Clearbra/Wrap = No AP guarantee

[Nosken]

The wrap is over your sensors? I.e. not cut out?

Wrap is over my sensors, not cut out, and has been on since day one.

 

[Nosken]

Best news from 2018.10.4 update is that all my sensors work, including my 4 front facing ultrasonic sensors are now displayed on both screens. With the last few updates, the sensors worked correctly (affirmed by Tesla laptop) but would not display on either screen. This is now cured, and reaffirms that the issue was not my XPel Full wrap covering the sensors.

 

[Gizmotoy]

The overall thickness of the plastic does affect radar returns, as does the material used. So it's entirely possible the exact type installed matters.

Worse, it could be affected by installation. Imperfections in the installation directly in front of the radar unit could lead to lensing effects that would distort the radar returns. For example, OP should look very closely for a piece of dirt or tiny air bubble between the wrap and bumper surface in front of the radar unit. A small imperfection can have an outsize effect on the sensor data.

Or it could be the sensor is bad and Tesla found a convenient reason to blame OP. Hard to say.

 

[mjudes]

Just had my SP100D wrapped in black chrome, and I was really happy with how it turned out. Checked around and it didn’t seem like it would affect AP. After watching enough videos of wrapped Teslas, comparing pictures, etc I decided to take the plunge. Sure enough, EAP2.5 works fine......for the first 2 minutes of the car ride. It then shuts off and I get the same error message about front radar visibility that I would when it was snowing heavily. Sensors all seem fine, so it’s clearly the radar. My fear is the chrome wrap is a bit thicker than other vinyls, and that may be just enough to throw it off. The primary suggestion we’ve gotten is to “cut out a design with a thinner vinyl on the front bumper that follows the car’s lines while giving the radar a clear line of sight.” Not ao sure I want a “design” on the front bumper as is, but if it was able to look clean enough and be a solid option, anyone have an idea just exactly how much surface area would need to be cleared out for the radar to function without issue?

 

[barjohn]

I have 3M clear bra wrap on my front and no indication of any sensor issues. Ultrasonic locations are cut out but not the radar location.

 

[mjudes]

What I’m gathering is the material in the chrome wrap may just be too much for the radar, but most other clear bras and vinyl wraps are fine.

 

[pedriscoll]

I have had a clear wrap on both my 2015 85D AP1 model S and my current 2018 100D AP2.5 model
S without any issues at all relating to autopilot.

 

[mjudes]

Got AP to 100% work with this gloss black piece around grille.

 

[David.85D]

Am I missing something? Isn’t the front radar a little under the front bumper where it wouldn’t be covered by wrap?

Is there another part of the radar mounted inside the bumper?

Everyone seems to be clear we aren’t talking about the ultrasonic sensors.

 

[MP3Mike]

Am I missing something? Isn’t the front radar a little under the front bumper where it wouldn’t be covered by wrap?

Is there another part of the radar mounted inside the bumper?

Everyone seems to be clear we aren’t talking about the ultrasonic sensors.

Not on AP2/AP2.5 cars.

 

[David.85D]

Thanks for the explanation