2018 Tesla Model 3 Complaint Log

The contact owns a 2018 Tesla Model 3. The contact stated that when the vehicle was started, the front passenger's side restraint warning light illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, where it was diagnosed with a seat belt restraint failure. The contact was informed that the front passenger's side wiring harness needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. In addition, the contact stated that a year prior to the failure, the front driver's side restraint failed, and the vehicle was repaired. The contact stated that at that time, the front passenger's side restraint failure was intermittent; however, the repair for the front passenger's side restraint was not completed because the failure was not duplicated. The contact stated that only the driver's side wiring harness was replaced under warranty. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure but provided no assistance. The failure mileage was approximately 60,000.

getting a "front left safety restraint fault" warning when moving the driver seat...is a known issue in tesla forums where the seat wiring harness is not secured properly and either a wire is crimped by the seat mechanicals or a wiring harness is pulled loose...

While driving on the highway with FSD on, the car severely amalfunctioned with sudden deceleration at 4 separate ocassions. At 68 mph when changing lanes, the car suddenly decelerated. There were several cars behind us and it could have been a major multi car collision. At all 4 ocassions, I immediately took over control on steering and acceleration, thus avoiding any accident. This problem has not been reproduced or confirmed by a dealer or independent service center yet. My vehicle or component(s) have also not been inspected by the manufacturer, police, insurance representatives or others yet. Additionally, there were no warning lamps, messages or other symptoms of the problem prior to the failure.

The contact owns a 2018 Tesla Model 3. The contact stated that after taking the vehicle for service, the contact was made aware that the front suspension lateral linkage bolt had detached and that the bolts were damaged. No warning lights were illuminated. The vehicle was repaired. After investigating the failure, the contact related the failure to NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V235000 (Suspension); but the VIN was not included. The manufacturer was notified of the failure, and a case was opened. The failure mileage was approximately 51,000.

Error message in passenger airbag restraint system. There is a known issue where the cable bundle in the seat wears with movement of the seat, causing a short. Tesla has redesigned the bundle and it’s using a new airbag, but will only replace the faulty bundle if it fails while under warranty. It is a >$1900 Repair for the customer. Upon my research, this happens frequently even in the first year of the car. My car has 39,000 miles on it is faulty already. They can’t replace the bundle because the new Improved bundle requires a different airbag, increasing the cost of the consumer

Tesla has completely changed the user interface on a few occasions. It is now dangerous for me to try to change the danged radio station if the car is in motion because of the amount of attention to the display needed to locate and select something, even stations I regularly listen to. In a prior version the ones I regularly used easily popped up in a small area. It takes multiple touches just to navigate through to the station I last listened to. This is the worst they've done, but they regularly change the User Interface for no particularly good reason/benefit. Cars should be easy to use.

Front passenger safety restraint system fault error. They tried fixing and it started the next day again. Now they want to replace this along with my airbag. This seems to be a consistent issue reading forums online. This is a manufacturing defect and major safety issue.

the suspension: the control arms and lateral links suddenly stopped working. No trauma to car. Car only has 25, 000 miles. Very dangerous as car and steering could have stopped working suddenly and cause death and an accident. No warning lights went on at all. Only a sudden grinding and clanking sound. I had to pay over $2000 out of pocket to repair and I had to wait a full month before they were able to diagnose and repair it. It was diagnosed and repaired by a Tesla dealer.

Received an alert about front seat safety restraint system fault. Decided to see what was needed for the fix and address my other trunk harness recall. Received invoice stating the airbag needed to be replaced along with $1900 quote. Knowing this info, if this doesn’t get fix the safety of my passengers are at risk so now I definitely can’t have any passengers. Not sure how I should be responsible for a safety seat airbag sensor defect.

My Tesla Model 3 Made an Accident on [XXX] on [XXX] exit at [XXX] . The Tesla Model 3 is driving under Full Auto Drive. The Model 3 was waiting at traffic light at [XXX] exit at [XXX] . There is an other car stopped in the middle of cross road waiting on traffic. The light goes green, my tesla start to move trying to make left turn. But the other car still block the way. My car first stop and about 1 second the car suddenly run into the car and driver side mirror and door hit the other car’s tails light and rear bumper. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

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

Starting Jun 15 2024 an error came up saying "Left Restraint System fault" after a remote software update for Model 3 2018 Tesla The Alert comes up intermittently & Tesla requires $359.50 to change First Row Seat Harness Assembly - Left

Drivers door opens at. random

Started receiving Error RCM_a056 Front Passenger Safety Restraint System Fault. The vehicle shows that the passenger airbags are DISABLED after the alert is issued. I am working under the assumption that all passenger airbags (front, side, overhead) are currently disabled at all times. This puts my family at risk if there were to be a collision. Tesla seems to know exactly what the problem is because the estimate came back shortly with a list of fixes required at a cost of $1,768.35 to 1) Correction: install an Occupant Classification System (OCS) filter Module, 2) Correction: Retrofit SBR in OCS Equipped Front Passenger Seat - Remove and Replace, and 3) Correction: Replace Front Passenger Airbag and Update Vehicle Configuration - Remove and Replace. Quick internet search shows this is a SYSTEMIC problem with a bad part (Tesla forums and search your own databases for the past year or so... these are the people who know to report this to you, there are probably a lot of others). I'm 6 months out of warranty for a sensor that should not have wear and tear. Furthermore a retrofit demonstrates that they are replacing a KNOWN problem part. Additionally, there is no rational reason to replace a perfectly good airbag. Replacing the airbag because it is incompatible with a retrofit sensor should be free. Retrofitting a sensor that has a known problem should not be a cost to the consumer for a part that is not subject to wear and tear. Adding a filter to a sensor line shows that the sensor is not an appropriate part or the filter should have been added to start with in original manufacturing. Note Tesla has a procedure already out to address the problem SB-23-20-002 which shows they already know it is a problem that needs to be addressed when the sensor failure shows up. Recommend and request an investigation into whether there is a lower cost fix for what seems like a known problem or require a recall to repair to a safe state.

My 2018 Model 3 started giving me the error "RCM_a056_passengerFrontOCS" today. This is caused by a faulty passenger occupancy weight sensor. This has been an ongoing issue in these models evidenced by SB-23-20-002 being revised 6 times. Tesla has resisted fixing this safety issue because the air bag also needs to be replaced to maintain compatibility with the redesigned Occupant Classification System (OCS) weight sensor evidenced in Tesla SB-23-20-001. Tesla has redesigned the known bad sensor part no. part 1121234-70-B with an updated part no. 099592-00-F which is only compatible with an updated airbag. The OCS weight sensor was defective from the point of manufacture. The RCM_a056 error only appeared after applying the latest firmware update that addresses NHTSA recall 24V-376. The firmware update made the firmware more sensitive to analog sensor readings which revealed the originally defective OCS weight sensor triggering the error message. Nearly half of the recent NHTSA complaints for this model involve this exact issue. This OCS hardware sensor was always defective and poses an ongoing safety concern. The defective system never should have been approved as it did not function as intended originally. The NHTSA must issue a new recall that covers the defective hardware instead of just the software as in NHTSA recall 24V-376. Without corrected hardware the OCS system will not work as intended which is allowing the airbags to prevent injury and death in the event of collision. [XXX] TeslaSB-23-20-002Replace Occupant Classification System (OCS) of Front Passenger Seat while Servicing Subcomponents TeslaSB-23-20-002 R1 TeslaSB-23-20-002 R2 TeslaSB-23-20-002 R4 TeslaSB-23-20-002 R5 TeslaSB-23-20-002 R6 TeslaSB-23-20-001Update Front Passenger Airbag to Maintain Compatibility While Servicing Front SB Passenger Seat [XXX] INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

I recently took my car in for a recall for the trunk wiring harness and have never had any major issues since I purchased it in 2018. Since replacing the recalled harness, I’m starting to receive several alerts from my driver assistance system (emergency brakes, camera failure). I called a service tech who mentioned there’s either a failed camera or a failed wiring harness. Looking online, I was shocked to see hundreds of other owners with a 2018 model 3 also experiencing the same issue in 2024 (assuming after they replaced the recently recalled harness). I strongly believe that these two issues are related and that the camera should be replaced alongside the wiring harness. Several people on this forum have been quoted hundreds or thousands from tesla to replace the harness (including myself) and are taking matters into their own hands by replacing with after market parts. This is a serious safety issue since the cameras control all self driving functionality. I’m shocked that it’s not already been addressed through a recall! The first time my system had gone out while on Autopilot, the car flashed and sirened and asked that I take over. Since then all my driver assistance features including my rear camera are no longer functional. Please see this forum where several others are experiencing the same issue on their 2018 Model 3s [XXX] Attached are error messages from my car and screenshots from the forum above where people have described the DIY fix and the costs quoted by Tesla. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

1. There is an open recall since Dec 2021 (21V-00D) which Tesla has still not fixed! 2. The automatic wiper system on the car is unsafe as it takes a long time to activate when its raining, and sometimes it activates without any rain!

Front Passenger Safety Restraint System Fault. From Invoice: Tesla to Replace Front Passenger Airbag And Update Vehicle Configuration Passenger Airbag error malfunction!!! Passenger Airbag Harness Malfunction!!! Correction: Retrofit SBR in OCS Equipped Front Passenger Seat - Remove and Replace Seatbelt issue!!! FIRST ROW SEAT HARNESS ASSEMBLY - RIGHT HAND FIRST ROW - SEAT BELT REMINDER SENSOR BOX CLIP FIRST ROW OCCUPANCY SENSOR Giving an error and now they are charging me to fix this defect in my Tesla Model 3

Without warning, it became extremely difficult to turn the wheel while I was driving. An alert simultaneously appeared stating that steering assist was reduced. I was able to park the car, with difficulty, and then updated the software. The warning disappeared and the steering seemed to work again. Tesla recommended a remote visit only since the car didn’t appear to have any current warnings, however I requested an in-person evaluation. It was determined that the car had a faulty steering rack. They stated that this did not appear to be from damage, and instead an internal fault.

The contact owns a 2018 Tesla Model 3. The contact stated that there was an abnormal sound underneath the vehicle. There were no warning lights illuminated. The front passenger restraint message was displayed. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 24V376000 (Seat Belts); however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The local dealer was contacted. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer, where it was diagnosed that the front lower link was tearing. The vehicle was not repaired. 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. The failure mileage was approximately 37,000. Parts distribution disconnect.

Keep getting a safety restraint system fault error displayed and the estimate is more than $2000.This error just came out of the blue and I am not sure if the vehicle is safe to operate.

The car issued me a "front left safety restraint system fault" saying service is required. The code it flashed was RCM_a021. I am able to get the code to go away by adjusting the seat, however, if i shift my weight or i hit a bump in the road, the warning will appear once again. This leads me to believe that there is a component in the seat that is defective. I took vehicle to the Tesla service center where they found a "broken wire in the pretensioner connector" and they replaced the wiring harness. Upon doing investigation it appears that there are multiple components that are used to determine the firing intensity of the airbags should they go off. If either are damaged the airbags will not fire correctly. Some of these components can be easily damaged due to the seats constant back/forth motion if the easy entry mode is enabled on the car. As the car was outside the warranty period, Tesla refused to cover the costs for repair even though there was a TSB (technical service bulletin) already out on this same issue (reference SB-21-17-005). Total cost for repair including parts, labor and tax was $631.10.

1. PTC Heater, old part is available for inspection 2. PTC heater failed while driving, experienced loss of power and slow loss of secondary electrical systems (the 12v battery was not able to recharge itself with the PTC heater not functioning). When attempting to restart car after pulling into a parking lot, the entire car died (12V battery was drained so it couldn't start up) and had to get towed to Tesla service center. PTC heater is critical for car to operate as it is closely linked to 12V battery. Additionally, without PTC heater car cannot defog windshield, resulting in potentially poor visibility. 3. Dealer replaced the defective part (PTC heater) and had to replace 12V battery as well. Was not covered under warranty and I had to pay the cost out of pocket. 4. Inspected by manufacturer and replaced. 5. Got warning signs about reduced power available, and secondary electrical features were limited.

The contact owns a 2018 Tesla Model 3. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, he heard an abnormal grinding sound emanating from the front driver's side of the vehicle, after which he became aware that the electronic power steering was not functioning properly, requiring that the steering wheel be manually returned to center. No warning lights were illuminated. The vehicle was not taken to the dealer or an independent mechanic. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The VIN was not available. The failure mileage was 43,000.

The buttons in the interior seem to be degrading much quicker than it should be. The window levers become lose and can break off. This is a safety hazard as in not able to raise the window if it allows to lower it. One has to park in order to raise windows in the mobile application. The plastics are breaking too quickly. There is also an issue with levers for the seat adjusting. Also, when canceling service requests in their application, Tesla deletes or hides them without an ability to see what was written to show proof later of their faults.

I'm receiving an error "Front Passenger Restraint System Fault". According to online forums, this issue is PREVALENT amongst many Tesla vehicles. This seems like a serious defect that Tesla should be responsible for fixing.

My car started giving me an alert for a "Front Passenger Safety Restraint System Fault". There has been no accident to cause an issue. I'm being told by the service center that it is a known occurrence and certain models/years, require a new safety vent type front passenger airbag to maintain compatibility between the front passenger seat and the front passenger airbag.

Front control arms are indicating loud noises suspected to be failure of these components. The vehicle handles poorly at speeds over 35 mph as a result. I contacted Tesla and they were to schedule a service appointment back in May but it hasn't happened. The internet shows this to be a very common issue with selected recalls for these components. I never received a recall notice. My car is out of warranty for both mileage and length of time.

I am reporting a safety concern with my Tesla Model 3. The vehicle is equipped with both a high and low horn, and the low horn in my car has failed. After discussing with other early production Model 3 owners, I’ve found that this is a widespread issue affecting many vehicles. A failing horn is highly unusual in modern vehicles, and I believe this issue should be addressed through a recall due to its frequency among Model 3 owners. Tesla has quoted $400 to repair the horn, which seems unreasonable for a critical safety feature. It's important to note that some owners may not report the problem if only one horn (either high or low) is affected. However, the failure of either horn poses a significant safety risk, as the reduced sound output may not be sufficient to alert other drivers in emergency situations. I believe this defect requires further investigation and should be considered for a recall. Thank you for your attention to this matter.

My 2017 Tesla Model 3 was unable to be successfully updated with the OTA firmware update remedy in compliance with NHTSA Recall No. 23V-838. The Tesla Service Advisor claims the computer is the cause of the failure and needs to be replaced at an estimated cost of $2,740.28 because it is no longer covered under warranty. Tesla replaced the original computer with Autopilot Hardware 3.0 at its discretion and expense in 2020, presumably to enable full FSD functionality as the FSD option was part of the original purchase. The computer controls all driving functions of the vehicle without fault and successfully communicates with the Tesla server so the diagnosis that it is defective and the cause of the OTA update failure, as opposed to a "buggy" software update, is highly suspect. Independently verifying the validity of Tesla's diagnosis is not possible given the proprietary nature of such work. In response to my query about the uniqueness of this problem, the Tesla Service Adviser admitted that other customers have paid to have their vehicle computers replaced for this same reason which, if true, is most troubling. It leads me to believe that Tesla is using the safety recall to exploit and profit from unwitting customers for an expensive and unnecessary fix when the root problem is an inadequately written firmware patch.

Passenger Airbag and seat are faulty. Received error message on my car “front passenger safety restraint system faulty”. Tesla is wanting to replace the airbag and passenger seat and seat belt and it will cost few thousands dollars.

My car began making a loud creaking noise that was palpable in the gas pedal on turns, especially when turning into an incline. I requested service from tesla who gave me an appointment approximately a month after my request. The noise grew louder and more frequent so I messaged service again to make sure the car was safe to drive and see if an earlier time was available. They replied that yes it was safe and no there was no earlier time. Soon thereafter I pulled into a parking spot and heard a very loud noise from the front left and got out to find the left front wheel bent inward and support components hanging from the bottom of the car in contact with the pavement. Per Tesla service's report, "front suspension damage and driver side front finder damage...left front strut damage, front sub-frame assembly damage, lower lateral links damage, aero shield is damaged, and both front lateral and compliance link brushings torn." Recommend to replace front suspension lower lateral and compliance links, both front upper control arms, left front strut, front sub-frame assembly and perform four wheel alignment. Steering rack feels harder than normal while turning on the lift. Recommend to replace steering rack assembly" The technician stated that this appeared to be due to "collision damage". The car was hit while parked a year ago, but a Tesla-authorized collision repair facility did not identify damage to any of these components at the time of repair. The quote for repair currently is $7374.47.

The vehicle showed an alert "Front passenger safety restraint system fault/Service is required". The vehicle never had an accident, nor abnormal usage, which may have caused this system fault. The manufacturer's service department gave a repair plan including an air-bag replacement at the owner's cost. It is not fair to force vehicle owners to be responsible for the cost to repair the manufacturer's safety system problem. The repair should be done under a safety recall.

This is a follow up to issue 11584898. Tesla Service states that due to the seat belt fault, the vehicle is not safe to drive until repair is complete. Tesla is also not providing a loaner vehicle until the vehicle is repaired. This puts many Model 3 and Model Y Drivers at risk due to limited Tesla and 3rd party service centers, limited service center schedule availability, and high cost of repair.

A defect in manufacturing causes the seat sensor (in this case: passenger) connection to fail. The connection has no retaining clip and falls out. This disables the airbag deployment calculations. Error code: RCM_a056 Telsa wants to replace seat and calibrate airbag at consumer's cost, Quoted ~$1500 I've pushed the connector back in several times over the past few years, one day it's going to hurt someone.

The first time was rattling and squeaking from front driver's side wheel. It got progressively worse so I took it in and they replaced the control arms. About 10 months later the rattling is back. This time Tesla says it's a different problem. I need to replace the lateral links, the compliance links and get a wheel alignment.

I engaged the vehicle's automatic parking function when prompted by the car. The process initiated as expected, and the car began to back into an open spot. In the process of parking, the automated system steered into a curb, damaging the left front wheel in the process. As an aside, the list of "Problem Parts" above should include "autonomous driving system".

The 2018 Tesla model 3 has no manual release for rear passenger doors. Rear doors often fail to open due to door panel alignment or actuator for door. Doors will feel like they are opening but will be stuck. passenger will be unable to exit the rear of the vehicle incase of fire, power loss or due to an accident with no ability to exit the rear of the vehicle.

Front passenger seat restraint safety system fault. My car only has 40,000 miles is out of warranty. $2200+ estimate from Tesla. This safety issue happens often according to Tesla Owner sites.

My car has 98,000 miles and out of warranty. When driving 10 days ago I saw a message on the screen "Front Passenger Restraint System Fault" I took the car to the Tesla Garage and was advised that it might be the air bag. They said it could cost as much as $$1,826.66. They kept the vehicle and sent a message asking me to authorise my credit card pay this amount when done. First of all I note on the Tesla Motors Club that I am not alone. Second I have to rely on Tesla being honest about this. They have their own propriety testing system so I could not take it to another mechanic. Last of all I have never experienced a failed air bag in my vehicles before and it seems that Tesla has problems and this should have been paid by them as a recall item

I was parked on a flat street and got in my car and began driving. I went one city block at a slow pace because cars were stopped ahead. I pressed my brake pedal and it went all the way to the floor with no tension or braking. It was “floppy”. I was able to stop in the road (in traffic) and since it was a quiet street I decided I should try to reboot the car (thinking maybe it was a software glitch). Luckily only 2 cars passed me as this was happening because even the hazard lights go off during a reboot. Once the car was started up the brakes felt tight again so I drove another block, still going under 20 MPH. At the next intersection the brakes stopped working again and were “loose”My foot would go all the way to the floor with no effect. I saw a space at the corner to pull into (not a legal parking space but my car could fit so I could pull out of traffic). The regenerative brakes worked and I rolled to a stop. I called Tesla. They agreed the car was not safe to drive and asked me to tow it to them. They worked on the car for about a week and half. They told me the Hydraulic Control Unit failed and was replaced. They said the unit is in a protected area and did not fail because of impact or because of my breaking habits. They said it is possible that it might just fail overtime. But there was no warning, light or indicator that it was failing, and the brakes just stopped working suddenly it could’ve been much worse. If I had parked on a hill that day or made my way to a freeway this would have been a very different story. I can’t believe that brakes can fail like that with no warning at all.

Following an over-the-air software update, all audio in the vehicle stops working. This includes entertainment services, but more importantly turn signal indicator "clicks", forward collision warnings, parking assist chimes, shift confirmation and warning chimes, and various ADAS notification sounds. In some instances, the problem corrected itself within 24 hours. In another instance, it persisted for nearly a week before I discovered that unplugging the USB cable for the dashcam fixed the problem. The dashcam hard drive has been installed for over 4 years, per the instructions in the user manual, without problems until early 2024. There were no error notifications or anything else to indicate that there was a problem with the car's safety systems, or what the cause of the problem was, except for the lack of audio. I chatted with Tesla service about the issue. After discovering and sharing that disconnecting the USB drive fixed the issue, they were persistent in wanting to cancel my appointment without gathering any additional information. Here is the transcript of our interaction: Me: Unplugging my dascham hard drive from the USB port fixed it. Weird. Tesla: Oh interesting. Good to know! Do we have permission to cancel this appointment? Me: Since it keeps happening I'd like to keep it open. I turned on remote debugging in case that helps you to report the bug or something. Tesla: We have nothing else to diagnose if your vehicle is operating as expected. Me: Ok. If it keeps happening I will still want to bring it in, so let's keep the appointment. And I wouldn't say it's operating as expected. Having to disconnect USB cable to get the turn signal to work properly isn't what I would expect. Tesla: I would hate for you to bring in your car, only for us to tell you that it is because of your third party accessory, and we charge you for the diagnostic time. Me: I appreciate your concern.

Tesla is unable to remediate recall 23V-838; TC2023-657, the over-the-air software update will not install on my car and is asking me to pay at least $200 to diagnosis the issue and then potentially $1000 to fix failed hardware.

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

Experienced safety restraint system failure on all four seats. Had them all fixed for ~$2,000. Front passenger restraint failed again next month. Know. Issue among the message boards online. Investigation into number of these repairs is likely merited.

The contact owns a 2018 Tesla Model 3. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed, a message displayed reading "Left from passenger safety restraint system fault". The vehicle was not taken to the dealer or an independent mechanic. The vehicle was not repaired. After investigating the failure, the contact related the failure to Technical Service Bulletin: SB-21-17-005. The manufacturer was notified of the failure, and a case was opened. The failure mileage was 105,000.

Safety Restraint System fault warning, passenger airbag off on display. 1) 4/10/24 Dealer replaced Occupant Classification System components for front passenger seat for $184.26. Dealer assured issue being resolved. 2) 5/5/24 Same fault warning, passenger airbag off on display reappeared for 2nd time and dealer replaced front passenger airbag for $1089.18. Dealer assured issue being resolved. 3) 5/10/24 Same fault warning, passenger airbag off on display again reappeared for 3rd time and dealer is now proposing to replaced front passenger seat back and seat cushions for $1248.07.

My car began producing very loud creaking noise at low speed. I brought the car into a Tesla service center and the technician said that this was a well known issue with the upper control arm of the front suspension. He mentioned he performs this repair every day. I was given an estimate of approximately $200 to repair the suspension. I later receive an updated estimate of $1,850. Tesla states there was extensive damage to the front suspension. In addition to the upper control arms; the compliance and lateral links of the front suspension were torn. The technician confirmed that the torn components posed a safety risk. This was shocking as the car only had 33,500 miles on it. I asked about the expected wear life of these components. Tesla was unable to provide me with an answer. Later I was reading discussions of this issue on an owner's forum. Many owners report this issue and have replaced their front suspension two or three times only to have the issue reoccur. It appears that Tesla knowingly sold vehicles with defective components, creating a safety issue; and have placed the burden of repairing and replacing these components on consumers.

Car displayed safety restraint system fault RCM_a094. Tesla diagnosed as rear seat buckle sensor failure. Additionally, car displays an intermittent fault RCM_a056. Tesla diagnosed this as a front passenger Occupant Classification System (OCS) sensor fault. Tesla stated the front passenger airbag would need to be replaced as the new sensor is not compatible with the older airbag. This renders the entire airbag system inoperable due to this component failure. The critical safety issue is extremely expensive as the incompatible sensor requires expensive airbag replacement. Furthermore, the safety system is prone to failure with 2 safety system faults occurring at <80k miles. Service rep stated that the 2018 model year has had issues with the airbag system that is why they updated the module. I asked for recall or replacement at Tesla cost but was denied. Facebook group discussions and search indicate others have intermittent OCS sensor failure and this is likely a defective part for that year.

Tesla Model 3 autopilot engaged. The car steered itself off the road and into a tree as it was accelerating on a residential street from 8 mph to approx. 30 mph.