru to get ahead of those cars that still had the green light. Fortunately, nothing untoward happened, except scaring me! The other two times, I recognized what was happening and put on the brakes and removed from FSD mode. I have complained to Tesla and am asking for them to verify my FSD is up to date and this issue will be fixed. Needless to say, I have stopped using the FSD (Supervised) until this is all addressed.

Description of the Defect: While driving with Full Self-Driving (FSD) engaged, the vehicle's primary computer shuts down and reboots, causing a sudden loss of all safety features, including Blind Spot Monitoring, Lane Departure Warning, Forward Collision Warning, and the driving visualization. The cameras go black while the vehicle is in motion. The Trigger: The failure is triggered by high electrical load. If the Cabin Heater (HVAC) and Seat Heaters are active while FSD is fully computing, the 12V power supply to the computer drops below critical voltage, causing a "Turbo A" processor lockup and system crash. Evidence of Defect: Service Center diagnostics confirmed the specific error code APS_w169_TurboA_SCS_LKUP (Computer Crash) occurred at the exact same timestamp as VCLEFT_a302_blowerGeneralFault (HVAC Blower Failure). This proves a common-mode voltage drop affecting multiple critical systems simultaneously. Manufacturer Response: The manufacturer (Tesla) acknowledged the logs but refused to inspect the wiring harness or ground connections,...

Repeatedly and randomly, with cruise control (not FSD) engaged, the car would brake, sometimes aggressively. The last time, it braked so hard the tires or brakes squealed and the car swerved slightly before I was able to regain control. This was on the freeway (in Colorado, if I remember correctly) while I was cruising at 70 or 75 MPH. I decided that that was the last time I would use cruise control; it was just not safe. I had an appointment on October 22 to take the car in for service. But then a friend told me this was called "phantom braking" and that there was no fix. A friend suggested that I contact the NHTSA.

Main incident: Time: 2025-08-28 ~12:41 PM PST What happened: After searching for a parking space, the driver was preparing to reverse into the spot, the driver pressed up the stalk to shift the gear into reverse, a sound was heard and something showed up on the screen, the vehicle once again started accelerating and running forward suddenly and sharply (3 mph to 28 mph in 3 secs), driver tried to steer the vehicle away from cars and buildings to minimize danger, the car rushed onto a concrete curb, hit one blue Tesla, then hit the side of a concrete utility pole, and ran over a plant and last crashed into the chain-link french before it finally stops Injuries: * Spine pain for one passenger Damages: ** All tires blown out, tire falls off ** Severe damages throughout the vehicle body * One Tesla parked on the parking lot was severely...

Too fast and too close to stop sign to red light or other cars while in Full Self Drive (supervised).I had to disable it to avoid risks of accident.Even using Chilly Mode.

Backup camera recall was not fixed properly or the new parts have same issue. As a result the backup camera was not functioning. When the camera is not functioning the autopilot system drives aggressively, speeding up to the max set speed when it is not safe to do so with current traffic conditions. Had to disengage autopilot otherwise it would have crashed. Also I received an alert that the emergency breaking system was not functional. When reversing could not use backup camera.

October 12, 2024. I was using the Tesla on autopilot. I was in the far right lane and the freeway was curving to the left. The car was following in the lanes, but then all of a sudden it stopped following the freeway and drove into the right guardrail. There were no alerts by the car. It did not warn to take over the vehicle or attempt to avoid the collision. The car drove directly into the guardrail without warning and was totalled.

On December 24, 2024 I was driving on Freeway 5 South and all of the sudden my vehicle came to an abrupt breaking without any reason. The traffic ahead of me was of normal traffic. This abrupt breaking happened twice within 5 minutes of time span. I have notified Tesla Service Center and the service center gave me a quote of $137.50 for diagnostic and to schedule the service. I felt that this issues should be taken care of by Tesla with no charge to me. This is a safety issue. I have experienced the abrupt breaking issues with my vehicle on many occasions since I own the vehicle in 2018. Each time I was told there's no problem with the vehicle when I notified Tesla Service Center.

I have a 2018 Tesla Model 3 that was involved in an accident on 10/12/2024. It has Enhanced Autopilot, which was the most advanced version of self driving when I bought the car. It was engaged in "Navigate on Autopilot" on the freeway. The car was following the freeway as it veered to the left, but then it stopped following the lines and crashed into the side of the freeway. The result of the accident was a total loss on the vehicle. I had shoulder and neck pain that have not required serious medical attention, but it was almost a week of discomfort and difficulty sleeping. My insurance company has deemed the vehicle a total loss and I will have to get a replacement. There were no warning alerts and the vehicle did not recognize that it was leaving the freeway lines. I was not going over the speed limit....

The MCU in my 2018 Tesla Model 3 failed after a software update, rendering several key safety features inoperable, including the car’s cameras and Autopilot functions. The vehicle currently has 16,600 miles and had previously received an MCU replacement in 2022. This most recent failure occurred during a firmware update, which got stuck at 50%. The Tesla Service Center confirmed that the MCU needs replacement again, but I was not given clear diagnostic logs or evidence of a pre-existing hardware issue. Due to this failure, the rearview camera, blind spot monitoring, and Autopilot features are no longer operational, which directly impacts the safety of driving the vehicle. These features are critical for safe operation and are standard in ensuring driver assistance, situational awareness, and accident avoidance. The issue has been inspected by the Tesla Service Center, and they proposed replacing the MCU at a significant cost, though no prior warning...

On 9/6/2024 I was driving on I-10 E going about 70 mph in the left lane. I had engaged the cruise control but not the Autopilot because I’ve had dangerous experiences with the Autopilot phantom breaking and misinterpreting cracks in the road as lane markers and dangerously changing lanes. So even though Inoaid thousands of dollars for Autopilot I never use it. So I was driving approaching a big rig in the lane to the left of mine and the sun was low in the sky casting a shadow on the road. The car thought the shadow was a car and slammed on the breaks and almost came to a complete stop until I pressed on the breaks to release the cruise control. We are very lucky the car behind us didn’t hit us. The car behind us almost hit us and my passenger and I both sprained our necks....

Autopilot FSD 12.3.6 in Ohio is interpreting state route signs as speed limit signs. In Milford Ohio, the speed limit is 25mph. While traveling on [XXX] each state route sign had the max speed jump to 50mph. Then back to 25 at the next actual speed limit sign. An [XXX] sign was interpreted as 20mph. Errors is speed are dangerous in either the car going too fast or risking a rear end collision by incorrectly slowing down. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

I may have figured out the common link between Tesla Autopilot crashes. Distracted operators have the accelerator pressed while the TACC is engaged, thinking (for many reasons) that the vehicle will stop if there are any obstacles in front of them. However, when the accelerator is being pressed, the vehicle will not stop. It will happily run into a wall. One second before impact, the forward collision warning turns on, followed by the ABS and the slamming of the brakes, but by then it's too late for a distracted driver. The raw Tesla "Vehicle Data" on Column D, shows "Accelerator Pedal Position (%)." I strongly encourage you to take a look at the data for the autopilot crashes and review this column to see how many had the accelerator pressed until 1 second before the accident, even if the autopilot was engaged. The 4/25/24 update to Investigation EA22002 states that...

The most recent software update v11.1(2024.3.10 9d92fb944d7f) was downloaded automatically and I installed it. The next time I drove, the car made uncommanded and unwanted lane changes, apparently because I could "go faster" if I passed the traffic in front of me. I did not want to go faster due to congestion and aggressive drivers where I live. I then discovered that "Full Self Driving" had been activated after the download and without my knowledge or authorization. I believe that this was an unsafe condition and wish to report it. I immediately turned "FSD" off.

While in FSD the car swerved to the left and hit a Tree. Youtube of the Crash.. [XXX] INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

I got a recall notice from Tesla and Tesla is still in safety violation and is refusing to fix the issue, so I need your help to force Tesla to fix their abusive ways. The recall 23V-838 is related to "when Autosteer is engaged". Autosteer/Autopilot/FSD now DISABLES even when NOT engaged, alleging "improper use" when it wasn't even being used. It also disengages Autosteer/Autopilot/FSD while driving if it detects "improper use" (even if it's detection system itself is buggy), forcing the car to slow down like in the middle of the freeway! When the battery is low and there's only a mile or two to go to a charger, the software will slow down and force the car to pull over to get a tow, taking on average 2 hours to get a tow truck to go 2 miles, rather than allowing the driver to reach the charger with the...

The new software update forced as part of the autopilot recall is terrible and the system needs to go back to the way it was. They adjustments make the feature useless. There are many unnecessary warnings and notifications, all of which destroy the driving experience and actually make the car less safe. Bring back the old system

There are two issues. 1) The adaptive cruise control brakes for no reason. If someone was behind me they could've rear ended me. 2) At night the blind spot camera is flooded by the turn signal and it's hard to see the blind spot warning. When the turn signal is on the blind spot camera shows on the screen and blind spot warning shows up as a red shaded area. It's hard to see the warning itself because the turn signal light floods the screen.

Cabin facing camera required for using Autopilot stopped working after software update requiring cabing camera usage. Technician has stated that many cameras have had to be replaced since the update requiring the use of the cameras

I AM WRITING TO REPORT URGENT SAFETY CONCERNS WITH MY 2018 TESLA MODEL 3, SOFTWARE VERSION 2023.44.30.5.1, AFTER THE NHTSA RECALL ON AUTOPILOT FUNCTIONALITY. I HAVE OWNED MY VEHICLE FOR OVER 4 YEARS AND HAVE NEVER HAD CONCERNS WITH THE ADAS / AUTO-PILOT / AUTO-STEERING FUNCTIONALITY UNTIL THE NHTSA REQUIRED CHANGES IN DECEMBER 2024. WHILE DRIVING ON I-405 IN GARDEN GROVE, CA, MY VEHICLE WHILE IN ADAS / AUTO-STEERING / AUTOPILOT MADE REPEATED AND UNUSUALLY PERSISTENT ATTEMPTS TO CHANGE FROM LANE 4 TO LANE 3. I HAD TO MANUALLY CANCEL EACH ATTEMPT, DESPITE MY SPEED BEING SET TO MATCH TRAFFIC FLOW. THIS ISSUE NEVER AROSE BEFORE THE SOFTWARE UPDATE FOR THE NHTSA RECALL. MOREOVER, THE VEHICLE CONSISTENTLY SIGNALED FOR DRIVER ATTENTION, DESPITE MY FULL ATTENTION TO THE ROAD, A CONCERNING NEW BEHAVIOR POST-UPDATE. THE NEED TO FREQUENTLY OVERRIDE THESE UNDESIRED MANEUVERS FORCED ME TO DISABLE THE ADAS AUTOPILOT/AUTO-STEERING. THIS PUTS...

Dear NHTSA Representative, I am writing to express my deep concerns and seek resolution regarding the latest version of autopilot enforced in the recent Tesla recall, identified under Campaign ID #23V-838. I am a Tesla owner that’s deeply invested in the safety and functionality of my vehicle. Recent reports indicate that the mandated autopilot update has rendered the car unsafe and nearly undrivable with autopilot engaged. Disturbingly, users have reported false warnings, causing drivers to divert their attention from the road and react to incorrect information. This poses a significant safety risk to drivers, passengers, and others on the road. I wish to bring to your attention that the autopilot feature in my vehicle is currently usable, and I am hesitant to compromise its functionality based on the reported issues with the mandated update. It is disconcerting that a safety recall mandated by the NHTSA could potentially make my vehicle...

I received the recall update for recall #23V-838 and am currently running version 2023.44.30.5.1 with the added Autosteer alerts. I am finding the alerts to be too frequent when I am just looking forward at the road. I have used this system for five years and never have I had so many alerts that I feel like the car is making me take my eyes off the road just to see what it is complaining about. Then it just says keeps eyes on the road. Well, I already was so now I'm being distracted by these added notifications. This NHTSA recall has created a safety problem as the new alerts are very distracting.

Recently I noticed that the automatic windshield wipers are completely non-functional on my vehicle. Windshield wipers can still be turned on manually and work normally as expected in all speeds in manual control mode. But in auto control mode, they simply don't turn on at all, even in very heavy rain. This is critical because when driving the vehicle in Autopilot mode or Full-Self-Driving mode, the vehicle automatically puts the windshield wipers in auto control mode and the driver cannot change them to manual mode. So when driving using Autopilot in the rain, the windshield wipers just stay completely off all the time, even when Autopilot is displaying warning messages about severe weather. I contacted Tesla support about this and Tesla support immediately responded that this is a known issue and should be corrected via over-the-air update soon, but no ETA available.

Unknown

"Self-Driving System" turned into a one-way road, going the wrong way when the road was well labeled. I have had similar problems every time I have activated self-driving over the past 6 years. It is easy to reproduce the issue at any time.

The adaptive cruise control (Autopilot) suddenly applied the brakes while I was traveling about 70 MPH on a major interstate highway. There was no reason for the sudden and rapid braking. No obstacles of any kind. I suspect the Autopilot was confused with the shade of the road from asphalt to concrete as I approached a small bridge. Software version on the vehicle is 2023.38.6.

The contact owns a 2018 Tesla Model 3. The contact stated that while driving at various highway speeds with the Forward Collision Avoidance Adaptive Cruise Control activated, the vehicle experienced phantom braking, causing the vehicle to stop abruptly in the middle of the highway. The contact stated that the failure had occurred on four separate occasions. The cause of the failure was not yet determined. The manufacturer and local dealer were notified of the failure, but no assistance was provided. The failure mileage was 27,000.

while driving my Tesla Model 3, using the ACC and self-steering option, I occasionally get "forward collision warnings" when going over a hill, where you can't see the road until you get over the hill. I have also had the same "forward collision warnings" on a flat stretch of road when there is clearly nothing in front of me in my lane. I have also been experiencing "phantom braking" episodes, noticing a pattern where they will happen as I approach a bridge overpass, as if the car thought the bridge overpass was perhaps an obstacle. These occur on a fairly regular basis, as in, at least 5-10 times per month. I drive a lot of highways, and drive approx 20,000 miles per year

Driving in full self driving made a sharp unexpected last second turn directly into a pilón at 30 mph causing front end damage. I have the the incident recorded on video from the Tesla. Full self driving did not disengage prior to crash and hands were on the wheel, it just happened within .5 seconds and there was no way to react in time. I reported to Tesla many times and was ignored Here is a link to the video [XXX] INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

When driving using Full Self Driving or Autopilot, the car unexpectedly and suddenly brakes as if there is something on the road which is in the way even though there is nothing there. On one trip of 260 miles, the car unnecessarily braked twice on the freeway. Had someone been following too closely to me it could have caused a collision.

The issues are all related to the feature called AutoPilot, all on a highway, traveling at highway speed while using autopilot. sunny, dry, daytime 1. The car hard braked with no other vehicles or objects on roadway. I had to take back control quickly 2. The car hard braked when i was driving in the right lane and a car was in the entrance lane beside me, causing a near accident with the other vehicle which was trying merge onto lane, i had to quickly take back control to avoid a dangerous situation. 3. I was in left lane and turned on the turning indicator to move to the right lane, the car started to move lanes, then suddenly abandoned attempt, moving back to the original lane. there was no object in the target lane and there was a car behind me in the left lane wanting to pass, causing...

While vehicle is in full self driving (FSD), it randomly hallucinate, triggering left or right turns when the mapped course is forward. This has occurred 8-10 times within the past week. I stopped using it today after a near accident while driving on the highway. I reported all incidents to Tesla, they historically do not respond to inquires. This is extremely dangerous to the driver, other drivers, and demonstrates Tesla’s neglect in releasing beta releases to the public. No warnings were displayed at the time of each incident. Tesla has my driving data, camera access and my feedback notes. TeslaFSD version is v11.4.4 or 2023.7.20.

Software bug for sure. When car is in autopilot the windshield wipers start and cannot be turned off. This occurrs when the windshield is clean , not raining. The wiper off virtual switches cannot be turned off and the only option is to switch from auto to 1 to slow the wipers. If the car is not in autopilot the issue doesn’t not occur and the wipers operate as they should.

Vehicle has experienced dramatic increase in so-called phantom braking incidents when adaptive cruise control is turned on. The vehicle suddenly and forcefully brakes for no apparent reason even when there are no vehicles or other hazards in front or on the sides of it. I have revisited sites where the incidents have occurred to see if there is some environmental factor such as reflective signs that might have triggered the incidents but have been unable to replicate them. They are completely random. I am aware that this phantom braking issue has previously been reported but based on a review of various Internet sites such as Reddit, owners have reported a dramatic increase in incidents over the past month or so.

I have owned my Tesla Model 3 since early 2019. The adaptive cruise control worked incredibly beautifully for years up until a few weeks ago - I think sometime in June 2023 (could have been May 2023). All of the sudden, I was *frequently* experiencing phantom braking, ie. braking with no explanation, while using adaptive cruise control. Sometimes the braking was gradual, other times more forceful. It would happen at random places - Sometimes in/near intersections or around other vehicles, other times just out on the open road with no vehicles or stoplights anywhere in sight. Even on a 20 minute drive, it can happen three or four times. To me, this is a severe hazard. I have a disability, and I purchased this vehicle because of the incredible safety features. Prior to this, it has 100% lived up to what people said about it - just amazing. But now,...

The contact owns a 2018 Tesla Model 3. The contact stated while driving with the Adaptive Cruise Control set to 75 MPH, the vehicle decelerated quickly to 45 MPH. The contact stated no warning light was illuminated. The contact was able to drive to his destination. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. A dealer was not contacted. The manufacturer had been informed of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 80,000.

Driving in Full Self Driving mode, the vehicle made a left turn into oncoming traffic.

Owner driving route on 680 approaching Omaha 6/9/23 at 4:43. Car abruptly slowed and braked while passing a semi truck in the right lane on a curve. Regained control by pressing accelerator. But the reduction in speed was large and could easily have caused a rear end collision had a car been following at the time. Logged using In Car Bug Report as instructed previously by Tesla Customer Support. However, follow up with Tesla service center was unproductive.

Tesla Cruise Control was in use when passing a white van or suv on route 505 near Winters. On Friday May 19 at approx. 5:45PM. Our Tesla abruptly slowed from 70mph to approx 50mph before our driver regained control. A motorcycle following was forced to pass us using the left shoulder. The motorcycle was following at a safe distance but was put at risk due to abrupt slowdown by our Tesla. Tesla Customer Service checked vehicle remotely and states there are no current problems with the car. No alerts. Cameras are aligned. Tesla advised computer reboot and ongoing monitoring by owner. States that car may learn over time. Car is equipped with "Full Self Driving " feature but only "Cruise Control" was in use at time of event.

2018 Tesla Model 3 was in cruise control (not self-drive) on an interstate with no other vehicles in the near vicinity. The car repeatedly applied brakes unexpectedly. I have traveled with this vehicle before and did not have unexpected braking problems. I have requested a Tesla service appointment but do not know if Tesla has an answer to what I hear is a widespread problem.

This is an issue regarding the full self driving software. My car continues to run red lights at which it is already stopped. The light is solid red to the naked eye, and the camera definitely does not show the normal steady blink of a malfunctioning signal. The pitch forward in the video is me slamming on the brakes as the car tries to run the light (about 28 seconds in). I have previously reported this to Tesla on 12/28/21, 8/25/22, 9/21/22, 11/21/22, and 4/24/23. It has happened many more times than that, as I usually don't see a point in reporting the same bug multiple times on the same software version. As far as I know, nothing is being done about this and I have received no acknowledgement of the problem. The [email protected] autoreply states that they forward this information to the correct department. This is, in my opinion,...

The contact owns a 2018 Tesla Model 3. The contact stated while driving 65 MPH, the contact attempted to activate the Autonomous Self Driving feature; however, there was a message stating that the Forward Collision Avoidance: Adaptive Cruise Control inoperable was unavailable. The vehicle was taken to the dealer for diagnosis and the dealer stated that an unstated computer needed to be replaced due to overheating. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was contacted and stated that the vehicle was not under recall, and that the Warranty had expired. The failure mileage was 99,000.

Hello, The side camera in our Tesla model 3 have stopped working. Because they have stopped working, the GPS, and the car status (360 overhead view) parts also stopped working. This means that we can't use the Enhanced Autopilot with the car. This is a huge issue as the side cameras and the car status are very important for safety. It looks like this is a known problem but Tesla isn't issuing a recall to fix this https://www.cnbc.com/2021/12/06/tesla-is-replacing-faulty-autpilot-cameras-in-some-model-s-x-3-cars.html This started happening in mid-Jan, when our car had 41K miles and 4 years 1 month age. Tesla's warranty only goes 40K miles and 4years

The car has FSD Beta - When exiting on freeway off ramp numerous error codes came on and car lost ability to steer effectively. The car was not in Autopilot mode when the incident occured.

Full Self Driving was engaged, my hands were on the steering wheel, and vehicle made very unexpected and wrong turn sharply to the right directly into a barrier with front bumper. I have the incident recorded on the dash cam. The time from the sharp turn until the collision was less than 0.5 seconds, not allowing driver response. I have the video of the dashcam recording of the accident. Tesla also has the cabin recording of my engagement during the accident. I cannot send the video through this web page unfortunately

FSD Beta code version: 2022.44.30.10 seems to have a nasty bug where due to some bad speed limit data for highways, will automatically change the max cruising speed set by me. Hence the car results in abruptly slowing down on the highway. I have filed bug reports via the car as soon as its happened. Locations it has occurred: On I-90 eastbound right after the Framingham on-ramp around the place where the service plaza exit happens. And on Route-2, eastbound between the I-95 offramp to Rt-2 thru Rt-2 exit to Winter Street. Its due to bad navigation data as the speed change happens very predictablely in the same area, regardless of road conditions, car position in lane, or weather conditions. This never happened in the past 4 years. FSD automatically changed max speed from 75 to 61 miles per hr, causing the slow down.

While driving a Tesla Model 3 on an interstate highway at a speed of about 75 MPH with Full Self Driving engaged, the car aggressively applied the brakes for no apparent reason. This action could cause injury to passengers in the vehicle or an accident involving another vehicle that is following too closely. No information about the reason this occurred was presented. Tesla is aware of this issue.

The automatic wiper does not always work. Set to auto but despite poor visibility on the windshield, it failed to start until I manually adjusted the wiper control on the screen. With poor visibility and having to look at the infotainment screen to adjust wiper while vehicle is in motion, my safety was put at risk. Every time it rains, the auto wiper is unreliable and often fails to start or is too slow to start as if there is a huge delay and does not keep up with in heavy rain as it sometimes wipes too slow and I have to look at the screen to find the settings for the wiper to manually override the wiping speed. Also, the adaptive cruse control accelerates too aggressively at stop and go traffic causing hard braking by the car and I worry this will cause rear end collisions. The blind spot...

Significant phantom braking issues on two lane highways like US95 in NV. The vision system cannot reliably tell if something is in the road or not when there clearly is nothing, cars or objects. Unclear if my 2018 if the radar is still active, but the vision software cheats I believe by using traffic in front to know the road is clear, but when there is no traffic on a rural highway, it panic stops from 70mph down to 45mph quickly before I can disengage Autopilot. No shadows over the road, no tree, no over passes. Happened several times going south on US95 south on a cloudy day and several times going north a few days later on a sunny day. At all times nothing in the road. It seemed to be more confused on slight rise and downhill, but occurred in even flat road sections. I think the AI...

When driving on the highway and using the "autopilot" lane assist feature the care will automatically change the set speed limit and hard brake which puts my passengers and I in danger of being rear ended due to the abrupt stop. For example I have been driving on the highway with the autopilot set to 65mph and all of a sudden the speed will change to 35 and execute a hard braking maneuver. To compensate for this I have learned to hover my foot over the accelerator to counteract this phantom braking. When this happens there are no alerts that there is something in my path that I need to slow for. Other times there are forward avoidance alerts, but there is nothing in the path. The manufacturer has done nothing to remedy this issue.