NHTSA reviews defect petition on 2012–2023 Tesla Model 3 and 3 other models: Sudden Unintended Acceleration
On June 29, 2023, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) opened a Defect Petition (DP23002) into 2012–2023 Tesla Model 3 and 3 other models, concerning the vehicle speed control. A Defect Petition is a request, usually from a vehicle owner, asking NHTSA to open a defect investigation; ODI reviews it and then grants or denies it. As of NHTSA’s latest data it is still open.
- Action
- DP23002 (Defect Petition)
- Status
- Open
- Component
- Vehicle Speed Control
- Listed
- 33 make/model/year entries in NHTSA’s file
Vehicles under investigation
| Make | Tesla |
|---|---|
| Models | Model 3, Model S, Model X, Model Y |
| Model years | 2012–2023 |
As listed in NHTSA’s investigation file. Not every vehicle of a listed model is necessarily affected.
What ODI says
The Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) received a petition requesting that ODI reevaluate its decision to deny DP20-001 on the basis that intermittent high electrical current demands on the vehicles' 12VDC systems may have caused some or all of the incidents examined by ODI in DP20-001. The petitioner bases this information on a review of open-source research and the DP20-001 denial. The petition and related materials can be reviewed at NHTSA.gov under the following ODI number: 11528471.
Official summary by NHTSA’s Office of Defects Investigation for DP23002, quoted in full (U.S. government work, public domain).
What owners have reported
Owners filed 12,241 complaints with NHTSA about the model years in this investigation, reporting 1,343 crashes, 115 fires, 849 injuries, 209 deaths. These are all complaints on file for those vehicles, about any problem, not only this one; complaints are unverified owner reports.
| Vehicle | Complaints | Crashes | Injuries | Deaths |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2017 Model 3 | 26 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| 2018 Model 3 | 1,031 | 102 | 44 | 0 |
| 2019 Model 3 | 617 | 60 | 30 | 4 |
| 2020 Model 3 | 451 | 54 | 33 | 2 |
| 2021 Model 3 | 666 | 46 | 19 | 8 |
| 2022 Model 3 | 766 | 53 | 45 | 1 |
| 2023 Model 3 | 428 | 72 | 50 | 1 |
| 2012 Model S | 61 | 4 | 6 | 1 |
| 2013 Model S | 460 | 41 | 24 | 5 |
| 2014 Model S | 365 | 52 | 19 | 13 |
| 2015 Model S | 668 | 70 | 29 | 4 |
| 2016 Model S | 647 | 92 | 64 | 8 |
| 2017 Model S | 427 | 55 | 23 | 0 |
| 2018 Model S | 169 | 36 | 21 | 0 |
| 2019 Model S | 44 | 4 | 1 | 0 |
| 2020 Model S | 80 | 16 | 8 | 0 |
| 2021 Model S | 179 | 13 | 5 | 1 |
| 2022 Model S | 139 | 3 | 0 | 0 |
| 2023 Model S | 114 | 8 | 0 | 0 |
| 2015 Model X | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2016 Model X | 449 | 62 | 36 | 1 |
| 2017 Model X | 268 | 24 | 58 | 52 |
| 2018 Model X | 193 | 35 | 16 | 0 |
| 2019 Model X | 101 | 13 | 6 | 0 |
| 2020 Model X | 128 | 17 | 6 | 0 |
| 2021 Model X | 41 | 3 | 2 | 0 |
| 2022 Model X | 127 | 12 | 2 | 0 |
| 2023 Model X | 194 | 18 | 12 | 0 |
| 2019 Model Y | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2020 Model Y | 280 | 47 | 25 | 0 |
| 2021 Model Y | 1,085 | 88 | 25 | 4 |
| 2022 Model Y | 866 | 90 | 152 | 103 |
| 2023 Model Y | 1,171 | 152 | 87 | 1 |
Recalls and problems for these vehicles
Timeline
- ODI opens defect petition DP23002
- OpenNo closing date yet
What this means for owners
- An investigation is not a recall. NHTSA has not made a defect finding here, and owners are not asked to do anything yet. If a safety defect is confirmed, the manufacturer recalls the vehicles and the repair is free.
- Check your vehicle for open recalls with a free VIN recall check.
- Had this problem? File a complaint with NHTSA. Owner complaints are the evidence ODI uses to open and expand investigations.
Official record: search DP23002 or your vehicle at NHTSA.gov/recalls, which lists investigations alongside recalls. Data: NHTSA ODI investigations file, updated daily. All NHTSA investigations.