A few questions about "Schedule service to replace low voltage battery"

[Ctein]

Dear folks,

On Friday I got this alert on my 2020 Tesla Model X. Can't complain, it's had 4.5 years and 53,000 miles of life. I'm scheduled for mobile service/replacement this coming Friday. Since this is my first time at this rodeo, I have a few questions:

1) Assuming my HV battery is decently charged (25-90%) is it safe for me to be driving the car in the meantime or am I risking it dying on me mid-trip?

2) I was planning on going car-camping for a couple of days and was planning to use the "cigarette lighter" to (1) charge my USB devices and (2) run a portable 12V kettle for making hot water? Are either of these going to clobber my 12 volt battery, or does the HV pack make sure that it's kept happy (or as happy as it can be at the moment)?

Thanks!

pax / Ctein

 

[Tam]

Dear folks,

On Friday I got this alert on my 2020 Tesla Model X. Can't complain, it's had 4.5 years and 53,000 miles of life. I'm scheduled for mobile service/replacement this coming Friday. Since this is my first time at this rodeo, I have a few questions:

1) Assuming my HV battery is decently charged (25-90%) is it safe for me to be driving the car in the meantime or am I risking it dying on me mid-trip?

2) I was planning on going car-camping for a couple of days and was planning to use the "cigarette lighter" to (1) charge my USB devices and (2) run a portable 12V kettle for making hot water? Are either of these going to clobber my 12 volt battery, or does the HV pack make sure that it's kept happy (or as happy as it can be at the moment)?

Thanks!

pax / Ctein

1). It's not about the HV battery. It's up to your LV battery to decide when it will die. It can die while parking or driving. We can't tell a dying battery to not die on a drive.

2) since the LV battery is identified as the issue, I would not add more burden on it to see how tough it can take.

 

[Cosmacelf]

Yes, while the car will always top up and maintain the 12v battery from the HV battery via a dc-dc converter. So I wouldn’t worry about using the 12V subsystem even now. Usually the Tesla diagnostics warn you well ahead of impending doom so it should not die within the next few weeks.

 

[NJturtlePower]

Yes, while the car will always top up and maintain the 12v battery from the HV battery via a dc-dc converter. So I wouldn’t worry about using the 12V subsystem even now. Usually the Tesla diagnostics warn you well ahead of impending doom so it should not die within the next few weeks.

In theory, but that's definitely not always the case. Many used to just fail without any warning...

My Model 3 threw the alert on a Saturday late about 2 years ago.... I booked Mobile Service and decided not to drive it Sunday and leave it plugged in to support the 12v functions. Monday morning I drove it to work where it was later swapped out without issue, but I would be hesitant to drive much out of town.

Definitely not weeks to spare, days at most. Good luck if you're going to roll the dice, keep that tow truck number handy.

 

[zoomer0056]

Are either of these going to clobber my 12 volt battery,

I don't know, but it's seems risky to be away and camping in a car with such a battery alert. Almost like asking if the low tire pressure warning is something to be concerned about. Get the battery replaced before you go camping. However, it could make for interesting stories afterwards.

 

[cmaster]

A replacement for the 12-volt battery is necessary. If the MCU is off and the battery's charge is low, various issues can arise when trying to access the car. Moreover, a failure of the battery means the charge port won't open. To avoid the hassle of requiring a tow, it's recommended to replace the 12-volt battery promptly.

 

[DCGOO]

That is also why the 12V battery is a very high priority service ticket. The last time my 2018 failed, I opened a ticket, Tesla showed up at my house the next morning, less than 24 hours after opening the ticket. It is a simple repair, but it can cause big time problem when it fails, always resulting in a tow. I would not recommend getting too far away from home, until that warning has been addressed. It really could fail at any time.

 

[Ctein]

Dear Folks,

Thanks for all the very helpful advice. As usual y'all are fabulous!

I lucked out and could get a new service slot today, so the dilemma is resolved.

I wasn't sure how seriously to take this, as some of the service warnings are issued WELL in advance of likely failure, such as the "low coolant" alert. This, it would seem, ain't one of those. Nope, I'm not the gambling type.

(I know about the coolant business from having had two warranty replacements on the coolant plumbing interconnect, so there were conversations with the Tesla service tech -- "Is this safe to drive?" To which the answer was an unequivocal yes: it throws up the first warning well before there's any risk and there would be later, more emphatic ones if the level continued to drop.)

It's nice to know that when this happens again, at least I don't have to worry about the "cig lighter" making the LV battery worse.

In the old joke category about all our gadgets having secret timers to kill them when the warranty runs out... if this had happened a few months and 2,000 miles ago, I'd be getting a free battery. Still, not complaining!

Thank you, again!

pax / Ctein

 

[j2048b]

Inwent to orielly’s and they cross referenced the oem part number… it may have cost a bit more but i dont live near a service center and they wont come to my house to replace or repair items… so i had no other choice

Things started to turn off on my drive home from work… air was low… phone disconnected, luckily i left it unlocked while at work or i would have been screwed…

 

[Juan003]

Inwent to orielly’s and they cross referenced the oem part number… it may have cost a bit more but i dont live near a service center and they wont come to my house to replace or repair items… so i had no other choice

Things started to turn off on my drive home from work… air was low… phone disconnected, luckily i left it unlocked while at work or i would have been screwed…

Which O’Reilleys battery did you end up getting?

My 2016.5 logged this service code below right after a 13%-90% SuperCharge 3 weeks ago but the code has not come back since.

DIS_ w018_hw12vSupplyUV​

It has not come back for the past month despite numerous daily SuperCharges, but I was advised to change out the 12v battery just in case even though the system has not directly notified me that my 12v is dying soon.

I can’t find any additional details anywhere regarding that service code.