2021 TESLA MODEL 3 Electrical System Problems

To Whom It May Concern, I am submitting this complaint to report a serious and potentially dangerous safety defect affecting my 2021 Tesla Model 3 Performance. After exposure to heavy rain or wet conditions, the vehicle’s horn completely stops functioning. The failure occurs regardless of the activation method—neither pressing the steering wheel horn nor using the horn via the mobile app produces any sound. The horn remains nonfunctional even though the vehicle is otherwise operable. This issue has occurred after the vehicle becomes wet due to rain and appears to be related to moisture intrusion or an electrical/design flaw. Once the failure occurs, the driver fully loses the ability to use the horn for warnings or emergency signaling. This is a critical safety concern. The horn is a federally required safety device and is essential for alerting pedestrians, cyclists, and other drivers to avoid collisions. Losing horn functionality significantly increases...

After Tesla replaced my high voltage battery in May of 2024 all of the following started to happen. Prior to the replacement none of these issues were present. While driving under normal conditions, my 2021 Tesla suddenly and violently steered into an oncoming lane or toward the roadside without any driver input. The steering wheel physically turned on its own with force. Full Self-Driving was NOT engaged at the time of the incident. This was not lane assist correction and occurred without warning. Importantly, the vehicle did NOT issue a warning at the time of the steering event. A “Take Control Immediately” message appeared several minutes AFTER the incident, not before or during, indicating a delayed or failed system response. This defect began immediately after a High-Voltage Battery replacement performed by Tesla Service in May 2024 and has occurred multiple times since. The incident presents a serious safety risk, including...

Central computer (motherboard), cameras (front/rear/side), autopilot/auto steer system. Error code: APS_w132. Description of Problem: On or around [XXX], Tesla pushed a mandatory over-the-air software update to my vehicle. Immediately after, multiple safety-critical systems failed: all cameras (including backup) became intermittent or non-functional, auto steer/autopilot stopped working, and the car emitted constant distracting beeping alerts due to a critical motherboard failure. This made driving hazardous—impaired visibility for parking/reversing, loss of collision avoidance features, and constant audio distractions that could lead to accidents. I had to drive in this unsafe condition for weeks while waiting for service. Tesla attempted a remote fix but it failed. I scheduled service on November 19 for December 3 (19-day delay). Diagnostics confirmed the update induced the hardware failure, a known issue reported by other 2021 Model 3 owners on forums like Reddit (e.g., software bricking motherboards post-update). Despite this, Tesla refused warranty/goodwill coverage, quoting $2,576.83 for...

I have been very cautious on charging my Tesla Model 3 and have followed all of the manufacturer's recommendations. The HV battery recently failed at 105,050 miles. South Korea has noted a battery reliability issue for this year car and model, so I am reporting this to you so if a recall is needed, you can track this. I believe my battery is a Panasonic NCA.

Resistive occupancy sensor consistently failing causing: -Bluetooth to not automatically connect anytime the vehicle is entered - vehicle puts itself in park to prevent rollback if seatbelt is not applied - car does not recognize when driver is in seat These are serious safety concerns as it could cause a domino effect in safety features if not applied when needed.

Attempting to park. Slowly inching forward while turning left. Vehicle accelerated. (Sudden Unintended Acceleration: SUA) Vehicle jumped a curb, bounced off a tree, dropped off the curb before comping to a stop. Internet search shows other similar reports; attributed, by Tesla, as pedal misapplication. This was not "pedal misapplication". I am not looking for anything. But NHTSA should increment occurance counter by 1. Tesla has a problem. Electrical or Mechanical...do not know. They have also lost me as a customer. The car will be sold. I have video...mp4

my 21 M3P 27K miles threw BMS_a079 I've never used a supercharger and rarely charge over 80% mostly charging at work on lvl 2 & occasionally at home on lvl 1 vehicle will no longer charge I've tried 2 Button reset and HV disconnect no help. 27k miles seems unreasonable for a battery malfunction on a vehicle that has been cared for meticulously.

Vehicle Info: Make: Tesla Model: Model 3 Year: 2021 Incident Date: April 7, 2025 Mileage: 49,000 miles Component: Electrical System / Software / Powertrain While driving on a public road, my Tesla Model 3 experienced a total system lag and shut down unexpectedly. The screen and vehicle controls froze, and the vehicle became unresponsive, leaving me stranded in the middle of the road. Tesla service later stated that the car computer had “slow FPS” (frames per second), which they claim caused the issue. They cleared memory, updated firmware, and said no further diagnosis was needed. However, no root cause was provided, and I am concerned that this issue could reoccur. This kind of unexpected shutdown while driving is a serious safety concern. I was lucky to avoid a collision, but if this had happened on a freeway or near traffic, the outcome could have been worse. I am filing this...

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The contact owns a 2021 Tesla Model 3. The contact stated while driving approximately 65 MPH, the braking system erroneously activated, causing the vehicle to abruptly decelerate. The contact stated that the failure was due to a failure with the computer reading the speed limit as 45 MPH instead of 65 MPH. The cause of the failure was not yet determined. The manufacturer and local dealer were not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 35,000.

The contact owns a 2021 Tesla Model 3. The contact stated while driving at various speeds, the hood opened unintentionally, the A/C unit and the radio intermittently turned on and off, the infotainment system screen intermittently turned black and randomly turned back on, along with several other failures that occurred. No warning lights was illuminated. The failures occurred on several different occasions. The contact was notified that the VIN was included in NHTSA Campaign Number: 24V554000 (Latches/Locks/Linkages, Electrical System) however, while attempting to update the vehicle software, the vehicle failed to complete the software update. The vehicle was drivable and was taken to the place of residence; the contact attempted to get in contact with Tesla Roadside Assistance however, once the contact reached the "confirm pickup spot" screen, the screen froze and would not confirm the request. The vehicle was not repaired. The contact attempted to notify the manufacturer however,...

The contact owns a 2021 Tesla Model3. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 24V554000 (Latches/Locks/Linkages, Electrical System); however, the part to do the recall repair was unavailable. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The dealer was contacted but saw no recall information related to the VIN. The manufacturer was not made aware of the issue. The contact had not experienced a failure. Parts distribution disconnect.

I am writing to file a formal safety complaint regarding a critical malfunction that occurred with my Tesla Model 3 on [XXX], in West Palm Beach, Florida. This incident raises significant concerns about the safety and reliability of Tesla vehicles, particularly following software updates. Incident Overview: On [XXX], around 5:00 PM, I placed my French Bulldog in the back seat of my Tesla Model 3 and closed the passenger side rear door. As I walked around to the driver’s side, all the doors locked automatically, and I was unable to open any of them. Despite multiple attempts to unlock the car using both my iPhone and key fob, the vehicle remained locked. My dog was trapped inside the car, and I became increasingly panicked, especially considering the extreme summer heat in Florida. I immediately contacted Tesla customer service, but after a 15-minute conversation, they were unable to unlock the car...

The vehicle, a 2021 Tesla Model 3, had an episode of sudden unintended acceleration. I was almost stationary waiting to make a left when the car accelerated by itself, left the road, crossed a grass field at high speed and crashed into bushes. The vehicle was not on auto pilot, it resulted in damage of almost $ 20.000 as estimated by insurance. The vehicle is available for inspection, it will be checked by Tesla service after the damage is fixed. There were no previous warnings, this is the first incident of this kind. It is not clear what component malfunctioned, probably some electric/electronic device in charge of acceleration. It was obviously a very dangerous event that could have jeopardized my safety and/or some others.

While driving, no warning, car went dead, no control over lights, windows (can’t use hand signals), power steering, unclear if parking brake worked. Had towed. 12v battery died. No explanation as to why there was no warning.

My vehicle is 3 years old and has roughly 52000 on it. After a recent software update (within the past month or so) all of the automatic safety features such as automatic braking, blind spot monitoring, cruise control stopped working on the vehicle. I brought it to Tesla and they confirmed the issue and said the entire ECU needs to be replaced, a $2700 expense on a 3 year old car. There is a warning message every time I start the car that says the automatic breaking is not working.

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Complete computer failure leaving cars safety systems not working. Had to pay 3000$ for a new computer for a new car. Did not have car for three weeks. No systems would work.

My 2021 Tesla Model 3 shuts/powers down WITHOUT warning while driving with a battery charge >0%. This unsafe event has occurred twice now! While the battery gauge displayed 10%, I was driving about 60mph when all of these warning messages appeared prompting me to pull over. As soon as these messages displayed, my car lost all propulsion and I was left stranded in the middle of the road. Both times I narrowly avoided being hit by other vehicles traveling at high speeds since my car died in the roadway. The car was towed to Tesla on both occasions, and they weren't concerned about my safety issue in the slightest. Instead, they said the battery just ran out; however my car displayed that I had about 6-10% charge remaining. So, if the battery were completely depleted (like Tesla says), then the meter should have displayed a 0% reading at the time...

Car was charging in garage overnight when an interior dash electrical fire started. Fire burnt dash and smoke damaged the interior or car. Fire smoldered itself out, and car was considered a total loss. Collision center that picked up vehicle stated that they believed the fire started from an electrical charging fault at the harness in the dash.

I was driving home from work on a two-lane highway when my car suddenly (and without any warning) lost all driving power and shut down while there was still battery left on the vehicle (roughly 10%). I could no longer maneuver the vehicle due to lack of propulsion, so my car died in the middle of the road. It was towed directly to Tesla service center where diagnostics were supposedly run. Their conclusion was the car died due to insufficient charge (even though there was about 10% battery left at the time of the incident). About a week later, the same EXACT thing happened! The car lost all power and shut down mid-drive without any warning with about 7% remaining. Both times, I had my home address in the car GPS (so it knew the exact distance I was traveling) and it never indicated once that I needed to stop...

I was driving to work that all of sudden heard warning sound and the monitor displayed the "Shutdown" sign as well. The car lost its power and came to complete stop in the middle of the street. Luckily there was no car near me. I was not able to drive the car and had to tow it to the dealership. According to mechanic “the rear drive unit has failed internally”. This was extremely scary and dangerous and may have caused a fatal accident. The problem has been fixed.

The contact owns a 2021 Tesla Model 3. The contact stated while driving out of a parking space, the steering wheel seized. The message "Front Motor Disabled. Continue Driving" was displayed. The manufacturer was contacted and provided remote assistance, but the failure persisted. The contact stated that the vehicle regained power steering functionality after an hour. The contact stated that the failure recurred while driving out of a parking space on another occasion. The vehicle was towed to a Tesla Service Center however, the failure could not be duplicated; however, the circuit board was replaced. The contact stated that the failure recurred while pulling out of a parking space on a third occasion. The vehicle was towed to a second Tesla service center, Tesla Sales (750 E El Camino Real, Sunnyvale, CA 94087) who informed the contact that an unknown software update was needed. The vehicle was not repaired. The...

While the car was parked in a parking lot, I get two notification stating “Sentry mode has turned off due to a sentry system error.” When I checked out the car, the car has completely failed to do any of the computer related task, leaving only the gear, AC, and Bluetooth was working. None of the cameras, GPS, sensors, brightness mode and many others were completely stuck. This continued until the next day. This happened without prior symptoms or warnings. I would have been in deep trouble if I have been driving at the time of the incident. When I took the car to the shop, tesla didn’t update the status for a week. After a week, Tesla told us that the Turbo A, Autopilot main processor chip failed. This caused the autopilot to go on loop. Therefore the whole motherboard needed to be replaced. This happened to a brand...

Electrical system rebooted in the middle of driving: screen went off couldn't signal i swayed to the side and waited till the screen came back on after 3 minutes.

This same event has happened to me approximately 3-4 times since owning the vehicle. It occurs randomly without warning. The vehicle screen will randomly and suddenly freeze up and render itself inoperable. Eventually, the screen will reset itself or I will have to manually force a reset. After about 5-10 minutes, the screen will reset and the problem goes away. During the 5-10 minutes of the screen not operating, I cannot see or change any of the vehicles controls; loss of HVAC control, cannot turn on windshield wipers, cannot see vehicle speed, don't know if turn signals are on/off (also lose audible sounds when turn signals are on) are the major safety related losses; you essentially lose all control over the vehicle settings/controls. Vehicle continues to drive as normal, and all functions are restored after reset is complete.

The contact owns a 2021 Tesla Model 3. The contact stated while driving approximately 25 MPH as he was exiting a highway and slowing for a traffic signal at the bottom of the off-ramp his brakes failed to engage. The contact stated the brake pedal was stiff and he had attempted to use full leg force to depress the brake pedal. The contact's vehicle ran the traffic signal and the contact stated he hit the right front end of a vehicle that was across traffic from him. The contact stated no warning light was illuminated. The contact stated that the crash stopped his vehicle and the other vehicle. The contact said that the air bags had been deployed and that the left front end of his vehicle was crushed into the left wheel well. The contact stated that the other vehicle received only light damage to the right end of...

While charging Model 3 the amperage went from 32amps and was capped at 16amps. This is a wide spread issue with Tesla’s model 3 Power conversion system (PCS). There is 3 controllers in the PCS system. When all 3 are working correctly it will charge at 48amps. If one stops it will drop to 32 amps or drop to 16 amps if two fail or not even charge if 3 fail. This is a known issue and and costly repair as Tesla refuses to fix these under the battery warranty.

The supermanifold failed, causing the front defroster to not work properly, resulting in loss of visibility in freezing temperatures. This is a common problem with 2021/2022 model 3/model y with the new heat pump that was supposed to be fixed with a software update, but was not. I now have a $3900 repair bill on a 1 year old car with 56,000 miles. The warranty expired at 50,000 miles. The failure was not a result of negligence.

The contact owns a 2021 Tesla Model 3. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 22V235000 (Electrical System, Forward Collison Avoidance) however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The local dealer was contacted. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufacturer was made aware of the issue. Parts distribution disconnect.

The contact leased a 2021 Tesla Model 3. The contact stated upon starting the vehicle, the center display failed to operate as designed. The contact was able to drive the vehicle; however, while driving 25 MPH, the vehicle stopped abruptly in the middle of the road. A message indicating that the trunk was opened was displayed. There was also a question displayed whether the contact wished to continue driving. The contact tapped the option YES however, the touch pad center display failed to respond. The contact exited the vehicle and attempted to close the trunk several times; however, the trunk reopened independently. The contact was able to close the trunk after eight attempts. The contact was able to continue driving to her residence. The contact stated that upon parking the vehicle, the trunk reopened independently. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and assisted the contact with towing the vehicle...

The cabin heater stopped working. I received an error code "VCFRONT_a447" recommending to take the vehicle in for service. This issue is a problem in sub-zero climates where the windshield will not defrost before and during driving. I have found 67 other cases from reddit and tesla motors club describing the same issue, on new or <2 years old cars. My components have not been inspected. I tried a full hard reboot of the software and no fix. Tesla service estimates $1,792 repair. Replacing a Supermanifold ($450.37) & A/C compressor ($1273.53) +tax =$1792. I am out of warranty by milage, car is 1.5 years old. 60,200 miles.

I'm getting a notification that says " cabin climate control system requires service cabin heating/cooling limited or unavailable". As a result of this failure the defroster is not working properly. The windshield defroster will only blow cold air very slowly. This causes the windshield to fog up very quickly in cold temperatures. I cannot see out of the windshield properly.

It has been weeks and Tesla has still not provided a fix for this issue. It was supposed to be resolved over the air but we have called Tesla for weeks and they have no idea when the fix will be available. Do they have a time limit to resolve? Sep 19,2022 Manufacturer Recall NumberTBD NHTSA Recall Number22V702 Recall StatusRecall Incomplete

Driver side window fails to lock completely upon locking the car manually and/or using auto walk away function. This leaves the car very much unsecure and open to being vandalized. Additionally, the driver sides window fails to close fully when auto close button is pressed. The driver side window button has to be fiddled with few times to get a complete window seel.

Since owning this car in January 2022, there have been issues of phantom braking during cruise control or autopilot. However, today 10/6/22 during an hour and a half time frame my car has had phantom braking episodes at least 5 times in the middle of the highway where it's speed suddenly drops by 20mph.

Tesla Model 3 main computer system failure. Failure was not cause by any negligence by the operator. The vehicle was parked over night and upon attempting to operate the vehicle the following day there was no power to the screen. There were no warnings prior. The screen which displays vehicle speed, vehicle battery level, seatbelt warning indicators was inaccessible. Also as a result of the computer failure the vehicle did not emit the required pedestrian safety sound, the front and rear collision warnings were disabled, charging was not possible, the ability to disable passenger airbags in case of a child needing to be transported in the front was inaccessible, if the vehicle was operated during winter the ability to defrost the windshield would be impossible and all safety and security features were disabled. The screen/computer has been an issue for several owners as easily viewed by a simple google search....

This "self driving" Model 3, with FL License Plate [XXX], attempted to merge onto I95 south from an on-ramp, and very nearly caused a major accident. The vehicle had a bumper sticker on the back that said something like "please be patient, I am a self driving vehicle." The vehicle was merging from a left side on-ramp, at a VERY LOW SPEED, and crossed two lanes of interstate traffic, very erratically accelerating, then braking, then accelerating again, and then braking. My vehicle was directly in its path, and I had to brake hard, and take to the shoulder to avoid the collision. If this vehicle's trips are logged, it needs to be investigated. If it weren't for the humans paying attention, the actions of the Tesla car/driver would have caused a major accident, and most likely bodily injury or death. INFORMATION Redacted PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA),...

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

While driving with cruise and steering control, car will emergency brake like something is in front of the car. Many call it "phantom" braking. One time on a 2 lane highway the car braked hard for no reason, it happened on the way to Vegas and a large group of bikers were behind us. Very scary at highway speeds. We let the bikers pass.

https://youtube.com/channel/UCNkrwnR_lAKd4neLwYAbugA My YouTube channel has 13 videos about Tesla safety concerns. They are the only videos on my channel. The minutes long clips show what happens when the mainframe screen goes black, dies out or powers down while driving. Listed from memory are the following concerns associated with the Tesla ‘Black Screen of Death’: 1. No energy/distance shown 2. Glove box is inaccessible 3. Front trunk ‘Frunk’ cannot be opened 4. Proof of signalling is gone 5. Proof of low vs high beam is gone 6. Changing of wiper speed is gone 7. Access to heating/Air-Con is gone 8. Back up camera is obsolete 9. Cameras used when signalling are missing 10. Speedometer is not visible 11. Odometer is missing (have never found it on screen when running anyways!) 12 Air pressure indication is gone 13 GPS is obsolete From memory that is all I have to add. Imagine everything...

We were driving on the freeway at 69 mph and suddenly with no warning the center console main screen froze. All electronic functions of the car stopped and the car was stuck at 69 mph. Speedometer And turn signals did not work. We managed to get to the side of the road (mechanical brakes and steering were unaffected). The car could not be put in Park so a manual reboot was not possible. The car rebooted itself (screen went black and then came back online) after about 10 minutes or so and then the car functioned normally.

The contact owns a 2021 Tesla Model 3. The contact stated while driving at 5 MPH, the front driver's seat continuously changed positions independently and her foot could no longer reach the one-pedal driving. The contact veered to the side of the road and parked the vehicle. The contact stated that the vehicle was designed with a feature that allowed both her husband and her to save their front driver's seat profile on the center display, based on their physical characteristics. The contact stated that her husband was 6 ft. 2 inches tall and she was 5 ft. 5 inches tall. The contact stated that the failure occurred as the front driver's seat moved from her seat profile to her husband's seat profile. Additionally, the contact stated that the center display was displaying a message stating it was looking for a charging station while the vehicle was fully charged. The...

The contact owns a 2021 Tesla Model 3. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed with the cruise control engaged, the vehicle would independently brake without warning. The contact stated that he saw an article that referred to the failure as “Phantom Braking”. Neither the dealer nor the manufacturer was notified of the failure. The vehicle had yet to be diagnosed or repaired. The failure mileage was approximately 2,000.

Since the V11 user interface update, when you put the car into reverse, the rear camera sometimes does not show up, or often shows up only after a delay. Sometimes the delay is just a second or two, other times it is a minute or seems to hang forever. Today I was parked in front of my kid's school dropoff zone, and needed to back up after they got out to leave. When I went into reverse the cameras were just black and stayed that way. This was especially worrying in this scenario since small children could be walking behind me that I wouldn't be able to see without the camera. This was never a problem until the V11 user interface update, which also causes other safety problems, by burying important functions behind menus. For instance you now have to dig into a menu and reach all the way to...

While using adaptive cruise control the car unexpectedly and unnecessarily brakes, rather sharply at times. This occurs especially frequently on two lane roads with curves and with trucks coming from the opposite direction. This does not occur, in my 6 months of owning this Tesla Model 3, on freeways.

I was driving north on Wisconsin route 14 at about 60 mph in my Tesla model 3 using the cruise control.. When a large transportation truck came from the opposite direction, my Tesla suddenly braked sharply. A Ford model F150 truck was following behind me and almost crashed into the back of my car. Fortunately the driver was alert and by sharply apply his brakes on driving into the ditch he avoided colliding with me. This could have been (and nearly was) a lethal accident. I would urge that you put a recall on a Tesla vehicles until this problem is corrected. I have contacted other Tesla owners and they have experienced similar problems. I contacted my local Tesla service station and they seemed unconcerned about the problem. I urge you to issue a recall before someone is seriously hurt or killed.

The automatic rear trunk closure button gets water inside wetting the electrical wiring. It has caused my trunk to randomly open at times and more importantly, can cause an electrical fire. This has put my safety, as well as any passengers at risk for injury and or death. I have not reproduced the issue because it has not rained, nor have I had the car washed. I have notified Tesla of this approximately a month ago and they continue to cancel & reschedule my appointment. There seems to be no urgency to investigate or fix the issue. The vehicle has not been inspected by anyone to date. There was no warning lamps or messages prior to the issue.

The contact owns a 2021 Tesla Model 3. The contact stated that while the vehicle was in full auto-drive mode approximately 10-15 MPH, the vehicle lost motive power. The contact was able to restart the vehicle. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 2,300. The VIN was unavailable.

Periodically one headlight starts flashing and my front turn signal won’t work. This typically happens in the middle of driving so I’m at risk of getting home safely.