Great! Now I broke my tow eye cover

[xpitxbullx]

I left my vehicle at work and took the 12V battery home to charge it. Charging the battery help pop it out of “Vehicle Systems are Powering Up” mode the last 2 times it happened. I accidentally closed the frunk all of the way. No biggie. I saw on YouTube how to pop the frunk when the battery is dead or not present.

I pressed the cover in the upper right corner. Didn’t pop open. Pressed a little harder. Still didn’t pop open. Used 2 thumbs. Broke the cover in half!!!

I got in. Hooked up the battery. Still doesn’t power up! I’m begining to hate this car.

 

[hacer]

Take it in for warranty service and get the real issue fixed. Tesla will probably even take pity on you and replace your tow hook cover for free if they have one (might a big if though).

 

[xpitxbullx]

I hope so. I didn’t press that hard.

 

[jjchan]

A while ago, my curiosity got the better of me & I asked a "showroom associate" at a supercharger to show me how to connect the tow ring should I need to. He did, but obviously did not reinstall the cover correctly because it was missing the next day. It cost me $16 or 18 for a new one, so don't count on them taking pity on you, but good luck.

 

[SMAlset]

I left my vehicle at work and took the 12V battery home to charge it. Charging the battery help pop it out of “Vehicle Systems are Powering Up” mode the last 2 times it happened. I accidentally closed the frunk all of the way. No biggie. I saw on YouTube how to pop the frunk when the battery is dead or not present.

I pressed the cover in the upper right corner. Didn’t pop open. Pressed a little harder. Still didn’t pop open. Used 2 thumbs. Broke the cover in half!!!

I got in. Hooked up the battery. Still doesn’t power up! I’m begining to hate this car.

And WHY would you take your Model 3 12v battery out to charge at home to begin with? Saw what you wrote but this is not normal required behavior for a user. Clearly something else is causing this and SC needs to check out. Have you been submitting bug reports when this message comes up so they can pinpoint the times/conditions better? Stuff happens. Don't cause yourself to hate the car because your not taking it in to be checked out and corrected.

 

[boaterva]

Ditto. An owner should never have to do this. Ever. Sorry, but that’s the bottom line.

 

[xpitxbullx]

Heres why I did that:

Service Center is closed Saturday and Sunday. The tow vehicle couldn’t fit into the multi-level parking structure. Knowing the issue was a low 12v battery in the past, I opted to try again in hopes of getting the vehicle to an open area easier to bring a flatbed truck. The 12V battery was low when I checked the voltage. It’s just a battery. Owners of all sorts of vehicles do things to charge or maintain their batteries. The only difference with ours is it opens doors and frunks and other various stuff.

The car is gonna sit there for 2 days anyways. To say no one should ever have to remove a 12v lead acid battery from their car under any circumstances is a bit extreme.

 

[SageBrush]

I did not read most of this thread but fwiw:
I keep a small emergency battery kit in the car. It can charge a variety of electronic gadgets and start the car if the 12v has been depleted.

 

[GWord]

Ditto. An owner should never have to do this. Ever. Sorry, but that’s the bottom line.

An automotive 12v accessory battery is a normal maintenance item that requires periodic replacement. Wouldn't you think that this is something a DIY inclined owner would be dealing with?

 

[ecarfan]

Knowing the issue was a low 12v battery in the past, I opted to try again in hopes of getting the vehicle to an open area easier to bring a flatbed truck. The 12V battery was low when I checked the voltage. It’s just a battery

Yes, it’s just a battery. You say you have had a low 12V battery voltage issue “in the past”. When you had the problem before, what did Tesla Service do about it?

 

[xpitxbullx]

Yes, it’s just a battery. You say you have had a low 12V battery voltage issue “in the past”. When you had the problem before, what did Tesla Service do about it?

I took it to Tesla Friday morning. They said “Well, it’s working now.” And scheduled me an appointment next week when a loaner car would be available. Then it happened Saturday morning then Saturday night.

 

[TT97]

I did not read most of this thread but fwiw:
I keep a small emergency battery kit in the car. It can charge a variety of electronic gadgets and start the car if the 12v has been depleted.

Do you know how large your battery charger is?

I have a 700 Amp charger at home and it is virtually useless for a Tesla. I had an issue with my car that the 12v was not getting charged. I used my charger, it had enough juice o pop the frunk and start up the system for a few minutes before it died again. Tesla sent out a tow truck and they had their heavy duty truck battery charger - their charger kept the car on longer, however, it never got enough juice to be able to get the car in "tow mode."

 

[ℬête Noire]

Ditto. An owner should never have to do this. Ever. Sorry, but that’s the bottom line.

I'm leaning towards this: The Platypus License Plate Mount for Tesla

I'm somewhat leery of getting any of those that partially block the radiator vent, especially the ones that have brackets there.

 

[xpitxbullx]

Do you know how large your battery charger is?

I have a 700 Amp charger at home and it is virtually useless for a Tesla. I had an issue with my car that the 12v was not getting charged. I used my charger, it had enough juice o pop the frunk and start up the system for a few minutes before it died again. Tesla sent out a tow truck and they had their heavy duty truck battery charger - their charger kept the car on longer, however, it never got enough juice to be able to get the car in "tow mode."

Sounds like a bad 12V battery. Did you keep the charger connected when you tried to access the “Tow Mode” option? You need at least a partially charged battery to stay in tow mode. The car needs to use the 12v battery to monitor speed and apply the ebrake incase you exceed 5mph. They don’t want the vehicle rolling away down a hill because you put it in tow mode.

 

[TT97]

Sounds like a bad 12V battery. Did you keep the charger connected when you tried to access the “Tow Mode” option? You need at least a partially charged battery to stay in tow mode. The car needs to use the 12v battery to monitor speed and apply the ebrake incase you exceed 5mph. They don’t want the vehicle rolling away down a hill because you put it in tow mode.

Their charger was connected the entire time. They were able to get just under 12 volts charged. The driver mentioned to me they noticed they need at least 13 volts to get the car into Tow Mode (and I learned a 12v battery can be charged to more than 12 volts).

Tesla replaced the HV module in the car. They also replaced the 12v battery but I think it has more to do with the battery being drained for a week than an issue with the battery before the module failed.

 

[smatthew]

12V on a car batter is an almost dead battery.... usually 13.2 is full

 

[boaterva]

I'm leaning towards this: The Platypus License Plate Mount for Tesla

I'm somewhat leery of getting any of those that partially block the radiator vent, especially the ones that have brackets there.

What? I didn't say anything about the bracket. I said the owner shouldn't be charging the battery.


As for a license plate bracket, there is NO harm done 'blocking' ten inches of the front of the car. I use 'The Law' and it works perfectly.

 

[ℬête Noire]

What? I didn't say anything about the bracket. I said the owner shouldn't be charging the battery.

Ah, I thought you were referring to opening the tow port.

 

[boaterva]

Ah, I thought you were referring to opening the tow port.

Nope, I was agreeing to the post above mine. That’s what ditto means. No owner should be (or need to, but that’s another issue!) removing the 12 V battery.

Best of luck getting it permanently corrected!

 

[ℬête Noire]

No owner should be (or need to, but that’s another issue!) removing the 12 V battery.

That's not how lead-acid batteries work. Depending on climate average lifetime for a 12V battery is 4-6 years. Plenty fail prior to that, not many last more than that. They are a far less durable technology than the traction battery in the Tesla. If you keep your car 5 years there is a pretty good chance you'll need to do something on it (outside warranty, especially if you hit 50K mi before your 4 years are up).

P.S. "Ditto" without clear point of reference (in the medium of this board usually handled via a Quote ) to help figure out exactly what you're referring to sucks.