2019 Tesla Model 3 Problems

What owners report

Owners of the 2019 Model 3 most often describe sudden, uncommanded braking or acceleration while driving aids are active: phantom braking on Autopilot or adaptive cruise, plus unintended or unexpected acceleration at low speed while parking. These reports span a wide mileage range, from a few hundred miles to well over 50,000. A second common theme in the sample is front suspension and steering noise or breakage, often at relatively low mileage.

1. 1
   Suspension

   Front suspension ball joint and control arm failure

   • 61 complaints (10%)
   • median 10,000 mi at 2.0 yrs old (26 state mileage)
   • 5 mention a crash, fire or injury
   • owner-quoted repair $2,500 (median of 5 quotes)
   • filed 2019–2026

   Complaints describe the front suspension collapsing, with ball joints popping out of their sockets or lower control arm and knuckle components snapping, in some cases with little or no impact damage evident. Others report creaking or squeaking noises from the front end while turning or over bumps, which the dealer traced to the upper or lower control arm. Several owners link the failures to a front suspension fastener recall, and at least one says their vehicle was not covered by it. Reported from under 5,000 miles up to about 93,000 miles, with many accounts at low mileage.

   Recall 23V235000Recall 21V8350001 related service bulletin

   What to check: Have an independent shop inspect the front ball joints and control arms for play, torn boots, or noise, and ask whether the front suspension fastener recalls were performed; a service bulletin describes a firmware feature that monitors alignment changes over time.

   2 excerpts from owner complaints in NHTSA records

   “This is a complaint about ball-joint failure in Tesla MODEL 3 cars. Please note that I have used the VIN of another Tesla to file this complaint since the VIN of the car in question is unavailable. Many owners are complaining on the forums that their steering is creaking and they are resorting to diy remedies such as peeling back the rubber boot on the top ball joint and squirting in lubricant. There have been many cases where the ball has eventually worn down and popped out of the socket. …”

   NHTSA complaint #11397998, filed 2021-02, 10,000 miles

   “The contact owned a 2019 Tesla Model 3. The contact stated that while driving at various speeds, there was a squeaking sound coming from the front end of the vehicle. The vehicle was driven to the local dealer who diagnosed that the front suspension system was faulty and needed to be replaced. The front suspension system was replaced, and the vehicle was repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The VIN was not available. The failure mileage was 93,000.”

   NHTSA complaint #11562367, filed 2023-12, 93,000 miles
2. 2
   Vehicle speed control

   Sudden or unintended acceleration at low speed

   • 69 complaints (11%)
   • median 5,596 mi at 1.3 yrs old (34 state mileage)
   • 26 mention a crash, fire or injury
   • filed 2019–2026

   Owners describe the car surging forward while parking, pulling into a driveway, or maneuvering at walking pace, sometimes after the accelerator was released. In several accounts the vehicle went over a curb or into a building or parked car. When owners raised the issue with the service center, complaints say the log review concluded the accelerator pedal had been pressed. Mostly reported in the first several thousand miles, often during parking or driveway maneuvers.

   What to check: Test low-speed parking maneuvers and creep behavior during a test drive, and ask whether any pedal or drive-unit diagnostics were run in response to prior complaints.

   2 excerpts from owner complaints in NHTSA records

   “My 2019 Tesla MODEL 3 independently executed a minor acceleration during a sharp u-turn on a side street with no instruction from myself. I have reported the issue to Tesla and requested they review the data. This absolutely happened while my foot was not on the accelerator. I was very surprised by it and it startled me. I have been driving this vehicle since 2019 and this is the first time it happened to me.”

   NHTSA complaint #11406110, filed 2021-04, 32,120 miles

   “I was pulling in head first to a parking spot in a shopping center and was coasting into the spot. The car suddenly jolted forward at a very high speed. Our car jumped over the curb, traveled up a 4 to 5 foot high, sloped embankment, and struck a parked car in the upper parking tier.”

   NHTSA complaint #11365480, filed 2020-10, 6,000 miles
3. 3
   Forward collision avoidance

   Phantom braking under Autopilot or adaptive cruise

   • 183 complaints (30%)
   • median 11,500 mi at 1.9 yrs old (46 state mileage)
   • 32 mention a crash, fire or injury
   • filed 2019–2026

   Complaints describe the car braking hard on its own while Autopilot or adaptive cruise control is engaged, sometimes repeatedly, and sometimes without any visible obstacle. Several owners say the automatic emergency braking activated unexpectedly at highway speed, and a few report that the system warned about objects or cones that were not there. Owners who contacted the service center report being told the technician could not duplicate the problem, or being asked to provide a time window for the next occurrence. Reported from about 18,000 to 90,000 miles, most often at highway speeds on longer trips.

   Recall 21V846000Recall 23V838000Recall 23V085000

   What to check: Ask whether software updates are current and whether any forward-collision or Autopilot-related campaigns were completed; if possible, drive the car on a highway with cruise control engaged and watch for spurious alerts or braking.

   2 excerpts from owner complaints in NHTSA records

   “My son was driving on the golden gate bridge when the auto pilot applied the brakes. He said a traffic cone appeared on the screen. There was no traffic cone or any other object in the road. This issue caused an accident behind him because of the sudden brake application. This also happened to me while driving on the freeway. I had the car on cruise control. All of a sudden the brakes were automatically applied without anything in the road.”

   NHTSA complaint #11388392, filed 2021-01, 19,000 miles

   “The contact's girlfriend owns a 2019 Tesla Model 3. The contact stated while driving 73 MPH with the Adaptive Cruise Control activated, the vehicle experienced phantom braking. The contact stated no warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. A dealer was not contacted. The manufacturer had not been informed of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 41,000.”

   NHTSA complaint #11515615, filed 2023-04, 41,000 miles
4. 4
   Electrical system

   Steering stiffness, noise, or loss of assist

   • 39 complaints (6%)
   • median 13,721 mi at 3.2 yrs old (7 state mileage, few)
   • owner-quoted repair $3,700 (median of 6 quotes)
   • filed 2020–2026

   Complaints describe the steering wheel becoming very hard to turn, sometimes while parked and sometimes while driving, and in one case the wheel turning without moving the front wheels. Dealer diagnosis in the sample included a failed steering rack and, in another vehicle, corrosion in the steering rack wiring harness and control module. One owner notes a warning light before the repair. Reported from about 9,500 to 93,000 miles, at both low and highway speeds.

   Recall 23V085000

   What to check: Turn the wheel lock to lock at a standstill and listen for creaks or uneven effort, and ask for service records on any steering rack or harness work.

   2 excerpts from owner complaints in NHTSA records

   “While attempting to make a left into my driveway traveling about 10mph the steering completely disengaged and would spin completely around without moving the front wheels at all. I stopped and called service before hitting anything. The car is being serviced now.”

   NHTSA complaint #11324679, filed 2020-05, 9,500 miles

   “I previously submitted a concern with this car that occurred in december 2019. Tesla in milford, ct had the car in service for 23+ days because of errors with the car: alert messages included (but weren't limited to) power reduced, front motor disabled, etc. The car kept powering off while I was driving and the brakes and steering malfunctioned. Tesla ultimately diagnosed the problem as a shorted penthouse harness. Two weeks after receiving the car back, the error messages reappeared. …”

   NHTSA complaint #11308965, filed 2020-02, 8,500 miles
5. 5
   Other or unknown

   Center screen going blank or displaying blocks

   • 51 complaints (8%)
   • median 15,329 mi at 2.2 yrs old (13 state mileage)
   • 6 mention a crash, fire or injury
   • owner-quoted repair $1,400 (median of 9 quotes)
   • filed 2019–2026

   Owners describe the single center display turning off or being covered by a white block while driving, taking away the speed readout, gear indicator, camera view, and warning messages. Some report that only a display reset restored it, and one says the issue was reported early but not covered at the time. Others mention the rear camera showing a blank screen. Reported from roughly 1,500 to 88,000 miles, with many accounts at low mileage.

   Recall 24V051000Recall 22V169000

   What to check: During the test drive, check that the screen stays on and the rear camera comes up promptly in reverse, and ask whether the car has had infotainment hardware or software service.

   2 excerpts from owner complaints in NHTSA records

   “White block appeared on screen, would not clear. Blocked visibility of any displays under the block, including gear selector, speed, energy status, turn signals, most of any other display, such as maps, camera display. Block remained when we left the car, and returned. Only could clear w/ display reset, which I uncovered once I returned home and looked online. White block did not appear to impact driving, but obscured basically every driving feedback you'd expect from a dashboard.”

   NHTSA complaint #11384253, filed 2020-12, 15,329 miles

   “The only display in the car will turn off while driving. This causes a loss of all readout. You lose the speed you are traveling, HVAC, backup camera, safety warnings, etc. This has happened over and over. This has been reported to Tesla and they declined to fix it under warranty when first reported at approx 1500 miles. This is not a road legal car when the only display intermittently stops working for an undetermined amount of time while in use.”

   NHTSA complaint #11330280, filed 2020-06, 7,000 miles

Buying note. Have a pre-purchase inspection focus on the front suspension and steering, since those are the items most likely to need real repair work on this car. Confirm that open software recalls and the suspension fastener campaigns were completed, and spend time on a highway drive with the driver aids engaged to see how the braking behaves.

Summary written with AI from a sample of 60 NHTSA complaints for this model year (picked at random, with complaints that state a mileage and recent ones taken first), then checked automatically against the source records. Where a problem shows a complaint count, every complaint for this model year was matched with fixed keyword rules (written with AI and tested against the sample), and the mileage, age and repair figures are calculated from those complaints; owners' figures are as stated, not verified. Other counts refer to the sample. The excerpts come from NHTSA's public complaint records and are unverified; capitalisation is normalised, NHTSA staff notes are removed, and shortened text ends with “…”. Something wrong? Request a correction.