2022 TESLA MODEL 3 Steering Problems

29 NHTSA complaints on file

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Steering Issues in the 2022 TESLA MODEL 3

29 steering complaints have been filed with NHTSA for the 2022 TESLA MODEL 3. Of these, 10 involved a crash, 1 involved a fire, and 7 resulted in injury.

29
Complaints
10
Crashes
1
Fires
7
Injuries
0
Deaths

All Steering Complaints

#11698174 | Crash Fire
During a head-on collision on [XXX] in Georgia, the electrical system in my 2022 Tesla Model 3 lost power and the electric door releases stopped functioning. The vehicle interior caught fire and I was trapped inside. I was unaware of the location of the hidden mechanical emergency door release because it is not visibly labeled, not explained upon delivery, and not intuitive in an emergency. I was forced to climb to the back seat and break the rear passenger window with my legs to escape while the interior was burning. I suffered a broken hip, broken arm, and later required a full hip replacement. The mechanical emergency door release was concealed and unlabeled, resulting in entrapment during a fire, which is a violation of FMVSS 206 and presents a continuing and life-threatening safety hazard to all drivers and passengers. Tesla has not provided warnings, recall guidance, labeling, or owner education...
#11673159 | Crash
I took my car to Tesla service to have 3 tires changed. On the drive home for the service, the car automatically pulled the to right several times with the final time pulling so hard, the car jumped the curb and damaged the car. Speaking with the Tesla service associate after the accident, they admitted that they did not complete alignment of the tires and that the automatic lane correction mechanism uses the alignment to gauge if it should correct or not. Tesla service will not take responsibility for causing the issue.
#11669363 |
During operation steering wheel becomes heavy and difficult to turn and becomes notchy. Very difficult to stay in ones own lane.
#11658826 | Crash
Wy wife and I drove our Tesla Model 3 from Palo Alto, CA to San Francisco downtown, to meet friends. I was the driver, and my wife sat on the passenger seat. The weather was clear, and the pavement was dry. I did not engage auto-pilot features during the entire trip. The car condition was normal with no signs of error or warning. I made a right turn onto [XXX] from [XXX] Shortly after I completed the turn, the car unexpectedly lost control. Without any prior warnings, it suddenly veered into the center divider, snapped a tree, dashed towards oncoming traffic on the other side of [XXX] , and finally stopped on [XXX] , labelled as location A on the attached drawing. Everything happened so quickly: I could not control the steering wheel, and I applied the brakes in vain. The vehicle seized control, no matter how hard I tried...
#11647496 |
Sometime I have power steering and sometime I don’t have power steering assist sometime came back and was driving and car just took my wheel to left itself on [XXX] 2 times on same spot was coming out of highway didn’t have no cruise or self driving On all was off INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)
#11645163 |
I was driving over an overpass on to the free way. It was about 11am. The steering wheel locked in a turning position, driving the car off the overpass. I was able to yank the wheel and get it back straight. The auto pilot was not on, the cruise control was not on. I drove it straight to the service center, i though i should call so i put the car in curise control to pull out my phone but decided against it and turned it off at 11:15. Now the service center says they can not duplicate it they are telling me nothing is wrong. This has never happened before. I have never had any issues with my car.
#11632699 |
At low/no speed, turning the steering wheel to the extreme left or right produces a low-end creaking noise as if something is rubbing.
#11630921 |
I was driving on the highway when the touchscreen lit up with multiple error messages including: - Steering assist reduced (Steering may require increased effort) - Traction control disabled (Drive with caution) - Stability control disabled (Drive with caution) - Parking brake functions degraded (Parking brake may not apply or release) - Lane Departure Avoidance features unavailable (Features may be restored on next drive) Also, the speedometer changed to 0 (while we were going 70 mph). When I pulled onto the next off-ramp the steering was very heavy and the regenerative braking was not working. Pressing the brakes (even slightly) felt like the ABS was pulsating. This was extremely dangerous and easily could have resulted in a serious accident in heavy traffic or if the road had not been straight. It was a rental car so I have not seen the car since the rental company towed it away. I...
#11629438 |
The car's steering wheel locked unexpectedly, rendering the vehicle undrivable. Additionally, multiple alerts appeared, indicating that the car's hold feature, traction control, and steering assist were reduced. This issue occurred while the car was parked but still running. When I shifted into drive, the car unintentionally rolled backward, forcing me to press the brake pedal to prevent a collision. If this had happened while driving, it could have resulted in a serious accident.
#11614883 |
All has been reported in writing to Tesla Corporate and Tesla Service Center SoDo Seattle, WA. Has not been repaired to date, with multiple attempts to bring car in for service: Emergency brake failed to engage on two occasions, [XXX] it was first reported that the car lost control of steering and emergency brake did not engage. Second time on [XXX]; car would not shift into any gear. Tesla Roadside said to have it towed (we did), Tesla had car for two weeks and did not address issues reported. Tesla has received extensive documentation for both times. They continue to tell us to drive car and just report issues as their resolution. Car has failed seals that have resulted in multiple times of mold and rodents in car (had professionally inspected). Tesla continues to insist I go inside vehicle and drive car. Tesla first discovered the mold in March 2024...
#11612856 |
Constant alert of "Steering assist reduced" Steering rack replacement under warranty
#11596434 |
Making a 90 degree right turn at an intersection traveling approximately 15 mph, my steering wheel suddenly got very stiff and unresponsive. This caused me to travel into the oncoming lane of traffic before wrestling the very stiff steering wheel back under control. This condition persisted for the rest of my drive home, accompanied by “Steering assist reduced” and “lane assist keep unavailable” error messages. This incident luckily did not result in an accident but easily could have if it happened at the wrong moment.
#11592116 | Crash
Driving on the freeway, husband driving, myself in passenger front seat and 1yr and 3yrs in back. Just touched a 70 zone when the car, without warning/prompt started to deviate from left lane to right lane, at same speed, my husband tried to control car at which point he realized that the steering wheel and brakes were locked and he had no control of the direction or speed and could do nothing to stop the car. The car continued at high speed to drag us to the left side of the road, we smashed at full force into a display maintenance board first, the airbags deployed, and we continued to smash through a barrier and finally into a tree in a field about 100yards+ from freeway. We managed to escape the vehicle and get our screaming kids to safety where we then were picked up by ambulance and police. The...
#11591981 |
The steering wheel locked up while I was driving. I was driving on a country road and the road didn't have any painted lane stripes and the car got a lane departure warning and the steering wheel pull me hard to the left, I almost got out of the road and on the way of a incoming vehicle, I break and pulled hard to the right and managed to pull to the side. When I got into a complete stop I checked all the settings, I turned off the late departure Assistant and the steering wheel was still locked. There is no on or off button on the car so I walked away from the car, the car locked and unlocked to get back in and the steering wheel was back to normal. It was very scary, lucky I was driving slowly and I wasn't around heavy traffic.
#11582880 |
Car was in the garage and showed alerts for Steering assist reduced, Traction control disabled,
#11570429 | Crash
Something occurred with the steering, automatic braking, or lane keeping assistance on [XXX] at approximately 6:35am while I was driving my 2022 Tesla Model 3 Long Range North in the carpool lane just south of [XXX] in Sandy Utah. The roads were a little slick so was proceeding cautiously at around 65 MPH when the car turned to the left slightly, then immediately to the right, which caused it to do a 180 degree turn in the same lane, I wasn't sure what was going on as the car felt like it was driving itself. Before I knew what was happening, the car then veered to the East across three lanes of traffic while driving backwards, it then stopped just as it was struck in front of the wheel on the front drivers side by a two trailer semi-truck which spun the car around. Luckily I was conscious so could...
#11558820 |
This car has demonstrated repeated incidents of moving/driving backwards when it is set in Drive/Forward via the steering wheel control. This was first reported to Tesla in December of 22. Their service center responded that they could not identify a cause or propose a repair. They commented that it was an engineering and/or software problem. I provided them with multiple date/time stamps. videos of the car performing this way. In the interim the car has demonstrated ghost braking at high speed on an empty freeway. A complaint regarding this concern was provided to NTSA and I have not had a response. The car has subsequently repeatedly moved backward when in Drive. I also have videos of these occurrences. I returned the car to the service center for these behaviors and was told that there was nothing that could be done. The service center said that I "canceled" my request for...
#11551204 | Crash
On October 20th, 2023 around 3:00 pm I was driving eastbound on the highway 69 in Michigan. A friend of mine was seated on the front passenger side (no more other passenger). Autopilot was not installed on the car and the driver had both hands on the steering wheel. I was driving on the most left lane at speed about 75 mph. At about Exit#131, Suddenly, I felt the steering wheel turned right a little by itself and the car slowly drifted to the right a little, then the steering wheel quickly turned to left by itself and the car quick turned to the left. I tried to control the steering wheel but couldn't. The car zig-zagged forward and hit the center guardrail at about 45 degree angle. The car was pushed away from the guardrail and stopped in the middle lane. After the crush, the left side of the...
#11550166 |
No problems prior to today. 22500 miles on vehicle. Delivered Nov 2021. Got in car to drive to work today, and power steering would not work. Error message on the car display stated there was a power steering failure. Put the car in park, waited about a minute, and tried again, and it worked. I see that there is a NHTSA investigation looking into this, so I wanted to let you know about it.
#11548278 |
Louisiana 425 North. Inside lane. Yellow line remained solid on my left. There wer no striped lines for the car to follow to continue straight as we approached on Full self driving. At highway speed the car veered into the turn lane. I immediately took control and prevented encountering the embankment. Dangerous situation. Tesla did what it was supposed to do. Louisiana highway engineers not so much. I have never encountered this in any of the other six states I have driven in. Tesla FSD will always stay in the lane if there are striped lines for it to follow on the outside of the lane,eg, when passing exit ramps. Thanks
#11542573 | Crash
The contact stated that while renting a 2022 Tesla Model 3. The contact stated that while driving approximately 60 mph, the steering wheel suddenly turned left while accelerating. The contact attempted to gain control however the steering wheel seized. The vehicle ended up crashing in the middle of the highway on the left side of the vehicle and front-end mostly. The air bags deployed. The vehicle was towed however it had not been determined if the vehicle was totaled as of yet. The display of the front left safety restraint system fault message was displayed on the main control display. The contact received injuries to their arms, knees, neck, shoulder, and back. Medical attention was needed. A police report was filed. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 50,000.
#11535735 |
Over the past few days, I have had multiple instances where the steering on the Tesla gives out and starts to wobble and then starts acting normal again.
#11527186 | Crash
The contact owns a 2022 Tesla Model 3. The contact stated that while driving at 40 MPH, the vehicle inadvertently turned to the right and then to the left. As a result, the contact stated that he momentarily lost control of the vehicle and collided with a barrier wall before careening to the right again into traffic. The air bags did not deploy. No warning lights were displayed on the instrument panel. A police report was not filed. No injuries were reported. The vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic, and the failure has yet to be diagnosed. The vehicle has not been repaired. The manufacturer was notified, and a case was opened. The failure mileage was 27,000.
#11508356 |
TESLA MODEL 3 DUAL MOTOR-WITH AUTOPILOT ADDITION TO PURCHASE VEHICLE HAS REPEATEDLY DEMONSTRATED ABERRANT BEHAVIOR WHEN IN “AUTOPILOT” MODE. DURING FREEWAY DRIVING THE VEHICLE HAS “MISSENSED” LANE SPACING AND UNEXPECTEDLY ATTEMPTED TO DIVERGE OR SWERVE, EXIT OR TURN OUT OF OR OFF OF THE LANE WE HAVE BEEN DRIVING IN. THIS HAS OCCURRED WHEN AN OFFRAMP OR CHANGE IN THE LANE DEFINITION OCCURS AND IS NOT “REGULAR”. SUCH AS A LANE THAT FOR SOME REASON IS NOT MARKED WITH A NORMALLY DEFINED WIDTH, OR A BREAK IN THE LINES THAT DEFINE THE LANE. DURING FREEWAY DRIVING THIS VEHICLE HAS SUDDENLY AND FOR NO APPARENT REASON, DRASTICALLY REDUCED ITS SET SPEED DURING AUTOPILOT DRIVING. WE WERE DRIVING IN RELATIVELY STRAIGHT, CLEAR AND UNOBSTRUCTED LANES ON OPEN HIGHWAY WITH NO TRAFFIC OBSTACLES. ON MULTIPLE OCCASIONS OUR VEHICLE HAS ACCELERATED BACKWARDS WHEN SET IN DRIVE. THIS HAS OCCURRED WHEN WE ARE BACKING UP...
#11500296 | Crash
The contact owned a 2022 Tesla Model 3. The contact stated while driving at approximately 65 MPH with the "auto-pilot" engaged, the vehicle approached another vehicle in traffic from behind and had gotten too close. The contact stated that she depressed the brake pedal to slow down when the vehicle inadvertently accelerated at high speed. The contact steered to the left to avoid rear-end crash with the vehicle directly in front. Additionally, the contact stated that the steering wheel had become hard to turn and the vehicle crashed into the highway divider. The vehicle's front end had crashed into the divider wall and the vehicle ricocheted across four lanes of traffic and ran off the roadway onto the right shoulder and was stopped by having crashed with small trees and bushes. The contact stated she did not notice any warning lights. The contact stated that she had been transported by...
#11488249 |
The contact owns a 2022 Tesla Model 3. The contact stated while driving 75 MPH, there was a message displayed that stated, “Pull Over and Exit the Vehicle”. The contact stated that the vehicle then lost power steering and power brakes. The contact was able to park on the side of the road. The vehicle was not drivable. The contact towed the vehicle to a local dealer, where it was diagnosed with needing the front steering alignment control arm to be adjusted. The vehicle was repaired but experienced the failure two days later. The contact took the vehicle back to the local dealer but the mechanic was unable to duplicate the failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer had been informed of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 5,300.
#11484636 | Crash
On Wednesday, 8/24/2022 around 1:30pm, when I tried to park my Tesla Model 3 on a residential street, suddenly and without any warning the steering wheel lost control, accelerated, made a right and then a left turn, hit an electric box and landed on the neighbor's driveway. No one else was injured, only myself with severe back pain and I could not move. Several neighbors came out of their house and checked on me and called the Homeowners Association Office and called 911, the homeowners experienced power outage. An ambulance came & took me to the Irvine Hoag Hospital Emergency Center. The medical staff took X-Ray for me and gave me Tylenol pills and ice pack on my back. I was diagnosed with compression fracture of T12 vertebra, per doctor's exam: It will take two-to-six-month to heal my back. A police report #[XXX] was filed on 8/31/2022. CA resident since...
#11454232 |
this vehicle has regenerative braking. It used to have an option to reduce the regenerative braking but software updates removed it. During recent snow and ice, when letting off the accelerator pedal the regenerative braking kicks in and causes the vehicle to become unstable. If regenerative braking had a low setting this could prevent the vehicle from becoming unstable on snow and ice every time the accelerator pedal is let go. It is very un-nerving driving like this
#11451950 |
Power steering and full power to the vehicle failed - these failures can be seen upon requested inspection. Power steering failed during operation - meaning that while i was driving the vehicle i was not able to change the direction of travel at a high rate of speed. Then the vehicle came to a sudden stop, stranding the driver/passengers in the middle of the road which has a high speed limit. Since full power failed quickly afterward, hazard lights or other warning lights (brake lights) could not be activated. Emergency manual exits had to be used to exit the vehicle This problem has been reproduced in both Model 3 and Model Y and has been confirmed by a dealer service repair center. The vehicle has been inspected by the manufacturer and the problem has been confirmed - a full steering console replacement is required due to electrical and hydraulic issues...

Other 2022 TESLA MODEL 3 Problem Areas

Forward Collision Avoidance Adaptive Cruise Control 381 complaints Forward Collision Avoidance Automatic Emergency Braking 303 complaints Service Brakes 166 complaints Vehicle Speed Control 160 complaints Forward Collision Avoidance Warnings 91 complaints Unknown Or Other 83 complaints Electrical System 42 complaints Lane Departure Assist 26 complaints Lane Departure Blind Spot Detection 13 complaints Power Train 13 complaints Seat Belts 12 complaints Visibilitywiper 12 complaints Wheels 11 complaints Air Bags 10 complaints Lane Departure Warning 9 complaints Fuelpropulsion System 8 complaints Seats 8 complaints Structurebody 7 complaints Engine 6 complaints Exterior Lighting 6 complaints Electrical Systemadasautonomousself Driving 5 complaints Suspension 5 complaints Back Over Prevention Warnings 4 complaints Electrical Systemadasautonomousself Drivingsoftware 4 complaints Vehicle Speed Controlcruise Control 4 complaints Forward Collision Avoidance 3 complaints Visibility 3 complaints Back Over Prevention 2 complaints Vehicle Speed Controlaccelerator Pedal 2 complaints Visibilitydefrosterdefoggerhvac System 2 complaints Air Bagssrs Malfunction Warning Lamplight 1 complaint Back Over Prevention Rearview System Braking 1 complaint Back Over Prevention Sensing System Camera 1 complaint Engine And Engine Cooling 1 complaint Equipment 1 complaint Equipmentelectricalinfotainmentvideo Touchscreenmonitorunit 1 complaint Forward Collision Avoidance Adaptive Cruise Controlsoftware 1 complaint Lane Departure 1 complaint Lane Departure Lane Keep Automatic Steering 1 complaint Latcheslockslinkagesdoorslatch 1 complaint Latcheslockslinkagestrunk Lidlatch 1 complaint Service Brakes Air 1 complaint Structurebodyhatchbackliftgatehinge And Attachments 1 complaint Tires 1 complaint Visibilitypower Window Devices And Controls 1 complaint Visibilitywindshield 1 complaint
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