When operating under adaptive cruise control, the vehicle frequently slams on the brakes for no reason. This has become so bad that we are simply terrified to operate the vehicle under adaptive cruise control. The highway is completely empty in front of us, there are no hazards and no issues with visibility on the road. The cruise control simply reacts to a phantom in a highly dangerous manner. > What component or system failed or malfunctioned, and is it available for inspection upon request? The adaptive cruise control - you are welcome to inspect it. > How was your safety or the safety of others put at risk? We have suffered two near-miss rear-end collisions at high speed on the Interstate. The behavior throws us against the seat belt restraints, causing near loss of control. > Has the problem been reproduced or confirmed by a dealer or independent service center? We have raised the problem repeatedly with Tesla, and there are numerous confirming reports by other Tesla owners > Has the vehicle or component been inspected by the manufacturer, police, insurance representatives or others? The system has been checked by Tesla, nothing found wrong. Tesla maintains that they are continuing to "train" the system, but after 5.5 years, there has been no improvement. > Were there any warning lamps, messages or other symptoms of the problem prior to the failure, and when did they first appear? Nothing - the car simply slams on the brakes.
2019 Tesla Model X: brakes engage by themselves (phantom braking)
5 of the 102 complaints about the 2019 Tesla Model X describe brakes engage by themselves (phantom braking).
- owner complaints
- 5
- of this car's complaints
- 5%
- recalls
- 0
Brakes engage by themselves (phantom braking) by model year
What owners say
While driving on autopilot, adaptive cruise control essentially, on a 300 mile trip last week the car had several, I think 5 total, instances of phantom braking. These occurrences happen in random situations, no consistent factors that seem to indicate what triggers it. It is often not only startling, but scary since it is almost always in a high speed situation with traffic. These events have happened in the past but not at this frequency. We have another Tesla, a Model 3, that also experiences this same phenomena. When I reported it to Tesla they said to reboot the system, which I did. Did not appear to improve. Otherwise they seem to be unconcerned about these events. I have had adaptive cruise control in other cars, mostly Lexus, where this never occurred.
Random phantom braking while on the open freeway with no traffic while in cruise control. it happened multiple times while on a road trip. there was not an obstacle or traffic in front of us. braking was hard almost to a skid
What component or system failed or malfunctioned, and is it available for inspection upon request? -- Cruise Control system (with or without Full Auto-pilot engaged) How was your safety or the safety of others put at risk? -- Vehicle comes to a near complete stop from highway speeds, in traffic, to avoid 'something' that doesn't exist Has the problem been reproduced or confirmed by a dealer or independent service center? -- No, but can be reproduced on Highway 54 between El Paso, TX and Alamogordo, NM Has the vehicle or component been inspected by the manufacturer, police, insurance representatives or others? -- No Were there any warning lamps, messages or other symptoms of the problem prior to the failure, and when did they first appear? - No, problem has occurred since April 2022 after receiving the Full Self-driving beta software update. Description of problem: Vehicle is suffering from the well known "Phantom Braking" issue and appears to be getting worse. The problem can be reproduced 100% of the time on Highway 54 between El Paso, TX and Alamogordo, NM. With Cruise Control activated and set to 75 MPH (Auto-pilot disengaged), vehicle will hard brake to 45 MPH or less and then resume back to 75 MPH; essentially "brake checking" the vehicle directly behind. No injuries or accidents to report at this time
We continue to experience "phantom braking" from our Tesla Model X. The incidents are sporadic, but have been been consistent across our 3 years of ownership of the car. The phantom brake incidents always occur on the freeway, and are rarely associated with an actual collision. The car will be set to standard "autopilot" cruise, and will suddenly slam on the brakes. We have become so accustomed to this, that we are usually ready to intervene and accelerate manually to avoid startling/brake checking the traffic behind us. Autopilot has always seemed to phantom brake in the following conditions: around semi trucks, or large trucks, or when (what I assume) is confusion of the nav system where the car believes it's on a reduced speed limit road, when in fact it's still on the freeway.
Related recalls
No recalls on record for this model year.
Questions about the 2019 Tesla Model X phantom braking
Is brakes engage by themselves (phantom braking) a common problem on the 2019 Tesla Model X?
5 of 102 owner complaints about the 2019 Tesla Model X (5%) mention brakes engage by themselves (phantom braking). The model year with the most reports is 2018.
Is there a recall or service bulletin for this on the 2019 Tesla Model X?
There is no recall or service bulletin for this area of the car on record.
Other symptoms on the 2019 Tesla Model X
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