2021 Tesla Model Y complaints

Each time I'm on a two lane rural road (one lane on each direction with the double yellow line between the lanes) the phantom breaking is unbearable (MYLR vision only). 90% of the time if there is a large truck going on the other side, Autopilot will slam on the breaks and beep like crazy thinking that the truck is going to hit me head on. I don’t think it is the forward collision warning as this never happens when I don't use autopilot.

Phantom braking on Autopilot, multiple times Car just brakes out of the blue and it’s not safe

Car randomly breaks while in autopilot mode. Very dangerous since someone can crash into me from behind. There is nothing on the road in the way and no emergency vehicles nearby and no stoplights or stop signs when this happens. The car does not always notify of blind spots when backing the car up.

Multiple times we have been on empty open roads traveling at 60-70 mph only to have the vehicle slam on the brakes and slow down to approximately 30-50 mph. There are no obstructions on the road or oncoming vehicles when this happens. This has been reported multiple times to Tesla and I have been told their are no issues and the the car “must have seen something on the highway”. This is totally untrue. The vehicle will also slam on the breaks in 2 lane highways if a large truck or semi is traveling in the opposite direction.

While driving on the freeway at 70 mph with cruise control activated, the Tesla suddenly braked hard. There was no emergency or vehicle entering my lane. This occurs on a regular basis, more so when passing a semi or large vehicle. Vehicles behind me have to brake or swerve to avoid hitting me. I have notified Tesla Service about the issue and their response was they know about the issue. I was told to keep my hands on the steering wheel and pay attention....UNACCEPTABLE!

Phantom braking!! It's happening almost everytime I engage autopilot and it's unfortunate because this system would be amazing if it wasn't do this issue. Anytime I'm in a 2 way highway and I have a semi or a large vehicle coming my way on the opposite lane it decides to slow down from the speed limit around 75mph in Texas all the way down to 35mph, which makes for a dangerous condition and puts me at risk of getting rear ended. I have reached out to Tesla Service and they said they can't do nothing about it. I have videos of these incidents but it seems like I can't upload on these Forms. Please reach out to me so I can send you these videos of the phantom braking.

When using auto pilot our car will suddenly slam on the brakes usually for no reason. Sometimes it will if there is a large vehicle in the oncoming lane. Other times it will do this if we are the only car on the road. It will also do this even more frequently at night. It does this even if emergency braking is turned off. It causes us to panic and search around for a problem. At minimum they need a way to turn this "feature" off and offer normal cruise. This system is not ready for road use. This happens multiple times every time we use the car.

My 2021 Tesla Model Y has a huge problem with phantom braking. It even occurs when I am only using cruise control. Sudden stops and slow downs. I clearly has problems with large vehicles approaching in adjacent lanes. Not only does it scare the daylights out of my passengers, but it is a major safety issue is someone is following closely behind. The answer I get from Tesla Mobile service is to keep reporting it as a "bug". The answer I get from my Tesla Service center is "what to you expect...Tesla Vision is still in Beta mode". I am selecting a date below because your form requires it, but the problem has been occurring since I took delivery in July of 2021

While on a 475 mile road trip, my vehicles emergency brake system was activated while using cruise control on more than one occasion with no visible hazard ahead of me. This caused my car to brake at speeds upward of 70 miles per hour on two lanes highways, leaving me to fear that any car behind me could easily rear end me and harm me or my children who were in the backseat. On another occasion during this same trip, the weather began to turn. Snow began to fall heavily leading to poor road conditions. My model y activated corrective steering twice at speeds of 10-20 miles/hr, both times attempting to swerve my car into the lane next to me occupied by a semi truck. These issues are unacceptable and need correcting as they pose a threat to passenger safety.

The full self-driving mode in my tesla does not react correctly to speed limit changes in small towns. I will be driving with the FSD at 65 MPH when I get to a small town and the speed limit changes to 45 and then down to 25 for residential area the cars speed does not decrease quickly enough to be at the correct speed limit by the time the car reachs the speed limit sign. Based on the speed limit laws I was taught was the car you are driving and are slowing down you must be at that limit when you reach the speed limit sign or else you can be ticketed for speeding. The Tesla FSD is not in compliance with that specific rule of the road.

This car is continually slamming on the brakes when in cruise or autopilot I have reported this to Tesla and tried to have them repair it but they say it’s normal. My 2019 didn’t hav3 this issue. One time I’d did this my wife started to chock on her gum when it slammed the brakes on so hard it dropped about 40mph in a few seconds.

Multiple times on highway car “phantom breaks” when there are no obstacles/cars in front of me. I noticed that the car seems to regularly do this at certain places the highway. For example, on one stretch I’ve had it happen multiple times going under a specific bridge when I’m in cruise control. The car seems to think the speed limit has reduced, leading me to believe the car is reading the overpass speed liMit, not the highway, and adjusting. On another highway, after a steep decline there is an incline. At the end of the decline, the car slams on the breaks as if it thinks the incline in the road is an obstacle.

The manufacturer updated the vehicle software in January 2022. This caused the rear camera to malfunction. The malfunction is that the view of the camera inside the vehicle pauses for periods. The driver is becomes unaware of the true distance between the vehicle and objects behind it. This is worsened as the driver is unaware of the issue. This is a safety issue for any object behind the vehicle when it moves in reverse - including People. It could also easily result in damage to the rear of the vehicle being driven.

I have experienced many episodes of sudden, unexpected and seemingly inappropriate strong braking. The most common circumstance is overtaking semi truck/ trailers that are slowly ascending the mountain slopes of Interstate 5 in southern Oregon. Often the trucks have their emergency flashers in use. IT self-brakes from 65 mph down to perhaps 30-35 mph and I "take over" by depressing the accelerator. It also happens frequently with oncoming traffic on 2 lane highways night or day and usually on a curve. The problem is frequent enough to avoid using cruise control on 2 lane roads and on I-5 mountain grades. It happens reliably on my way to town where an intersection has a flashing light and the approach is downhill into a right hand turn. It does not happen travelling the other direction and does not require any other traffic. For all of these, the sudden braking puts myself and others at significant risk for a rear-ender" collision. There are no lights, warnings, or ability to learn what triggered the inappropriate braking. I do not have the full self-driving option on this vehicle. A call to Tesla for service concludes with, " There are no faults with any of the hardware in the vehicle and these behaviors are a limitation of software in the system at this time". I did not take it to them to look at the car as it is 5 hours of driving plus the service time to do so.

Driving down the highway/interstate when autopilot is on and the brakes are automatically applied for no reason. This happens frequently, especially on two lane roads to the point where I am not able to use autopilot anymore of fear of the car behind me crashing into me when brakes are applied suddenly for no reason.

I have a 2021 Tesla Model Y. Washing Post reported an increase in phantom breaking recently. It's not just recent. I took delivery of my car in May 2021 and quickly learned that when in cruise control this car will randomly apply the brakes - at times going from 70's to 30's very quickly. In a simple drive from Las Cruces, NM to Albuquerque, NM with no traffic on the freeway the system will throw on the bakes while in cruise control at least 6 times. And it's repeatable. You simply cannot use cruise control on the free with any traffic for concern of the system engaging and causing an accident.

Since delivery the vehicle has experienced several "phantom braking" incidents in situations where no threat was evident, including some in which braking was initiated on clear, straight highways with no other traffic anywhere in sight. The events are aggressive and result in immediate profound loss of speed, making the threat of a collision an issue.

When using Autopilot, I experience multiple, repeatable phantom braking issues on a regular basis. While it is worse on two lane highways, I've also experienced the issues on separated freeways and interstates. The phantom braking varies from a minor throttle response to decrease speed to full emergency braking that drastically reduces the speed at a rapid pace resulting in unsafe driving conditions for occupants of my vehicle as well as those who might be following behind me. Situations that seem to trigger the phantom braking include cresting a hill with oncoming traffic, navigating a turn with oncoming traffic, a larger than average vehicle (commercial truck/tractor trailer) approaching in the opposite late, shadows cast by large trees or overpasses, and changes in pavement color - for example, transitioning from gray concrete to black asphalt.

I have experienced 3-4 occurrences of "phantom braking" while driving on the freeway with the autopilot system engaged on my Model Y. Each time, i have been traveling at 70mph+ when the automated system suddenly slammed on the brakes, causing me to decelerate by 20-40mph before I was able to override the systems by stepping on the accelerator and disconnecting the autopilot system.

Saw this article today in the Washington Post: https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2022/02/02/tesla-phantom-braking/ We have a 2021 Tesla Y. It does not have the Lidar technology. We have experienced this phantom braking when driving west and east across I-94 through MN and North Dakota and Montana. Sometimes it seems like it happens when we cross over a small bridge on the interstate and sometimes it happens randomly. We can't figure out what set it off. Anyway, I told my husband we should never use the auto pilot as that is when it occurs. So, we have quit using it. It is super scary when it happens!

A well known phenomenon of "phantom breaking" occurs frequently and without warning with the Traffic aware cruise control engaged. This occurs not only on 2 lane highways, but even on undivided and divided highways. On the 17 mile commute to work everyday, this will occur 5-10 times, which results in rapid, unanticipated deceleration. At the time of these deceleration events, there is no visual cause to the driver that would have resulted. Often it appears to be activated by oncoming traffic lights, lights on the side of the road at businesses, when cresting the road, and when the road naturally has a bend or swerve in the traffic pattern. These rapid deceleration events place the occupants at risk of rear end collisions and also are uncomfortable as you must immediately place your foot on the acceleration pedal, which results in a jerking movement to the occupants. Telsa needs to either employ a "dumb" cruise control or greatly improved their TACC system before continued use of their system.

On a recent trip to Minnesota when adaptive cruise control was engaged there were several ( >10) episodes when the car would suddenly decelerate for no apparent reason. On a two lane highway it might occur if a large vehicle such as a truck was oncoming in the opposite lane. On the interstate, the common scenario was traveling in the right lane going up a slight upgrade with a car passing in the left lane. Often the sudden speed reduction was 25 mph or more. On occasion even on a flat section the car might suddenly brake for no apparent reason. On one occasion this happened in the afternoon going west with the sun glinting off some shiny asphalt crack filling. No accident occurred, but if a car were following closely, sudden braking could cause a crash. Because of this erratic behavior I don't use adaptive cruise control except for short distances. This is a known Tesla problem, but it seems the company is more interested in enhancing games to be played while charging rather than attend to a major flaw.

My Tesla Model Y seems to be suffering from what is called "phantom braking". My vehicle was produced shortly after the radar was removed and Tesla went to a camera only system. My car has the lasted updates installed. It is not a Full Self Driving vehicle. Since I purchased the vehicle it has had a problem during low light or sunny conditions with suddenly braking when using the cruise control. The situation has been reported to Tesla multiple times and "bug reports" were recorded and reported to the service center. During one morning drive of about 35 minutes I reported 8 occurrences. Sometimes the vehicle will sound the emergency avoidance braking. The car will suddenly slow from 60 to 30 mph. On multiple occasions the vehicle behind me had to take evasive action to avoid rear ending me. During one of my service visits the vehicle was taken on an extended over night test drive and the technician confirmed the problem. During the other visit the service center did not even take the vehicle for a drive. in both cases Tesla said the hardware was functioning normally and this was a "normal" operating condition for the vehicle. The car does better if I am following another vehicle because it seems to be able to maintain it's depth perception better if it has that reference point. I did report to the service center that the car seems to follow closer at night, even at the max following distance setting. The vehicle also struggles with the automatic high beam headlights which the

On 2 occasions within the last month my Tesla Y experienced a radical but brief stopping response. This happened on a freeway while passing a large truck in an adjacent lane. The car suddenly slowed down and then immediately speeded back up. This happened a second time on a freeway but I am unsure of the specific circumstances. I got delivery of the car in Oct 2021 and both of these incidents happened in Jan 2022. It has only happened those 2 times. Thank You [XXX] INFORMATION Redacted PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6).

I have experienced several instances of the phantom braking in my Tesla model Y. it primarily happens when I’m on a two-lane road and there is a large truck approaching on the opposite lane. However it will also phantom brake on a highway where there are two lanes going in one direction separated by a median with two lanes going the opposite direction. It seems to happen when it’s coming up on a slight hill, where you cannot see over the hill. The car will slam on the brakes in the middle of the freeway, which when going at speeds of 65 to 75 miles an hour when traveling with other vehicles going the same speed, it can be especially dangerous in Texas where the giant pick up trucks like to tailgate electric vehicles. In one instance the pick up truck behind me thought I was brake checking him and jamming on my brakes to be a jerk; he then “coal rolled” me, putting out a giant cloud of black smoke. This situation has made it so I am afraid to use traffic aware cruise control, which I need to be able to use on road trips. It is especially bad in the two-lane winding roads around Amarillo, Texas, but I’ve also had it do this on a much larger road that goes through Chandler, New Mexico to Colorado. I absolutely love my Tesla, but the phantom braking is concerning, and the response I’ve gotten from Tesla service is that the car adapts and will eventually learn where not to do it. I don’t know if that’s true or not, but it doesn’t seem to be getting better, and it does it at the sa

I’m experiencing “Phantom Braking” in my Tesla Model Y. I live in a rural area where 2 lane roads (1 lane each direction) are the only roads around. Larger pick up trucks, pickups with trailers, busses, semi trucks, dump trucks, sprinter vans, and other vehicles of that size in the opposite lane trigger my vehicle, when in cruise control, to slam on its brakes. This happens when it’s sunny, cloudy, any type of weather condition. Occasionally, when in cruise control, I notice the car makes slight braking attempts, even when there is no traffic in the other lane. It’s as if it’s sensing a ghost it doesn’t want to hit… This has happened ever since we purchased the vehicle. I do not use auto pilot because I do not see the point where I live. This issue happens when using the adaptive cruise control. I have not noticed it when using auto pilot as, mention before, I rarely use that feature. I recently say articles where many other Tesla owners were having this problem so I thought I would add to the awareness of this issue. My wife does not use cruise control nor auto pilot for fear the car will slam on it’s brakes and someone might rear end us. Speed limits range from 35-55mph in my area.

The vehicle driver assist system frequently has phantom braking in situations it should not be, especially when there are vehicles behind putting us at risk for a collision due to unexpected braking behavior of the car. This happens especially in setting of 2 lane roads with oncoming traffic, and guaranteed with a truck in the vicinity. On major highways it is less so, but does still happen occasionally. On local roads even if straight and no obstruction the automatic braking without notice occurs when least expecting. Also the lane departure system disables automatically for the remainder of a drive if you veer off a lane even once and didn't take the corrective action the vehicle thinks should have happened. That's not how a safety feature should work... It should remain on regardless. As much as I do enjoy this car, these quality issues definitely make you second guess and keep a closer eye on how you drive to avoid accidents if the system decides to not work as advertised

-Tesla autopilot phantom emergency braking, multiple times makes using the autopilot useless, can't even set it to just cruise control. Yes. -Hard, unexpected, emergency braking at highway speeds from 75mph to immediate 35mph. Dangerous to passengers and other motorists due to the sudden, unexpected high deceleration speed. -Yes. Reported the problem to Tesla service center Spokane on 11/15/2021. They performed a remote investigation and told me I had used the car in a manner/location that was outside the current limitations of the software. No further action until the software system is updated sometime in the future and remotely closed the service appointment without any further input from me. - No. Phantom braking started the day I picked it up 9/24/2021 and continues to this day.

This car has had numerous phantom braking incidents. It is unusable on 2 lane roads. It breaks suddenly for trucks in the opposite lane. It can also begin to brake for cars in the opposing lane. The only remedy is to press on the accelerator to turn off the Autopilot. It also slows down periodically for shadows (for example when going thru an underpass). It was reported to Tesla service and evidently nothing can be done since it seems to be a software issue. I am unsure of that since this car no longer has the radar that previous versions of this car did have.

I was traveling in -5 degree (Fahrenheit) weather and the cabin heater stopped working (a notice appeared on the screen explaining that it was malfunctioning). Windshield began to fog up, so turned on fan and outside air in order to remove the fog. Ended up driving 8 hours in -5 degree weather with outside air coming in the car. Seat heaters and steering wheel heater continued to work. My passengers and I had to wear coats, boots, gloves, and a hat and still got numb hands and feet. I felt this was a dangerous situation, unable to keep warm while driving or when pulled over. Manufacturer looked at the issue and said the refrigerant was slightly low and replenished it. I don't feel confident that this was an actual fix.

The Tesla adaptive cruise control has been malfunctioning for the past 12,000+ miles (since new). Yes, it is available for inspection upon request. When the cruise is set, there are a significant number of phantom breaking events, making it a real hazard for anyone following our vehicle. The breaking can happen as often as 3 times every minute, and can decelerate 10-15 mph within seconds before I am able to react and override the cruise. The vehicle has been inspected 2 times by the manufacturer and has been found to have no hardware failure. There is no warning prior to the phantom breaking. However, periodically there are warnings during the phantom breaking events in the form of alarms sounding.

Sudden braking while passing semi-trucks on a 2-lane highway while using Autopilot and Traffic-Aware Cruise Control. I made a video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LW-nrsR1Bg0

The adaptive cruise control system is very dangerous due to constant "phantom braking" problems. With cruise control enabled, the car will randomly slow down, sometimes gradually and others times rapidly. Sometimes the deceleration happens when passing a large truck, or a car on the other side of the road. Sometimes it is in response to shadows on the road. Sometimes there is no discernable reason. Instances of rapid and unexpected deceleration make it likely we will be hit by another car or otherwise cause an accident. This problem is prevalent throughout all Model Y cars and detailed online. Dealers say that there is nothing wrong with the vehicle and they hope it can be fixed in the future by software. However, in the meantime, the dangerous situation exists. My vehicle has not been inspected by anyone for this purpose, at least not yet. There are no warning lamps or messages when this happens.

The heat pump that supplies all heated air to the cabin stopped working completely. Safety was impacted because my windshield fogged up, making it impossible to see clearly out of my windshield or other windows. It was 11°F outside with no heating. I am not sure if a service center has been able to reproduce the issue, but I have images of the fogging and the error message. Nobody has inspected the issue yet. I received an error message "VCFRONT_a447" and "Cabin Climate Control System Requires Service" I have received this error message in two separate occasions now, both when it was lower than 15°F outside.

Hello, Tesla has released an update that will turn on the side camera when the blinker is activated. At night, the blinker can blind the camera making it difficult if not impossible to see any object. I'm concerned that this can cause the driver to turn into another car at night. The picture attached is with the hazard lights on and you can see how one camera works correctly and the other has a massive glare.

Sudden acceleration. I was stopped in my driveway (flat surface). The car started to roll forward and I pressed brake hard. Vehicle came to a complete stop but when I removed my foot from brake car lurched forward. Car hit a retaining wall approximately 3 feet away before I could stop it again by braking hard. When the car was put in park I was able to remove my foot from the brake without it lurching forward again. Little personal safety risk in this situation in my driveway with no other people around. the car hit the retaining wall at relatively low speed when it lurched forward.

I have written to you before on my Tesla automatic emergency braking (phantom braking) problem. I am updating you on the issue. Please see the enclosed file.

Heat pump failed when driving in minus 7F weather. Windows fogged up and car was dangerously cold. Only heat seater and steering wheel to stay warm.

The heater of the vehicle just stop working, due to MN cold weather and since there is no heat and just cold air blowing. It freezes the windshield and frost would build up with out any way to melt it since there’s no heat. It also fogs up the interior in the car since you can’t open the windows due MN minus windchill weathers. It’s hard to see and keep warm in a cold climate state. Tesla doesn’t see this is an emergency and it’s very concerning

The contact owns a 2021 Tesla Model Y. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the horn was inoperable unless extreme pressure was applied. The dealer was made aware of the failure and sent a Tesla associate to the contact's residence to inspect the horn; however, the vehicle was diagnosed but not repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was unavailable. Consumer stated horn works but very difficult to operate. Horn/airbag has to be pressed hard in the center which requires removing one hand from the steering wheel.

75 MPH on interstate with FSD 10.9. 6 separate phantom braking events over 350 miles. Very dangerous in traffic.

I was driving on the 7 mile bridge in the Florida Keys with the Adaptive cruise control set to 58 mph. There was no traffic in my lane for about a mile ahead of me. As an oncoming Semi approached me, remaining in his lane, my car applied emergency braking. I had to immediately add throttle to avoid a collision with the truck behind me. This “ Phantom braking “ has occurred on multiple occasions to me. There is no way to engage cruise control without the adaptive feature which uses cameras instead of radar on these new Teslas. I did not have this problem on my 2018 Tesla that did use radar.

When using cruise control or autopilot the vehicle will suddenly slam on the brake which almost caused an accident on multiple occasions. The lack of lasers has caused the cruise control and autopilot to become very dangerous to myself and others in road as the phantom braking it does for no reason is very powerful.

There is no heat in car. The Climate Control Failed. Cabin Climate Control System requires service is the error message. Its a known problem with Tesla Model 3 and Model y The temperature in the car was in the single digits. The window would not defrost and had a hard time seeing. Tesla expected me to drive the car in a snow storm to bring in for service. I canceled the appt with the next available appt 10 days later. Service scheduled for Jan 27th 2022. the 1st time it failed was Jan 15th 8:00am.

Received Error code: VCFRONT_447 indicating a cabin heat issue, and a complete loss of heat within the interior of the vehicle. It appears this also is preventing the battery from fully warming up causing severe vehicle power reduction and lack of regen braking. It being sub-zero and frost bite within minutes this poses a safety risk when traveling. The problem has been reported by other vehicle owners. It has not been inspected at this time. There were no other alerts prior to the issue starting on 1/20/2022 at ~6am CST.

Vehicle constantly experience phantom braking. Will randomly brake for shadows, vehicles in the opposing lane, and when it feels like it. Chance for rear collision is higher due to autopilot.

Started driving the car in cold weather and received message climate control needs service. The heater would not warm up. Tried shutting the car off and on and it still would not provide heat. It was under 20 degrees and had no heat or defrost.

While driving on ice and snow covered roads the regenerative braking feature comes in so strongly that it makes driving dangerous as the car loses traction and control every time the foot is removed from the accelerator. The regenerative braking automatically applies once the foot is removed from the accelerator. Tesla used to have an option to reduce the strength of the regenerative braking but removed that option in October of 2021. That change in software has made the vehicle unsafe to drive on slick roads. I was able to maintain control of the vehicle because of my driving skill, but did lose control numerous times during a 50 mile trip because of the increased regenerative braking feature. Tesla vehicles manufactured before October 2021 still have the option to reduce regenerative braking power, I also own one of those vehicles. I have attached a photo of that screen that shows the option.

The cruise control and auto pilot functions failed while driving in the rain. The car would not disengage from auto pilot and continually would engage back into auto pilot and eventually locking tires and spinning out across all lanes of the freeway. My safety and all the drivers around me are put at risk when something that dramatic occurs. The car spun out completely out of control and after doing a complete spin the car continued to spin losing all control and ended up inches from the center median and was facing oncoming traffic. Unknown- I instantly called tesla and removed my memory stick from the vehicle, they are still conducting their "investigation". Took it into the dealer and had them look into the issue. They are currently remotely working on what caused the issue with their engineers. No warning lamps or messages appeared prior to the occurence.

Several times now the car has done a phantom braking event where the car brakes for no reason when using adaptive cruise control on two lane highways. Mostly it's when large vehicles like a semi truck or RV passes in the other lane. Sometimes it appears to be due to shadows like overpasses or trees. The car slows down so quickly sometimes that if someone were following me it may cause a rear end collision. Most of the time the slowdown happened without warning. I have submitted a service ticket with Tesla about this but this seems to be a systemic problem on the TMC forums: https://teslamotorsclub.com/tmc/threads/phantom-braking-in-my-new-model-y.253378/#post-6301315 https://teslamotorsclub.com/tmc/threads/phantom-braking-and-active-safety-features.248184/ https://teslamotorsclub.com/tmc/threads/possible-to-deactivate-tacc-and-use-regular-dumb-cruise-control-phantom-braking-unexpected-slowdowns.235813/ https://teslamotorsclub.com/tmc/threads/27-phantom-brake-in-10-miles-how-often-should-i-press-camera-button-to-report-10-6-1-fsd.250396/