2022 Tesla Model Y cruise control problems
140 of the 865 complaints owners filed with NHTSA about the 2022 Tesla Model Y name the cruise control (NHTSA’s “Vehicle Speed Control” heading — cruise control, adaptive cruise and unintended-acceleration reports). Filed under the same heading: 1 NHTSA investigation. Every figure below is a document in a federal file, linked; none is a failure rate, and none is a verdict on any one car.
What owners filed about the cruise control
Source: NHTSA complaint database14 of the 140 reports a crash · 1 a fire · 111 injuries. Self-reported, unverified.
Filed per year: 2021: 2 · 2022: 93 · 2023: 23 · 2024: 8 · 2025: 5 · 2026: 9
Too few of these complaints carry an odometer reading to say when the problem shows up.
865 complaints in all about the 2022 Tesla Model Y, 9 filed in 2026. The whole picture, every system →
Counts are owner reports to NHTSA, not verified defects, and scale with how many of these were sold; nothing here is a rate. NHTSA groups complaints coarsely, so “Vehicle Speed Control” means the same area of the vehicle, not one fault.
Across model years: Tesla Model Y cruise control problems, every year on file →
In owners’ own words
Source: NHTSA complaint databaseFiled with NHTSA by the people who own these cars, about the cruise control. Quoted as written, with anything identifying removed; unverified reports — what was said, not a finding that it was true.
I do not have full self driving on my car. However, the cameras installed are active when I use just normal cruise control. Trying to drive between the Minneapolis area to Pipestone, MN on Christmas day the car several times hit the brakes for me unexpectedly while in cruise control.
When cruise control (called autopilot) is engaged, the car will slam on the brakes for no apparent reason, endangering everyone around us. Sometimes it happens as frequently as several times a minute.
When coming home from the dealer, it phantom braked twice. I thought at first maybe it was a shadow across the road. There was a software update the next day, and I hoped it was fixed. It was raining lightly and there wouldn't be any shadows.. a box truck came toward us in the opposite lane and it panic braked.
While driving on freeway car drastically brakes for no apparent reason, almost getting rear ended by car behind me. This happens while cruise control is on, several times! Very dangerous
When on Traffic-aware cruise control, the vehicle suddenly brakes without warning, instantly reducing its highway speed by 7 to 12 mph. It occurs on the interstate, often while passing large vehicles, and on two-lane roads, usually when meeting large vehicles.
What is on file about the cruise control
Source: NHTSA recalls, investigations and manufacturer communicationsNHTSA investigation
- DP23002 Sudden Unintended Accelerationopened Jun 29, 2023 · open
- 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. The petiti…
Other systems with a record on the 2022 Tesla Model Y
Source: the same files- automatic emergency braking problems 696 complaints
- electrical problems 121 complaints
- steering problems 58 complaints
Common questions
Source: NHTSA complaint database, recalls and manufacturer communicationsAre cruise control problems common on the 2022 Tesla Model Y?
They are documented: NHTSA holds 140 owner complaints naming the cruise control on this model year (16% of everything owners filed about it), and 1 NHTSA investigation is filed under the same heading. Whether it is a problem on one particular car is a diagnosis, not a count, and a count says nothing about how many were sold.
Is there a recall for the cruise control on the 2022 Tesla Model Y?
No recall campaign is filed under this heading for this model year (there are 20 filed under other headings). A bulletin is not a recall: it carries no federal duty to repair for free.
When do cruise control problems show up on the 2022 Tesla Model Y?
Too few of the complaints carry an odometer reading to say. The model year's page shows the mileage curve across every system where it can.
What does NHTSA's "Vehicle Speed Control" heading cover?
Cruise control, adaptive cruise and unintended-acceleration reports. Owners choose the heading when they file, so it says which area of the vehicle the complaint is about, not which part failed.