2021 TESLA MODEL 3 — Complaint #1814914
Open-data reference.
NHTSA Complaint about STEERING:AUTOMATED/ADAPTIVE STEERING filed May 26, 2022
NHTSA complaint #1814914 (ODI reference 11466262) concerns a 2021 TESLA MODEL 3 and was filed on May 26, 2022. The owner reports the failure occurred on May 16, 2022. The report was geocoded to Ohio based on the filer's self-reported location. The affected component is categorized as steering:automated/adaptive steering, one of NHTSA's standardized taxonomy codes used to group defect patterns across make, model, and year.
The filer flagged the following severity indicators: crash: yes, fire: yes, injuries: 1, fatalities: 1. A complaint that flags a crash, fire, or fatality is escalated on NHTSA's internal review queue and factors more heavily into any Preliminary Evaluation decision on this make and model. Because a VIN was supplied, this complaint is tied to a specific vehicle and not just a model-year cohort.
Individual complaints are consumer-submitted and unverified by NHTSA engineers — the agency's role at this stage is to collect, index, and make them searchable. What matters for federal action is the pattern: when many owners of the same TESLA MODEL 3 cohort independently describe similar steering:automated/adaptive steering failures, defect investigators have grounds to open a PE and request manufacturer data. Related filings for the same vehicle and component appear below, and the detail page for the full 2021 TESLA MODEL 3 shows the complete component-level complaint distribution alongside any active investigations or recalls.
Complaint Description
The contact's son owned a 2021 Tesla Model 3. The contact stated that his son was involved in a fatal collision while driving at an undisclosed speed with the autopilot activated. The contact was informed by his son's friend, who was a passenger in the vehicle, that the autopilot malfunctioned, causing the vehicle to inadvertently drive off the road, hit a tree, and then catch fire. An unknown bright orange light was seen on the windshield right before the failure occurred. The contact's son's friend was able to exit the vehicle, but the contact's son was unconscious and was not able to exit the vehicle. The fire department was able to extinguish the fire. A fire department report was filed. The contact's son's friend received medical attention for burns and bruises on his legs. The contact's son's autopsy report stated that his son died as a result of intense thermal heat and smoke inhalation. The vehicle was towed and remained with the Highway Patrol. The manufacturer was not made
Complaint Details
| NHTSA Complaint ID | 1814914 |
| ODI Number | 11466262 |
| Date Filed | May 26, 2022 |
| Failure Date | May 16, 2022 |
| VIN | 5YJ3E1EB0MF |
Source: NHTSA Vehicle Complaints Database. Component taxonomy and severity codes are standardized by NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation.
Read our methodology — how this data is sourced, computed, and verified.