Which Tesla Model Y years have automatic emergency braking problems?

Every model year from 2020 to 2025 has complaints. The 2021 year has the most at 313, followed by 2022 and 2023. The 2024 and 2025 years have fewer, but they have had less time to collect complaints. Phantom braking appears in all of them.

Is it safe to drive a Model Y with phantom braking?

Owners report sudden stops that invited rear-end hits, and crashes are reported in every model year. Some owners stopped using cruise control because of it. Watch the road behind you and keep your foot ready. Get the car checked if it brakes for no reason.

How much does it cost to fix Model Y emergency braking problems?

It depends on the cause. Owners report service finding nothing in the logs. When the main computer is blamed, quotes run from roughly $2,300 on a 2020 to just under 3000 dollars on a 2023. Recall repairs are free.

Why does the emergency braking fail to stop the car?

The data does not give a single cause. Owners report missed stopped cars, turning vehicles, and deer, in fog, rain, and at night. A recall covers a misaligned forward camera on 2023 cars. Computer failures can also disable emergency braking without warning.

Last updated: 2026-10-10

Tesla Model Y Automatic Emergency Braking Problems

Phantom braking is the top automatic emergency braking complaint on the Tesla Model Y, with cars slamming the brakes on empty roads.

Owner complaints: 875
Share of all complaints: 26%
Crash / fire / injury reports: 41 / 0 / 13
Related recalls: 4

Model Y automatic emergency braking complaints by model year

The 2021 model year has the most complaints in this area at 313, and the highest rate per vehicle sold. The 2022 and 2023 years follow with 251 and 206. The 2020 year has only 53, but it also sold fewer cars. The 2024 and 2025 years show far fewer complaints, 42 and 10. That mostly reflects less time on the road, not a fix. Their owners report the same phantom braking and computer failures, so do not treat the newest years as safe from this problem.

2020
53 · 13.2/10k sold
2021
313 · 19.4/10k sold
2022
251 · 11.1/10k sold
2023
206 · 5.3/10k sold
2024
42 · 1.3/10k sold
2025
10 · 0.4/10k sold

Owner complaints filed with NHTSA under forward collision avoidance. Newer model years have had less time to collect complaints.

What goes wrong

Phantom braking is the main automatic emergency braking complaint on this model. The car brakes hard on highways with cruise control or Autopilot on, and speed drops within seconds. Drivers say they fear being hit from behind, and some report it over and over on one trip. The opposite failure also shows up: no braking or warning before stopped traffic, a turning car, or a deer. A third group reports the driver-assist computer failing, which turns off emergency braking, collision warnings, and the cameras.

This is a safety problem, not a nuisance. Automatic emergency braking makes up about a quarter of all complaints filed on this model. Crash reports appear in every model year, and injuries are reported in most of them. No fires are reported. Complaints describe rear-end collisions after sudden stops and spins on wet highways. One owner reports a total loss. Others say repairs for a failed computer dragged on because of a parts shortage.

Symptoms owners report

Hard braking for no reason

The car brakes sharply on an open road with cruise control, Autopilot, or Full Self-Driving on. Reports mention passing semi trucks, hill crests, and vehicles in the next lane. Speed drops fast and following traffic has to swerve or stop.

No braking before an obstacle

Some cars do not brake or warn before stopped traffic, a turning car, or a deer. Owners report this in fog, rain, and at night. One says the warning sounded only at the moment of impact.

Driver aids shut off together

Cameras, collision warning, and emergency braking go dark at the same time. Some owners see an intermittent rear camera first. Others see an error saying emergency braking is unavailable. Service often blames the main computer.

Trouble after software updates

Several owners say cameras, cruise control, and collision warning stopped working after an update. One 2023 owner reports a stopped-traffic crash the day after installing a new software version.

Steering or acceleration surprises

Alongside braking complaints, owners report the wheel pulling hard to one side with Autopilot or Full Self-Driving on, and the car surging forward after the driver took over. Several of these reports end in crashes.

When the problems start

Owners rarely tie these problems to a mileage. Phantom braking shows up on nearly new cars, and some 2022 owners say it began early. The one clear mileage in the complaints is around 65000 miles on 2023 cars. There, an intermittent rear camera spreads until every driver aid shuts off.

Repairs and recalls

Owners often get little from service. For 2022 cars, visits often find nothing wrong in the logs. When the computer is blamed, quotes run from roughly $2,300 on a 2020 to just under 3000 dollars on a 2023. Some 2024 owners waited on a parts shortage. Federal recall records list four recalls in this area. Recall 21V846000 covers 2020 and 2021 cars for false forward-collision warning or unexpected emergency braking, fixed by a free over-the-air update. Recall 23V489000 covers 2023 cars with a misaligned forward camera, fixed free by adjusting the pitch angle. Recall 22V317000 covers swapped camera views on 2021 cars.

Model years	Campaign	Problem
2023	23V489000	Tesla, Inc. (Tesla) is recalling certain 2023 Model S, Model X, and Model Y vehicles. The forward-facing camera may be misaligned, causing some of the active safety features such as emergency braking, forward collision…
2020, 2021, 2022	24V153000	Tesla, Inc. (Tesla) is recalling certain 2013, 2018-2021 Model S, 2020-2021 Model X, 2018-2022 Model 3, and 2020-2022 Model Y vehicles. A factory reset muted the Pedestrian Warning System (PWS) sounds. As such, these…
2021	22V317000	Tesla, Inc. (Tesla) is recalling certain 2020-2021 Model 3 and 2021 Model Y vehicles. The fisheye and narrow camera cable terminals were incorrectly installed in the cable harness connector, resulting in swapped camera…
2020, 2021	21V846000	Tesla, Inc. (Tesla) is recalling certain 2017-2021 Model S, Model 3, Model X, and 2020-2021 Model Y vehicles operating software version 2021.36.5.2. A communication error may cause false forward-collision warning (FCW)…

Checking a used Model Y for automatic emergency braking problems

Run the VIN through the federal recall lookup and confirm recalls 21V846000, 22V317000, and 23V489000 were completed if they apply to that year.
Drive at highway speed with cruise control on and watch for sudden braking with nothing ahead.
Ask for service records showing any main computer or camera replacement, and who paid for it.
Check that the rear camera and all driver-assist features work, and that no warning or error messages show on the screen.
Ask whether the owner has had any sudden stops or near rear-end hits, and whether they stopped using cruise control.

4 automatic emergency braking recalls cover the Tesla Model Y. A VIN check shows whether the car you're looking at had its recall work done, plus accident and title history.

Look Up a VIN →