Diagsheet

2018 Tesla Model 3 · symptom sheet

Airbag warning light or recall

  • 139owner reports
  • 47,000median miles
  • $1,300median quote
  • 15involved a crash

Newest report Aug 21, 2026 · checked Sep 9, 2026

139 of the 1,011 complaints on this car describe airbag.

Tick what matches of 139 reports

42
98
6
1
2

What got replaced

Owners who name the part that was replaced mention the occupant sensor (65 reports) and the module (11 reports).

Recalls and investigations

No recall on the airbags covers the 2018 model year as of Sep 9, 2026.

What owners paid

61 of the 139 reports quote a price. Each dot is one quote. The middle half runs $1,000 to $1,900.

$1,000$1,300$1,900
$0k$2k$4k$6k$8k

When it happens

The middle half of failures fell between 19,000 and 60,000 miles, from the 32 reports that gave a mileage.

318
419
320
621
822
2923
5324
2125
1226

What owners wrote

“Front passenger seat restraint safety system fault. My car only has 40,000 miles is out of warranty. $2200+ estimate from Tesla. This safety issue happens often according to Tesla Owner sites.”

Filed Apr 19, 2024 · 40,000 miles

“Airbag failed at 60k miles requiring a replacement. This is a known- safety issue, Tesla has corrected this problem in later cars, and Tesla should issue a recall to correct. I have error codes RCM_a015 and RCM_a014”

Filed Jan 5, 2024 · 60,000 miles

“We had a warning light that says "“front passenger safety restraint system fault”. The Tesla dealership said that the airbag needs to be replaced. There were no incidences that led to this warning. It just appeared on its own.”

Filed Jul 11, 2023

“Got an error code "RCM_a056" that indicates that there is a fault with the Front passenger safety restraint system. Looking at this problem online it seems that is not very unique and many owners of 2018 Model 3 have suffered the same issue. I was quoted for a service that changes the OCS sensor, but then they also have to replace the airbag due to "compatibility" reasons.”

Filed Jun 24, 2023

Should you keep driving it?

This page can't tell you that. 15 of 139 reports involved a crash and 9 people were hurt. Owners who file are the ones who had a bad experience, and nobody checks their reports. If the problem affects steering, braking, power or a fire risk, treat it as a safety fault and have it inspected before a long or high-speed drive.

File your own report with NHTSA. Complaint counts are how a problem gets an investigation.

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