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Cabin overheat protection in Arizona

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I live in super hot Scottsdale AZ where summer temperatures often exceed 110, and there are long stretches where it's above 100 for days, even at night. I keep my 2021 MY LR with a heat pump garaged and connected to Level 2 power via UMC 2.0 to NEMA 1450 plug, but there is no AC in the garage. So temps in garage are usually well over 100 during heat of the day and the automatic trigger temp of 95 will turn the heat pump on. If I don't use AC option the Cabin Overheat Protectionn simply circulates hot air in the car like a convection oven.

My question to other heat pump Tesla owners in AZ, Nevada, desert CA, etc. - is it better to turn on Cabin Overheat Protection during the summer and have it run pretty much non-stop during and drive up the electric bill and wear down the heat pump, OR turn the feature off and run the risk of overheating the battery and starting a fire in my garage?

Would it be better to move it outside to the unshaded concrete driveway and put a reflective sun cover over it? With or without power?

What are your opinions and reasons on this topic? Has anyone ever discussed this with a Tesla SC for an unofficial opinion since it doesn't seem to be addressed in the user guide.
 
The cabin Overheat Protection keeps the cabin below 105. It doesn't really affect the battery.

Your MYLR is fine in the garage and is not going to catch fire. The temperature in your garage is really not very hot. Heck, our bodies are almost 100.

Mine sits outside in the Florida sun. The interior hits 145 regularly in the summer. I would turn on the Overheat Protection, but it does consume range while I'm at work and, as you said, there is the wear and tear on the heat pump.
 
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Cabin overheat protection has nothing to do with the battery or computer. It's a safety feature that was created after some public accidents where people left their kids in the car. In theory it would buy you time to realize your mistake.

Cabin overheat protection doesn't even stay on after 12hrs. It turns off. If it's purpose was anything related to the longevity of the battery or car you would not have control over it.

It came out in 2016. Everyone instantly forgot what it was for. I don't have kids so I don't even have it on.


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The cabin Overheat Protection keeps the cabin below 105. It doesn't really affect the battery.

Your MYLR is fine in the garage and is not going to catch fire. The temperature in your garage is really not very hot. Heck, our bodies are almost 100.

Mine sits outside in the Florida sun. The interior hits 145 regularly in the summer. I would turn on the Overheat Protection, but it does consume range while I'm at work and, as you said, there is the wear and tear on the heat pump.
I live in super hot Scottsdale AZ where summer temperatures often exceed 110, and there are long stretches where it's above 100 for days, even at night. I keep my 2021 MY LR with a heat pump garaged and connected to Level 2 power via UMC 2.0 to NEMA 1450 plug, but there is no AC in the garage. So temps in garage are usually well over 100 during heat of the day and the automatic trigger temp of 95 will turn the heat pump on. If I don't use AC option the Cabin Overheat Protectionn simply circulates hot air in the car like a convection oven.

My question to other heat pump Tesla owners in AZ, Nevada, desert CA, etc. - is it better to turn on Cabin Overheat Protection during the summer and have it run pretty much non-stop during and drive up the electric bill and wear down the heat pump, OR turn the feature off and run the risk of overheating the battery and starting a fire in my garage?

Would it be better to move it outside to the unshaded concrete driveway and put a reflective sun cover over it? With or without power?

What are your opinions and reasons on this topic? Has anyone ever discussed this with a Tesla SC for an unofficial opinion since it doesn't seem to be addressed in the user guide.
Thanks all. My primary concern was the battery so it sounds like BMS takes care of keeping the battery cooled and safe. Cabin temps are always crazy here, in and out of the garage.
 
We just came back from a trip from San Diego to Tucson then Indio then back to Santa Barbara. For the most part this MX was useless in the heat. Our cabin temperature hit 115 because the air conditioner was shut off by the car. I do have a service appointment so we'll see if anything is wrong.
If not this is a real health issue. When the screen shot was taken was after the 110+ temperatures to the West of Tucson along I-8.
 
I live in AZ and just last week in left my Y in the garage unplugged for 5 days while we took a road trip to Disneyland in our other car. Left at 90% came back to 89% and I have cabin overheat on. Its pretty efficient at cooling the battery on it’s own.
 
I live in AZ and just last week in left my Y in the garage unplugged for 5 days while we took a road trip to Disneyland in our other car. Left at 90% came back to 89% and I have cabin overheat on. Its pretty efficient at cooling the battery on it’s own.

Hi, Cabin overheat deactivates 12hrs after you park anyway. It doesn't cool the battery. It only cools the cabin.

You had an amazingly small amount of vampire drain though. The temperature must have not required that the main pack needed cooling. I am not sure at what temp the car starts active cooling of the pack but I find that vampire drain is very high in winter for me and low in the summer.
 
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Hi, Cabin overheat deactivates 12hrs after you park anyway. It doesn't cool the battery. It only cools the cabin.

You had an amazingly small amount of vampire drain though. The temperature must have not required that the main pack needed cooling. I am not sure at what temp the car starts active cooling of the pack but I find that vampire drain is very high in winter for me and low in the summer.
Yea I was surprised. I know cabin overheat deactivated after the first day. And being in AZ like OP it gets hot in our garages. I sweat if I’m in there longer than a few minutes.
 
Hello,

I drove our Model Y to AZ last year and we had difficulty cooling the car back down to a reasonable temperature. Please keep in mind the car did sit in the heat for a few hours at 110-120. So the inside was hot. However, the car would just get to a point where it wouldn't get any cooler. I estimate the inside temp at ~85 degrees. This is after driving 40 minutes. We took the car in for service and nothing was found.

Fast forward 1 year later - we fly down to AZ and rent a 2023 Model 3. We had the same problem multiple times doing the same drive (~40 minutes). It just seems like the cooling system on these cars is not adequate in extreme heat. The air coming out of the vents is not ice cold like gas cars -- or my prior 2013 model S.

Yes, the car does cool down much better when you set overheat protection. However, this should not be required to adequately cool the car. Multiple times our kids were in the back seats literally sweating until we got done with out 30-40 min drive. We were hot also. And yes, the rear vents were on, the system was set to auto. I used med and/or high fan speed. I tried the lowest temperature and high fan speed. Regardless, the there wasn't improvment and the temperature just seemed stuck. Unfortunately with the rental I couldn't monitor the interior temp -- as I could on my Model Y - but that is literally what happened with our model Y - the interior temp was stuck.