button on the mobile connector charger never unlocks the handle...

[KootsChewt]

Silly question time - I've owned my Model 3 for almost 2 years now. The first year I was using a level 2 charger I installed several years prior for my Leaf - my morning routine was to walk out, use the physical unlock button on the J1772 handle to detach it from the J1772->Tesla adapter, then pull the adapter out of the car, then get in. We moved late last year and I only installed a 14-50 plug at the new spot and have been using the "Mobile Connector" that came with the car. Annoyingly the little circle that looks like a soft-touch button on the handle NEVER unlocks the handle from the car. I always have to open the car, either reach awkwardly inside (or partially get inside), tap the unlock spot on the touchscreen after it takes 15-30secs to become responsive, then go back to the charger handle again and remove it (and if I'm too slow, it re-locks!)

What am I doing wrong? Or is my Mobile Connector broken? The button always works on Supercharger handles, but it is more of a physical button...

 

[Gasaraki]

You can push on the door to open it also...

 

[21miDay]

I open my car door and then walk to the mobile connector. Opening the door wakes the car up and then the button on the mobile connector works. If I don't open the car door first it doesn't work.

 

[UncertainTimes]

I’ve only had the car for 2 months but it seems if the car is in deep sleep the button on the mobile connector wont do anything. If you don’t want to open a door first you can half press open the rear passenger door and it wakes the car up (makes a loud clunk). Then the mobile connector button works. Also seems like there’s a “half-sleep” state where the button on the mobile connector doesn’t do anything but tapping on the charger door opens it.

 

[Big Earl]

You have to wake up the car before you can unlock the charge port. You can do this a number of ways - through the app, by opening a door, or by using my preferred method of half-pressing the rear door handle (wakes up the car without opening the door). You may have to wait a few moments after waking the car before you can disconnect the charge cord.

 

[KootsChewt]

You have to wake up the car before you can unlock the charge port. You can do this a number of ways - through the app, by opening a door, or by using my preferred method of half-pressing the rear door handle (wakes up the car without opening the door). You may have to wait a few moments after waking the car before you can disconnect the charge cord.

I feel like I've done this to no avail. Well at least that answers my original question - the button IS supposed to do something! I'll check it later once the car is back home and see

 

[Gasaraki]

If the car is in deep sleep, have the phone on you and double click on the handle. If it's already plugged in.

 

[RTPEV]

I don't use the mobile connector, but I have essentially the same problem with my J1772 charging station.

I have two techniques that you can try.

The first just started working an update or two ago, maybe in the past 2-3 months (or maybe it's always worked and I just never tried it before!) What I do now is click the release button several times. It does take awhile to wake the car up, but it's usually awake in about 5 seconds after 2-3 button presses. This is MUCH more convenient for me than to work my way through a tight confine to do the door handle trick to wake the car up.

The second is to pre-wake the car up either using the app or a home assistant like Alexa or Google Home. I use Google Home so I set up a routine (I think it's called) to use the "EV car" application to wake the car up a few minutes before I'm ready to leave. Basically it just "ask EV car how far can I drive", but in the summer or winter I will add a pre-condition step to the routine as well. Then I just need to say "Hey Google, get ready to leave" and voila, the car is awake when I go out and the charging connector releases immediately. Actually I wonder if there is an "unlock charge connector" command (?)

 

[sduck]

Do you just press the button, or press and hold? I find it takes the press and hold method, sometimes up to 2 seconds, but it always works if you do that.

 

[21miDay]

If the car is in deep sleep, have the phone on you and double click on the handle. If it's already plugged in.

I didn't know about the double click. I tried it today. The double click woke the car up and then I had to click again to unlatch the handle.

 

[KootsChewt]

So apparently my Mobile Connector has always been broken, since none of the tricks listed above do anything on my car, asleep, awake, locked or unlocked. The button does nothing and I have to unlock it from the touch screen. Of course now I'm beyond warranty, so the odds of them replacing it are approaching zero...

 

[21miDay]

Darn.

You could unlock it from the app if you don't want to reach into the car.

 

[jsmay311]

Long story short: You have to hold down the button on the mobile connector handle for up to 2 seconds *when it’s plugged into a sleeping Model 3/Y* with the phone key in proximity to the car for it to wake the car up and unlock the connector from the charger port.

Longer story: Originally (early-to-mid 2018) the Model 3 had a walk-up unlock feature, which woke up and unlocked the car as you approached with your phone key, so the car would already be awake before you tried to unplug the mobile connector and therefore it would reliably respond to button presses on the charge connector. But for various reasons Tesla got rid of walk-up unlock in summer 2018.

For about 2 years after that, you could not unplug a Tesla via the button on the charge connector unless the car was already awake. As many people mentioned earlier in this thread, you could accomplish this by waking up the car through the app, or opening the truck, or lightly pressing on a door handle.

But then in summer 2020, Tesla updated the software again so that the car will wake up and release the charge connector when you press and hold the button for 1-2 seconds even when the car is asleep. I believe this was part of the 2020.24.X software update.

Also worth noting, you still can’t use the charge connector button to open a closed charge port door when the car is asleep. You still have to wake the car up first for that.

 

[dasn]

I've read some people post that its supposed to work when you hold the charger button down for 1-2 sec but either I'm holding it wrong or it just doesn't work =(. I have to wake the car by pressing the door handle before I can unlock the charger every time the car is sleeping (overnight etc.)

I'm on 2020.40.4 using the mobile charger.

 

[UncertainTimes]

I just open the drivers door while walking to the charge port.

 

[jsmay311]

I've read some people post that its supposed to work when you hold the charger button down for 1-2 sec but either I'm holding it wrong or it just doesn't work =(. I have to wake the car by pressing the door handle before I can unlock the charger every time the car is sleeping (overnight etc.)

I'm on 2020.40.4 using the mobile charger.

Hm... that is odd.

Does the button on the mobile connector handle work normally otherwise when the car is already awake? (I.e., it releases the connector from the charge port when plugged in and can open the charge port door when it’s clicked while in proximity to the charge port?)

I wouldn’t expect the geographic location (USA vs Australia) to matter.

Anyone else have any theories?

 

[dasn]

Yep it works as long as the car is not 'asleep' which typically is after over night charging. I was so excited when I saw people reporting it was working =(

 

[Dante]

I've always tried to preheat/cool the car before getting in, and have almost never/never had an issue with unresponsiveness. I later figured out that it's because I'm essentially waking the car by preheating it/opening the app. On the occasion when I forget to pre-heat, I have adopted the rear door half-press approach.

 

[MedusaManiac]

I’m late to the party here but I find if I hold the button down for about 2 seconds it wakes the car and I can remove the handle normally. If the car is already awake just a click of the button seems to do it. I had previously been using the mobile app to unlock the charge port.

 

[Big Earl]

I've found that holding the button down for a couple of seconds now releases the charge connector even if the car is asleep. This is a relatively new development - previously, it did not work.