Which parts fail
Components named in complaints (accelerator pedal, throttle, sudden acceleration, cruise control).
Mileage when the problem started
Owner reports
Selected complaints filed with NHTSA by 2020 Tesla Model 3 owners, lightly cleaned up (personal details are redacted by NHTSA).
The contact owned a 2020 Tesla Model 3. The contact stated while pulling into the driveway and depressing the brake pedal, the vehicle failed to respond, accelerated unintendedly, broke through the garage door, and crashed into the vehicle parked inside the garage. The other vehicle moved away and damaged the garage. There was no warning light illuminated. The air bags did not deploy. The contact shifted into reverse (R), pulled out of the driveway and shifted into drive (D). The brake pedal was depressed but the vehicle failed to respond. The contact stated that he hit the curb to stop the vehicle, and the vehicle stopped. The contact stated that all the air bags then deployed. The vehicle failed to unlock. The contact rolled down the windows and cried for help until the neighbors arrived and opened the vehicle from the outside. …
The contact owns a 2020 Tesla Model 3. The contact stated while driving in the rain with the autopilot engaged the vehicle accelerated without warning and was incontrollable, flipped two times, and hit the curb. The contact sustained neck injuries and medical attention was provided at the hospital. All the air bags deployed. There was no reported fire. A police report was filed. The vehicle was towed to an independent body shop. The local dealer was contacted who referred the contact to the body shop. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 29,000.
I was making a right turn from the parking lot onto the street, a maneuver I have made hundreds of times previously without any issue. My foot was on the accelerator pedal as normal for this turn. The vehicle accelerated far faster than intended for this maneuver, with tires screeching, and continued across the width of the street. The vehicle's front left wheel struck the curb on the opposite side of the street from the parking lot exit. The wheel sustained significant damage, and the wheel rim was torn. When I regained my bearings, I lifted my foot off the accelerator and the vehicle slowed down. At the time, I believed a serious crash was imminent. I was able to drive the vehicle home, which was about 1 1/2 miles away, but it is not safe to drive so I won't drive it until it is repaired. …
on July 19,2022, when I was driving on driveway, at less than 5 miles, I tried to stop to drop my wife and applied brake. Instead of brake, due to computer mal function, it accelerated & hit the garage door, broke the garage door, door fell on the car parked in the garage, damaged that car,and tesla automatically reversed. while reversing brake wasn't working too so I tried to put in drive & brake still was not working so to stop the car for safety, I hit the curb in my front yard All airbags were deloyed, inuring both of us. All doors were locked & we couldn't open any of them. We could open windshield. We shouted HELP and my neighbor came & open the door from outside so we could get out otherwise we both could be dead inside the car
I was on the exit lane coming from Costco on 12/31/2022 at around 12:20 PM with a speed of about 40 miles . My exit is about 100 yards away. Tesla model 3 that I'm driving suddenly accelerated at high speed and pulled towards right and hit the wall next to freeway exit lane. Then it hit the wall on rear tailgate and rolled to middle of freeway within a fraction of seconds. Two vehicles coming on the freeway hit my car and after second hit my car completely stopped in the middle of freeway. I was able to come out safely and later CHP officers came and towed the vehicle
The contact stated that while idling and waiting to pick up the elementary school kids in their vehicle, a 2020 Tesla Model 3 suddenly experienced unintended acceleration causing the driver to lose control of the vehicle and crash into the rear of the contact's vehicle and trailer. During the incident, the contact sustained a lower back injury and the driver of the Tesla Model 3 suffered a chest injury. A police report was taken at the scene. No further information was available. The failure mileage was unknown.
We had Model 3 with instance of unintended acceleration at the gate of a parking lot. This car was bought in May 2020. On December 6, 2020, she was on the way out of the parking gate and suddenly the car accelerated, hitting the side wall of the gate. The car flew over a two-way street, resulting in a compound fracture of her right hip requiring internal fixation and transfusion. The vehicle was inspected by the police. There were no warning lamps, messages, or other symptoms prior to failure.
Vehicle was at a stop with brake engaged and then it proceeded to go full speed into a vehicle two meters away without acceleration pedal engaged. Emergency brake did not activate during or slightly before the collision. The brakes had to be engaged manually, but vehicle was already past a certain velocity on its own accord to be able to stop properly without damaging property or harming pedestrians.
my son-in-law went straight off country road and into a tree car burnt to ground was burnt to death date was [redacted] sheriff Spokane county investigating teal front suspension repaired 1 month before at local Tesla shop Spokane wa INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6
Driving on cruise control (not autopilot), in the following conditions: on an interstate highway with all lanes in the traveling direction clear, no obstructions and no traffic to the front or to either side of the car, on a straight road with no bridge or on or off ramp in front of the car, daylight and no rain or or other participation, the car can unexpectedly and without warning aggressively brake. If the driver does not immediately regain control of the speed (by pressing the accelerator, or turning off the cruise control) the braking has caused the speed of the car to go from 75mph to 30mph. Unlike other Tesla accident avoidance features, the braking occurs with no indication that an obstruction is being avoided. I have owned the car since it was new and until Saturday 8 October 2022, the adaptive cruise control worked as expected. …
NHTSA investigations
Sudden Unintended Acceleration
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.
Acceleration complaints in other Model 3 years
Frequently asked questions
How common are acceleration problems on the 2020 Tesla Model 3?
NHTSA has 69 complaints about the speed control & acceleration of the 2020 Tesla Model 3, 15% of the model year's 452 complaints. The component named most often is accelerator pedal (1 mentions).
Is there a recall for 2020 Tesla Model 3 acceleration problems?
No. NHTSA lists no speed control & acceleration recall for the 2020 Tesla Model 3, though it has 21 recalls for other components. If the problem is widespread, a repair may still be covered by an extended warranty or a manufacturer service bulletin — ask a dealer.
At what mileage do 2020 Tesla Model 3 acceleration problems start?
Half of the complaints with a recorded mileage happened before about 2,000 miles, and 94% before 25,000 miles.
Is it dangerous?
Owners linked 18 crashes, 2 fires and 10 injuries and 1 death to speed control & acceleration problems on this model year. If you notice symptoms, have the car checked before driving further.
Source: U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) — owner complaints through October 20, 2026, recalls and defect investigations; fuel economy from the EPA. Complaints are unverified reports and are not proof of a defect. How we rate model years.