2023 Tesla Model 3

This page is a draft. It has not been approved yet, so read it with care.

Watch out for

Reputation: what owners and the press report. Tap one to see what to check.

Creaking front upper control arms All years

What to check: Drive slowly over bumps and listen for creaks, pops or clicks from the front. Ask whether the upper arms have been replaced.

The ball joint of the front upper arm wears and creaks, and cannot be replaced on its own. InsideEVs called it a chronic defect. Eleven owners in one Tesla Motors Club thread report it, on 2018, 2019 and 2022 cars among others; some had both arms replaced.

Sources ^1,2
Heating that stops working All years

What to check: Run the heat on high and make sure it blows hot.

Electrek reported widespread heating failures on brand-new 2021 cars with the heat pump in the winter of 2020. Drive Tesla reported more in early 2022, on heat-pump cars in extreme cold and on older cars with a resistive heater, some after software updates; on the older cars the fix was a new heating unit.

Sources ^3,4
Battery capacity All years

What to check: Get a battery health report showing how much capacity is left.

Recurrent's data on more than 1,500 US cars showed an average loss of 40 miles of range in the first 20,000 miles, levelling off after that. Its later study found range fell most in the first 1,000 days.

Sources ^5,6
Panel gaps and paint flaws All years

What to check: Look along every panel gap and over the paint in good light.

Edmunds calls build quality "a bit of a dice roll", and owners reviewing 2023 cars on Edmunds name panel gaps and paint problems.

Sources ^7,8
Sudden braking with nothing ahead Built after April 27, 2021 One source so far

What to check: Try the cruise control on an open road and note any sudden, unneeded braking.

NHTSA opened an investigation into phantom braking on 2021 cars built after April 27, 2021.

Sources ⁹

Recalls

21V834000 2020–2023
A side curtain airbag may be poorly fixed to the roof rail and twist. It is checked and realigned.^10,11
22V844000 2023
One or both tail lights may fail to light from time to time. Fixed over the air.¹¹
23V085000 2017–2023
Full Self-Driving Beta can behave unsafely at junctions and respond poorly to speed limit changes. Fixed over the air.^12,11
23V434000 2023
The pyrotechnic battery disconnect may be faulty. The part is replaced.¹¹
23V838000 2017–2023
Autosteer's checks may not do enough to stop a driver misusing it. Fixed over the air.^12,11
24V051000 2017–2023
The brake, parking brake and ABS warning lights are shown in letters too small. Fixed over the air.^12,11
24V376000 2017–2023
The seat belt warning may not come on for an unbelted driver. Fixed over the air.^12,11
24V554000 2021–2024
The car may not notice a hood left unlatched. Fixed over the air.^13,14
24V935000 2017–2025
The low tire pressure warning light may not stay on from one drive to the next. Fixed over the air.^12,15
25V092000 2023
A circuit board can be overstressed and lose the power steering assist. Fixed over the air.¹¹
26V283000 2017–2023
The rear camera picture can lag when reversing. Fixed over the air.^12,11
26V507000 2017–2023
The low beams can be brighter than the law allows. The headlights are replaced.^16,11

Checked against NHTSA records on 21 October 2026.

Watch out for

Recalls

Sources