The Lemon Index$1,400 middle bill · most between $578 and $2,300
Higher than the $850 middle bill owners of all 66 models reported.
2018–2021 Tesla Model 3
Tesla Model 3 owners reported paying a median of $1,400 for a control arm replacement, with the middle half of bills between $578 and $2,300. That's from 14 owner reports (14 complaints to NHTSA). Costs vary by shop and region.
What owners paid
- Under $50014%
- $500–$1,00021%
- $1,000–$2,50043%
- $2,500–$5,0007%
- $5,000 and up14%
Share of the 14 owner reports in each price band.
By model year
- 2018 Tesla Model 37$1,500 middle bill
- 2019 Tesla Model 33$600 middle bill
- 2020 Tesla Model 33$1,400 middle bill
- 2021 Tesla Model 31too few for a middle
Reports per model year, with the middle bill where there are 3 or more. YouTube amounts count for the generation the video covers.
How often owners report the failure
- 2018 Tesla Model 397 complaints name it9% of that year's complaints
- 2019 Tesla Model 351 complaints name it8% of that year's complaints
- 2020 Tesla Model 329 complaints name it6% of that year's complaints
Owner complaints to NHTSA whose own words name a ball joint / control arm. Raw counts: popular years get more complaints. A complaint is a report, not proof of a defect.
Keep going
- Tesla Model 3 reliability by year
- Control arm replacement cost on every car
- Car symptoms and what they can mean
Other repairs Tesla Model 3 owners reported
Wiring harness repair (9) · Steering rack replacement (7)
The details
How we count
Every number here is a repair bill an owner reported, never a shop's price list. Two sources: the bills owners wrote in their own complaints to the U.S. government (NHTSA), and the dollar amounts owners said out loud in YouTube repair and ownership videos. A figure counts for a repair when that repair is the part named nearest to it. Left out: purchase prices, payments, rentals, towing, warranties and deductibles, amounts under $50 or over $15,000, parts-only prices ("the part was $80 on Amazon"), bills for two different repairs named together, and money someone else paid. One number per complaint (or video) and repair: the biggest, so it's the bill, not the diagnosis fee.
The range is the middle half of the bills (the 25th to the 75th percentile), so one wild number can't swing it. Owners who complain to the government often had expensive repairs, so a typical bill can be lower. Costs vary by shop and region, by dealer vs independent shop, by parts and by miles. This is what owners reported, not a quote for your car.
Check the bills yourself
NHTSA complaint numbers (search them at nhtsa.gov): 11770050, 11754443, 11715637, 11680531, 11643968, 11614346, 11582019, 11571717, 11564766, 11564327, 11562152, 11557793 and more.
Quick answers
How much does control arm replacement cost on a Tesla Model 3?
Tesla Model 3 owners reported a median of $1,400, and the middle half paid $578 to $2,300, from 14 owner reports. Costs vary by shop and region.
Is a Tesla Model 3 control arm replacement more expensive than on other cars?
The Tesla Model 3 middle bill of $1,400 is higher than the $850 owners of all 66 models we have reports for paid.
Where do these Tesla Model 3 repair costs come from?
From 14 complaints to NHTSA: what owners themselves said they paid. They aren't verified bills or a shop's quote.
Which Tesla Model 3 years report this failure most?
In complaints to NHTSA, owners of the 2018 (97), 2019 (51), 2020 (29) Tesla Model 3 named it most. Raw counts, not a failure rate.
Sources: NHTSA owner complaints and YouTube videos (amounts said out loud), sorted by The Lemon Index. Owner reports, not a price quote. Costs vary by shop and region.