'For your safety we strongly advise against it': The bonkers Tesla Model Y and Model 3 safety warning you probably don't know about

Tesla has issued a warning to Australian owners about driving their vehicles through tunnels with the cruise control system activated, warning that it is a “known-limitation” of the model’s Traffic-Aware Cruise Control.

The situation came to light most recently through user complaints of phantom braking when the cruise system is active in a tunnel, with a complaint to Tesla eliciting the warning. It is also included in Tesla’s user manual.

In fact, the user manual lists a whole range of environments in which the Traffic-Aware Cruiser Control is “particularly unlikely to operate as intended”, which includes times when:

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“The road has sharp curves or significant changes in elevation. Road signs and signals are unclear, ambiguous, or poorly maintained. Visibility is poor (due to heavy rain, snow, hail, etc. or poorly lit roadways at night). You are driving in a tunnel or next to a highway divider that interferes with the view of the camera(s). Bright light (such as from oncoming headlights or direct sunlight) interferes with the view of the camera(s).”

Tesla’s own staff were more detailed in their answer to one worried driver, saying:

“The issue you are experiencing in a known limitation of the Traffic-Aware Cruise Control…For your safety, we strongly advise against using cruise control in tunnels.”

That response appeared to do little to quell the concerns of some users, with one owner on a FB group demanding Tesla “take responsibility of it and fix the issue before someone gets killed or hurt.”

2025 Tesla Model Y (Image: Chris Thompson)

Tesla has taken a unique approach to its safety systems, including active cruise control, by removing radars and LiDAR sensors in stages from 2021, 2021 and 2023, and replacing them with a camera-based system it calls “Tesla Vision”.

“Compared to radar-equipped vehicles, Model 3 and Model Y with Tesla Vision have either maintained or improved their active safety ratings in the U.S. and Europe, and perform better in pedestrian automatic emergency braking (AEB) intervention,” the brand says.

"Given the incremental improvements already achieved with Tesla Vision, and our roadmap of future Autopilot improvements and abilities, we are confident that this is the best strategy for the future of Autopilot and the safety of our customers.”

Other car makers, including Ford’s global chief Jim Farley, disagree, insisting LiDAR — or Light Detection and Ranging — is a superior technology because “where the camera will be completely blinded, the LiDAR system will see exactly what’s in front of you.”