2021 TESLA MODEL Y — Complaint #2150168
Open-data reference.
NHTSA Complaint about SUSPENSION filed November 19, 2025
NHTSA complaint #2150168 (ODI reference 11700389) concerns a 2021 TESLA MODEL Y and was filed on November 19, 2025. The owner reports the failure occurred on November 19, 2025. The report was geocoded to Illinois based on the filer's self-reported location. The affected component is categorized as suspension, 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: no, fire: no, injuries: 0, fatalities: 0. No crash, fire, or fatality was associated with this report, which places it in the early-warning stream rather than the priority-review stream. 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 Y cohort independently describe similar suspension 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 Y shows the complete component-level complaint distribution alongside any active investigations or recalls.
Complaint Description
The front suspension on my 2021 Tesla Model Y developed progressive creaking and groaning noises during low-speed turning, especially in parking lots or when maneuvering. The noise began intermittently around 45,000 miles and became much louder by around 86,000 miles, which made me concerned about a potential safety issue before a long family trip. The sound comes from the front lower suspension area and indicates that something may be loose or failing. I am worried about the possibility of losing steering control if the suspension components separate or shift while driving, especially with my children in the car. The Tesla Service Center in Lisle, Illinois inspected the vehicle and informed me that both front lower lateral links and both front lower compliance links must be replaced (all four front suspension links). The repair estimate is about $1,600. This problem appears identical to the condition described in Teslaâs campaign/recall SB-21-31-003 / NHTSA 21V835, which involves
Complaint Details
| NHTSA Complaint ID | 2150168 |
| ODI Number | 11700389 |
| Date Filed | November 19, 2025 |
| Failure Date | November 19, 2025 |
| VIN | 5YJYGDEE9MF |
Similar SUSPENSION Complaints for 2021 TESLA MODEL Y
Both torn bushing and broken links at 29k miles.
Vehicle experienced front suspension lateral link failure. The links separated from the sub-frame due to improperly secured fasteners. This is the exact defect described in existing recall SB-21-31-00
The upper control arm bolt came loose on its own.
There is a rip in the lower control bushing making steering difficult to control. I see that this is a common issue but no recall yet. My car has only 28k miles.
Both front half shafts failed and had to be replaced by Tesla. I did research and this part is known to be substandard, was recalled in China, and remains a problem in the US.
Source: NHTSA Vehicle Complaints Database. Component taxonomy and severity codes are standardized by NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation.
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