NHTSA has received 28 owner complaints about the 2026 Tesla Model 3, or 28.0 per year on the road — fewer complaints than typical (complaint index 0.69, where 1.00 is the average of all tracked vehicles). Among the 73 model-year 2026 vehicles we track, it ranks #54 of 73 by complaints per year (#1 = fewest). Against other Tesla models its rate is 53% lower; against other Electric vehicles it is 45% lower.
Counts are normalized by time on the road, not by sales volume: a popular model generates more reports than a rare one, and complaints are not verified individually. How we count
Limited data: fewer than 30 complaints, so shares and indexes are unstable.
Complaints filed between 2026-01-16 and 2026-10-06. Median delay from incident to filing: 4 days.
28Complaints
28.0Complaints per year on the road
0.69Complaint index vs. all tracked vehicles
1Recalls
32.1%Share involving a crash or fire
28Last 12 months
Analysis
The previous model year (2025) drew 66.0 complaints per year, more than this one.
The most common problem area is Electrical (21.4% of complaints), followed by Driver-assist systems (21.4%) and Unspecified or other (21.4%). 9 reports (32.1%) describe a crash or fire; owners mention 3 injuries and 0 deaths.
Half of the reported incidents happened within 7 months of the model year's start; the busiest period was the first year (100% of incidents). In the last 12 months 28 complaints were filed, versus none in the 12 months before.
NHTSA lists 1 safety recall for this model year. 3 NHTSA investigations cover this model year; the most recent is “FSD Collisions in Reduced Roadway Visibility Conditions” (engineering analysis, opened 2026-03-18, still open).
On Sept 22 2026at approximately 10:26 AM, my Tesla vehicle was involved in a low-speed, 5 -10 mph rear-end collision while the Full Self-Driving (FSD) Supervised automation system was engaged.
Unspecified or other · 2026-09-22 · ODI 11766182 · Crash
On August 26, 2026, at approximately 8:56 AM, I entered a public parking garage in Washington, DC. Full Self-Driving (Supervised) was engaged and controlling the vehicle during a reversing maneuver.
Electrical · 2026-08-31 · ODI 11761157 · Crash
The contact owns a 2026 Tesla Model 3. The contact stated that while driving 65 MPH, the steering wheel independently turned to the left and the right. The brake pedal was depressed; however, the vehicle failed to stop as intended.
Brakes · 2026-10-06 · ODI 11769327
Car was in self-driving and struck a piece of concrete. The car was in hands free and was being monitored by me, the driver. This obstruction was in the left side of the lane, about 2" tall, a foot wide and 6" across.
Steering · 2026-10-05 · ODI 11769065
The contact owns a 2026 Tesla Model 3. The contact stated that while driving 35 MPH with the Autonomous Self-Driving feature enabled, the vehicle was driving in the left-turn lane and jerked over into the oncoming traffic.
Electrical · 2026-09-30 · ODI 11768125
Excerpts from complaints filed with NHTSA, trimmed for length. The ODI number is NHTSA's record identifier.
Summary: Tesla, Inc. (Tesla) is recalling certain 2026 Model 3 and Model Y vehicles. The fasteners attaching the seat back to the seat bottom may have been improperly tightened.
Risk: The seat may not properly restrain the occupant, increasing the risk of injury during a crash.
Remedy: Tesla Service Centers will inspect and tighten or replace the seat assembly fasteners as necessary, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed August 16, 2025. Owners may contact Tesla customer service at 1-877-798-3752. Tesla's number for this recall is SB-25-13-003.
The Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) is opening this Engineering Analysis to evaluate Tesla’s Full Self Driving Beta and Full Self Driving (Supervised) (collectively, FSD) degradation detection system. The focus of this investigation will be to assess the system’s ability, when encountering reduced roadway visibility conditions, to detect degradation and alert the driver with sufficient time …
Traffic safety violations while Full Self Driving ("FSD") is engagedOpen
The Office of Defects Investigation (“ODI”) is opening this Preliminary Evaluation (PE) to assess the scope, frequency, and potential safety consequences of FSD executing driving maneuvers that constitute traffic safety violations. This investigation concerns versions of FSD that Tesla has labeled as "FSD (Supervised)" and "FSD (Beta)." Tesla characterizes FSD as an SAE Level 2 partial automation sy…
Compliance with Standing General Order 2021-01 Reporting RequirementsOpen
The Office of Defects Investigation (“ODI”) has identified numerous incident reports submitted by Tesla, Inc. (“Tesla”) in response to Standing General Order 2021-01 (the “SGO”), in which the reported crashes occurred several months or more before the dates of the reports. The majority of these reports involved crashes in which the Standing General Order in place at the time required a report to b…
