2026 Tesla Model Y Visibility Problems

On a brand-new 2025/2026 Tesla Model Y (Juniper), etched scoring arcs appeared on the front windshield exactly along the path of the OEM wiper blades within the first 1–2 weeks of ownership. No debris, impact, or foreign object was present. The scoring is visible in certain lighting and follows the full arc of both wiper blades. The windshield is available for inspection. The issue has been reported to Tesla Service; they have scheduled a evaluation but have not confirmed warranty coverage. The scoring impairs visibility in certain light conditions and could worsen with continued use of the original blades. This appears to be a defect in the factory wiper blades and/or windshield glass rather than normal wear.

NHTSA ID

11775059

Incident

Sep 1, 2026

On October 27, 2026, my 2026 Tesla Model Y experienced a serious front hood safety incident. Before the incident, the hood would not fully latch closed and could not be reopened using the touchscreen or Tesla app. The vehicle displayed a hood warning and restricted acceleration. I contacted Tesla Roadside Assistance but was informed that complimentary towing was unavailable because the vehicle was considered drivable. I proceeded toward Tesla for service at a very low speed, approximately 16 mph or less. While traveling downhill on the freeway, the vehicle briefly reached approximately 30 mph. The hood suddenly flew open and struck the windshield, causing extensive cracking and severely compromising visibility. Fortunately, no one was injured. After the incident, the responding police officer observed that the hood could latch closed, although it had been unable to close properly beforehand. The vehicle was delivered to a Tesla-owned Collision Center and has since been disassembled. I have requested preservation of the original components, diagnostic data, and inspection records. The exact cause remains unknown, and Tesla's technical investigation is pending. I am concerned about a possible failure of the primary or secondary hood latch mechanism. This incident created a serious risk of losing visibility and control of the vehicle. I request that NHTSA investigate whether this represents a potential safety defect that could affect other Model Y vehicles.

NHTSA ID

11774196

Incident

Oct 17, 2026

My 2026 Tesla Model Y has repeatedly developed contamination/haze inside the enclosed forward-facing windshield camera area, resulting in camera visibility/cleaning warnings and potentially reduced availability or performance of driver-assistance features. Tesla has already cleaned the internal forward-camera/windshield area twice, but the condition continues to return. The contamination is located inside the camera enclosure/inboard windshield area and cannot be corrected through normal exterior vehicle cleaning. Tesla is now requesting approximately $60 to clean the area again rather than addressing why the contamination repeatedly develops. I am concerned that this is a recurring defect affecting forward-camera visibility rather than ordinary owner maintenance. The forward cameras are used by the vehicle’s driver-assistance systems. I am also aware of reports from other owners of newer Model Y vehicles experiencing recurring haze/contamination in this same enclosed camera area. I am requesting that NHTSA document and evaluate this issue for a possible defect trend in 2025+ Tesla Model Y vehicles.

NHTSA ID

11768898

Incident

Aug 24, 2026

I am reporting a potential safety defect involving the forward-facing cameras on my Tesla Model Y. The vehicle relies on these cameras for critical driver-assistance functions, including Tesla’s FSD system. However, the camera area is prone to accumulating dust, dirt, moisture, and other contamination during normal driving. When this happens, camera performance can be degraded and driver-assistance functions can become restricted or unavailable. More importantly, the current design makes proper cleaning unnecessarily difficult. To access and clean the camera area properly, the camera cover/housing must be removed. This is not a reasonable or practical routine-maintenance procedure for a component that is essential to the vehicle’s safety systems. It creates a recurring risk that camera contamination will remain uncorrected. This appears to be a design issue, not normal vehicle maintenance. A safety-critical camera system should be designed to remain reasonably protected from contamination and allow the owner to clean the camera area easily without disassembling the camera enclosure. I request that NHTSA investigate whether this design constitutes a safety defect and whether Tesla should provide a permanent design solution or recall/service campaign for affected vehicles. I can provide photographs and documentation showing the contamination and the cleaning procedure required.

NHTSA ID

11765454

Incident

Sep 1, 2026

June 30, I was driving an highway, PA 376 during a rain storm, FSD 60 MPH 4-5 PM. The rain was heavy, vehicles in front of me flashing their emergency lights, I attempted several times to slow down, Acceleration Modes, towards me. Vehicle would not slow down, heavy rain and puddles blurred my vision, thinking I would rear end the vehicle in front of me. Traffic was light due to the rain, FSD needs better software to slow down during weather conditions.

NHTSA ID

11749426

Incident

Jun 30, 2026

This is a safety concern for visibility. How can a brand new, barely used windshield crack like this? There are no rock chips and it has barely been driven to fall as wear and tear on the vehicle. This is not okay and incredibly unexceptional for vehicle standards. This vehicle spends 90% of its time in a garage. I have contacted my insurance company.

NHTSA ID

11743978

Incident

Jun 13, 2026

On XXX at approximately 8:30 PM, the vehicle was operating under Full Self-Driving (Supervised) mode when it failed to detect or react to a stationary pole, resulting in a front-end collision. 1 System Failed: The Full Self-Driving software, Tesla Vision camera system, and Automatic Emergency Braking (AEB) failed to detect the obstacle or apply brakes. The vehicle is available for inspection upon request. 2 Safety Risk: The autonomous driving software drove the vehicle directly into a fixed object without warning, creating a severe collision risk for occupants and nearby pedestrians. 3 Confirmed by Dealer: Yes. The vehicle was taken to the Tesla Service Center in [XXX] on XXX, where technicians officially captured and logged the diagnostic vehicle data for this specific incident under my active service file. 4 Inspected: The physical hardware and system logs have been initially inspected and captured by Tesla Service technicians. 5 Prior Warnings: There were zero warning lamps, chime alerts, or visual indicators on the center console display prior to the impact. The system treated the obstacle as navigable space INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

NHTSA ID

11741200

Incident

Apr 23, 2026

Second time in the five months I have owned the car that I need to replace the windshield in its entirety. Not only does it chip incredibly easily, but any chip immediately becomes a large crack, usually overnight and definitely before Safelite or a similar company can be called to try to fix it. In addition to being dangerously fragile and very expensive to fix - although very lucrative for Tesla since I can’t drive without an intact windshield - it’s very difficult to get an appointment. This time around I must drive around with an ever-expanding crack for 16 days before driving 100+ miles to the nearest Tesla service center to get it replaced. How can it possibly keep me and my family safe if it breaks that easily and that often and why is it normal to replace the windshield that often in any car much less a brand new car?

NHTSA ID

11739830

Incident

May 21, 2026

1) FULL SUPERVISED DRIVINGD ENTERED 3 LANES OF ON COMING TRAFFIC. A TRUCK AVOIDED BROAD SIDING THE DRIVERS DOOR OF MY VEHICLE BY ENTERING ON COMING TRAFFIC DRIVING IN THE OPPOSITE DIRECTION. LUCKILY THE ON COMING TRAFFIC STOPPED FOR THE TRUCK. THE NAVAGATION SYSTEM SEEMED TO BE LOST AS WELL. 2) THE DRIVER'S SEAT BELT ALERT ALARM BEGAN TO CONTINUALLY GO ON STATING THAT THE SEAT BELT WAS NOT FASTENED. IT WAS BROUGHT INTO THE SHOP TWICE FOR REPAIR. THE SEAT WAS REPLACED. A FEW WEEKS LATER THE FRONT PASSENGER SEAT BELT ALERT STARTED DOING THE SAME THING WITH NO ONE OR OBJECTS ON THE SEAT. IT WAS BROUGHT TO THE SHOP. 3) UPON DELIVERY OF THE VEHICLE THE LOW WINDSHIELD WASHER FLUID WARNING CAME ON. I SUPPLIED MORE FLUID TWICE WITH NO RESOLUTION. THE SHOP REPLACED A FAULTY HOSE AND RESERVOIR. THE WINDSHIELD WASHER CONTROL COULD HARDLY AND BARELY SPRAY ANY FLUID OMTO THE WINDSHIELD. THE SHOP ADJUSTED THE PRESSURE WHICH HAS QUICKY FAILED. A TECHNICIAN DETERMINED IT IS A NEW DESIGN AND IS WORKING FINE. A TECHNICIAN VERIFIED TO ME THAT THE WINDSHIELD WASHER FLUID DOES CLEAN THE CAMERA'S FOR SUPERVISED DRIVING. I DO NOT USE THE FSD DUE TO THE FLAW IN THIS SUPPOSED NEW DESIGN. THE SHOP STATED THAT THEY HAD DIFFICULTY REPRODUCING THE SEAT BELT ISSUE AND KEPT THE CAR FOR A FEW DAYS TWICE IN ORDER TO REPRODUCE THE RANDOM OCCURANCES. THE VEHICLE HAS BEEN INSPECTED AT 2 SERVICE SHOP LOCATIONS. NO POLICE OR INSURANCE REPRESENTATIVES HAVE INSPECTED THE VEHICLE. IN REGARD TO THE SEAT BELT ISSUES THERE WERE MESSAGES, WARNING LAMPS AND SIREN ALERTS IN SOME CASES FOR MORE THAN AN HOUR EVERY FEW SECONDS WHILE DRIVING. IN REGARD TO THE WINDSHIELD WASHER FLUID THE WARNING LIGHT WAS ON AS SOON AS I PICKED UP THE BRAND NEW CAR ON AUGUST 27, 2025 THE SEAT BELT ISSUES SEEM TO BE RESOLVED THUS FAR, THE WINDSIELD WASHER FLUID IS ONGOING.

NHTSA ID

11704031

Incident

Oct 30, 2025

We were coming home from a local restaurant and a rain storm started and the wipers would not come on. We were able to pull in to a parking lot and went through all Tesla reset procedures and could not get them to work. There were no error codes and it was scary trying to find a safe place to stop when we could hardly see.During a break in the rain we were able to make it home. We are over 100 miles from the nearest service center and tried to schedule an appointment but the closest opening was 22 days away. We called and spoke to Teslas customer service and after much checking they said there was nothing they could do and told me to call the service center Monday morning. We have a trip scheduled starting Monday and I do not feel safe driving a car with no wipers Some of the other electronics would not work. The lights were on bright and would not dim and could not adjust temperature. The car is a few months old with 2901 miles.

NHTSA ID

11701021

Incident

Nov 22, 2025

There are distortions, that makes looking through the windshield wavy/rippling. Minor distortion at the top of the windshield at the angle you look at top portion of cars in front of you and traffic lights. Major distortion when looking at the right side of the windshield from the driver seat, covering around 30% of the windshield. When driving it will become significantly noticeable and causes dizziness sometime.

NHTSA ID

11678400

Incident

Jun 11, 2025