Hansshow vs Tesla Offer Power Frunk/Trunk - which one to buy?

[tlr1000]

That is exactly what I am planning to do, but thanks for confirming it.

I am going to be looking to get an excellent installer who tours the UK fitting the Hansshow kits to do my trunk kit, and will be looking to do it the way you describe. I have a 2020 car so should have the access panel underneath (I'm getting the kick sensor fitted too) so make it easier to fish the wires.

As you say - keen to make the job as weather tight as possible too.

How easy is it to get the cable down behind the bumper cover into the area where the blue grommets are? I saw someone say (might have even been you!) that they installed it this way without even loosening the bumper. I would like to avoid removing the bumper if I can.

Also - when hole punching, do you have to remove the connector on the end of the strut to make it so the hole is only big enough for the wire? or is the connector on the end not much bigger than the wire anyway?

The other variable I've seen is where people tap in for power for the trunk kit. Some people run the power all the way to the front and then tap in to something there (per the TO install video), I think they call that VCLeft or VCRight or something? Others attach to the power connections underneath the rear seats? (I think they call this the "penthouse supply"?). I have no idea which is best practices here either.

It is not that hard to get the cable behind the bumper cover but you do have to lightly pry the bumper cover as the molex connector is a hair larger than the gap but still, this is easier than removing the entire bumper which some installer prefer to do.

As for hole-punching the grommet, the grommet itself pops out easily and you punch it after removal from the car. The connector itself is definitely bigger than the wire but the connector does not have to be removed as the blue rubber grommet can be stretched over that connector. The type of punch I used is pictured below. To be clear it's not critical to use something like this but if you're super-picky they you may want to consider it and if your installer doesn't have one, you might want to buy one in advance. Unfortunately I do not recall the exact size of the punch.

On left-hand drive cars, TO's recommendation is to tap power from VC Right. Some people use the 'penthouse' power (under rear passenger seat) and it could well be a good solution but I preferred to follow TO's instruction here. Was already running the CANBUS signal wire part way up the side of the car so figured it wasn't a big deal to go with VCRight all the way to the front. Hopefully the installer you use has done a VC power connection before as it requires some yoga flexibility to make that connection.

 

[Durzel]

How much do these units typically drain when the car is asleep? Does anyone have any idea, or have had issues with the 12v battery?

As I'm working from home now I don't often get to drive my car, maybe once or twice a month. I lose a negligible amount of main battery % with the car sat there asleep. Given the frunk kit (TO) kit attaches directly to the battery, and appears to have a red blinking light that is always on, should I be concerned about vampire 12v drain?

 

[ranova]

How much do these units typically drain when the car is asleep? Does anyone have any idea, or have had issues with the 12v battery?

As I'm working from home now I don't often get to drive my car, maybe once or twice a month. I lose a negligible amount of main battery % with the car sat there asleep. Given the frunk kit (TO) kit attaches directly to the battery, and appears to have a red blinking light that is always on, should I be concerned about vampire 12v drain?

I have the hansshow kit and haven't noticed any increased drain or issues with the 12V battery. However, I have TeslaFi wake my car every 8 hours (only when its parked at home since Sentry would be on always outside my house, so that keeps everything on and charged) to charge my external blackvue backup battery for my blackvue dash cams so its keeping the 12V topped off as well. It only stays awake for about 30 minutes (enough to almost fully charge the backup battery) and goes right back to sleep. I have a May 2018 LR RWD 3 with still the stock 12V battery - got the Hansshow kit installed Sept 2020 through RPM Tesla. 12V cig splitter shows 13.6V for the battery. If you're concerned about draining of your 12V, I suggest you do the same (maybe every 12 hours) and keep your car plugged in at home.

 

[Durzel]

Well I installed the TO frunk today (3.1). All in all it took me about 4 hours, mainly because of stopping every few minutes to check the Frugal Tesla and TO install videos.

I somehow managed to get the bracket that you’re supposed to screw onto the latch mechanism (the thing attached to the soft close motor) completely jammed. No idea how but I had a moment where I seriously thought about abandoning the whole thing. In the end I had to loosen the latch mechanism completely which created its own new problem…

The biggest problem I had, and my only real criticism of the TO kit, was mounting the soft close motor. I don’t know the source of the part, but it’s obviously meant to attach to something else. TO’s video mentions cable tying it to a hole or two at the front, but I couldn’t locate these. Maybe 2020 RHD cars are slightly different?

In the end I stuck it down with the supplied tape near the front, but I’m not remotely confident that it’ll stay there. Knowing my luck it’ll come loose on the drive and then be banging around in there under the frunk shell. Any ideas for a really solid mounting location?

Once I put it all back together the frunk went up and down, but never even slightly latched. I was very puzzled as this didn’t seem like something that would be fixed by tweaking with tension. Anyway after a lot of trial and error it transpired that when I loosened the latch mechanism to recover the trapped bracket I must’ve reinstalled it higher than it was originally. There’s actually a reasonable amount of up abs down play. After some trial and error I got it to latch and at that point it would pull the frunk down, and it just needed the usual tweaking you can do with the two nuts…

One thing I’m uncertain of now… do I leave the rubber stoppers installed on the underside of the frunk, the ones you can screw or unscrew to raise or lower the front of the frunk? How do I know if they’re too far unscrewed or the opposite? (a dumb question I know)

 

[Durzel]

Has anyone noticed their TO frunk kit module beeping when the car wakes up?

I noticed when I was installing my kit yesterday that when my car wakes up (not sure if every time) it actuates the frunk latch mechanism in some way. I don't know if this is part of some kind of "sanity check" that it does. I didn't really think anything of it at the time because I hadn't even started installing the kit at that point.

However, when I woke my car up earlier by opening the drivers door, the auto frunk module beeped once. It didn't open the frunk or anything, it simply beeped.

I spoke to TO just now over WhatsApp and they said that it was something they were aware of and had been looking into for some time. I'm curious as to whether anyone else has experienced this?

If it does it every time the car wakes up, I'll probably need to disconnect the beeper

 

[Durzel]

I haven't solved my frunk kit beeping when the car wakes up, but at least the frunk doesn't open.

I can't say the same for the trunk kit though. It seems that wiring the TO trunk kit to the 12v supply under the rear seats (which is where the Hansshow kit connects) is problematic. I don't know how the Hansshow control box differs, but it seems that the 12v (penthouse?) supply is not always on, it goes off when the car sleeps. Unfortunately the TO trunk kit control module activates when it receives power.

The long and short of this is that on my newly installed TO trunk and frunk kit, when my car wakes up, the frunk kit beeps (but doesn't open the frunk) and the trunk opens (if my phone is nearby). Fortunately my car is only ever asleep at home, but it's still pretty rubbish.

Can anyone confirm whether it is safe to tap power from the RIGHT hand side of the car? The TO video shows it being tapped under the dash on the left, in a RHD car, but the latest instructions say you should run it down the right because that's where the CAN wire is going.

To be fair to Raymond and TO - they have been super responsive in trying to help me, but have basically just told me that the penthouse 12v supply is not constant 12v (but I didn't think VCLeft or VCRight were either?) and therefore when the control module is powered on when the car is woken up, it opens the boot as a "startup" thing.

 

[Hayden]

I haven't solved my frunk kit beeping when the car wakes up, but at least the frunk doesn't open.

I can't say the same for the trunk kit though. It seems that wiring the TO trunk kit to the 12v supply under the rear seats (which is where the Hansshow kit connects) is problematic. I don't know how the Hansshow control box differs, but it seems that the 12v (penthouse?) supply is not always on, it goes off when the car sleeps. Unfortunately the TO trunk kit control module activates when it receives power.

The long and short of this is that on my newly installed TO trunk and frunk kit, when my car wakes up, the frunk kit beeps (but doesn't open the frunk) and the trunk opens (if my phone is nearby). Fortunately my car is only ever asleep at home, but it's still pretty rubbish.

Can anyone confirm whether it is safe to tap power from the RIGHT hand side of the car? The TO video shows it being tapped under the dash on the left, in a RHD car, but the latest instructions say you should run it down the right because that's where the CAN wire is going.

To be fair to Raymond and TO - they have been super responsive in trying to help me, but have basically just told me that the penthouse 12v supply is not constant 12v (but I didn't think VCLeft or VCRight were either?) and therefore when the control module is powered on when the car is woken up, it opens the boot as a "startup" thing.

I have a LHD car and tap power from the right. No problems here, no beeps or other issues. Can wire from de center behind the front seats to the right side.

 

[Durzel]

I have a LHD car and tap power from the right. No problems here, no beeps or other issues. Can wire from de center behind the front seats to the right side.

Thanks. I presume you have it attached to the same place (but on the right) as the install instructions above say? The 10mm nut bit?

 

[Hayden]

Thanks. I presume you have it attached to the same place (but on the right) as the install instructions above say? The 10mm nut bit?

Yes that's correct

 

[tlr1000]

I have a LHD car and source trunk kit power from VC right. I have never had a problem. Works flawlessly. As for the frunk, power is directly to 12v battery under the hood. Also works flawlessly without any issues.

 

[Durzel]

if anyone has any instructional videos about running the 12v supply to the front on the right (although I presume both sides are the same), including safe removal of the various bits of trim, I'd appreciate it. The guy who installed mine has graciously offered to rewire it to the front, but he's a good 2.5 hour drive away so I'd like to try and tackle it myself first.

I must admit I am a bit disappointed about the fact that the TO trunk kit beeps when my car wakes up. I was not made aware of this before buying it, and it was only after it had been fitted that TO told me on WhatsApp that it was a long standing issue that they were aware of but hadn't been able to fix. I guess it's a peculiarity of some cars? There isn't really anything you can do wrong with fitting the frunk kit - as the 12v supply is the battery.

The curious thing about my car is that before I had actually disconnected anything, just removed the frunk tray and latch cover, I could see that when the car was waking up it was actuating the frunk latch in some way. No idea why, but TO say that this actuation triggers the control box to "think" something is happening with the frunk, so it beeps.

It doesn't sound like there is any fix in the pipeline for this particular eccentricity.

 

[tlr1000]

@Durzel sorry to hear about the beeping. Frankly, that would drive me a bit bonkers so guess I'm lucky it's not an issue for my car. Guess if that was happening to me, I'd dampen the beep by adding a bit of tape to the beeper. Not ideal but at least maybe less intrusive.

There should be plenty of videos online showing how to connect power to VC right/left. Should be in TeslaOffer's video. It's a bit of a tight spot and it's a good idea to cover your 10mm socket mini ratchet with some electrical tape so you don't accidentally short something there. If you do touch something with metal where you're not supposed to you might get some error messages on your screen that may require a hard reset to correct. It's not a difficult issue to fix if it happens but better to just try an avoid the problem. Good luck!

 

[Durzel]

Thanks for the tip about covering the ratchet in electrical tape. Wouldn’t have thought of that one!

Also re-read my post - it’s the frunk kit that beeps on wake up, not the trunk, not that i the distinction really matters. TO didn’t have any solution for me and suggested much the same as you did, or even disconnecting the beeper entirely, which is a shame. It doesn’t sound like something that is being looked into and is therefore likely to be fixed.

 

[Durzel]

I meant to say “I re-read my post”, not telling you to re-read it! that’s what happens when you reply at 04:30 my time

 

[tlr1000]

I meant to say “I re-read my post”, not telling you to re-read it! that’s what happens when you reply at 04:30 my time

Lol.

My frunk kit is also silent unless actually activating it. I'm quite baffled by the issue and the frunk kit I helped a friend install is also working as it should.

Since the frunk kit is so easy to access, if you run into any other owner with the same kit, try swapping the control box to see if it makes a difference. I am truly stumped on what could cause this.

 

[Durzel]

Lol.

My frunk kit is also silent unless actually activating it. I'm quite baffled by the issue and the frunk kit I helped a friend install is also working as it should.

Since the frunk kit is so easy to access, if you run into any other owner with the same kit, try swapping the control box to see if it makes a difference. I am truly stumped on what could cause this.

It is very peculiar. The only thing that makes me think the TO kit is ok is that I could see when I was taking the frunk apart, removing struts, etc, - basically before I had disconnected anything electrically - that my car was going to sleep and then waking up (while I was working on it), and when it woke up it would do something with the frunk latch, even though the frunk was open.

When I spoke to Warren he said they’d seen it before themselves, but hadn’t been able to replicate it consistently. So it’s not something completely alien to them.

The TO control unit must sense this actuation and think that something is happening, so it beeps.

As you know the frunk kit is pretty straightforward to install really. There isn’t really much room for error, besides perhaps bending pins when joining connectors - but things wouldn’t work properly if that were the case. My frunk does go up and down properly (with beeps when you’d expect).

I would like to get it sorted out. Worst case scenario if it isn’t resolved within a reasonable period of time I can just disconnect the beeper for the frunk. Not ideal but that would solve the problem.

 

[Acmach5]

I have this problem too. I’m going to try a power cycle in the frunk unit to see if it helps. Will report back if it works.

 

[Massive Attack]

I'm almost ready to buy the Telsa Offer mark 3 for my 2020 Model 3. After searching for almost a year, I cannot find anyone locally who has done this install, so I'll just do it myself.

A question for you guys, "how do you close the frunk from the touchscreen?" This is the most confusing part of the sales website. I only have the Tesla app, no key fob. My car has the Tesla Homelink installed. They say, "You will need to purchase the homelink module from us and pair it using the remote."

One more question, do the kits have close buttons for inside the trunk and frunk? This is also not clear from the website. Maybe that is what they mean by "OEM emergency button?"

Thanks for sharing your experience with this product.

This electric liftgate system opens and closes your frunk (front trunk) by simply pressing a button. It can support:

• Open and Close the frunk using official Tesla App
• Open and Close the frunk using the key fob (if you purchased a Model 3 key fob)
• Close the frunk with the OEM emergency button
• Open the frunk with the center console touch screen
• Close the frunk with the center console touch screen (TWO METHODS, SEE BELOW)

There are 2 ways that you can close the frunk on the touch screen:

1. Homelink closing: You will need to purchase the homelink module from us and pair it using the remote. You will need to close the frunk by tapping the homelink button. (CAUTION: only applicable to cars with Homelink option built-in)
2. Frunk button closing: You can directly tap the frunk “open” button to open and close the frunk. However, signal injection to the car is needed (trick the car to think that the frunk is halfly opened). Some owners may have a concern on modifying the car signal. (You don’t need to purchase the homelink module if you want to go with this method)

 

[tlr1000]

I'm almost ready to buy the Telsa Offer mark 3 for my 2020 Model 3. After searching for almost a year, I cannot find anyone locally who has done this install, so I'll just do it myself.

A question for you guys, "how do you close the frunk from the touchscreen?" This is the most confusing part of the sales website. I only have the Tesla app, no key fob. My car has the Tesla Homelink installed. They say, "You will need to purchase the homelink module from us and pair it using the remote."

One more question, do the kits have close buttons for inside the trunk and frunk? This is also not clear from the website. Maybe that is what they mean by "OEM emergency button?"

Thanks for sharing your experience with this product.

No need for the HomeLink module. It is extra cost and makes it cumbersome. Opening and closing the frunk from the internal screen is simply tapping on it - just as you would intuitively expect.

For the frunk, the close button is the factory light/button used for a person (like a very small person) who gets trapped in the frunk. For the trunk, they supply an auxiliary button.

Good luck, watch lots of videos, take your time.

 

[Massive Attack]

No need for the HomeLink module. It is extra cost and makes it cumbersome. Opening and closing the frunk from the internal screen is simply tapping on it - just as you would intuitively expect.

For the frunk, the close button is the factory light/button used for a person (like a very small person) who gets trapped in the frunk. For the trunk, they supply an auxiliary button.

Good luck, watch lots of videos, take your time.

Thank you fine sir!