How long after a low 12v battery warning?

[Droschke]

I believe this scenario is correct:

1 - You park, lock your car, and walk away.
2 - Your 12v dies.
3 - You return and try to unlock the car.
4 - You can't unlock the car since 12v has died (unlocking needs the 12v).
5 - Even if you somehow gain access to the inside, by forcing the windows to open, etc., you can't drive away (having the contactor closed would need the 12v).
6 - You are stranded.

 

[brkaus]

I believe this scenario is correct:

1 - You park, lock your car, and walk away.
2 - Your 12v dies.
3 - You return and try to unlock the car.
4 - You can't unlock the car since 12v has died (unlocking needs the 12v).
5 - Even if you somehow gain access to the inside, by forcing the windows to open, etc., you can't drive away (having the contactor closed would need the 12v).
6 - You are stranded.

You follow the instructions in the manual. You gain access to the 12v. You jump start it with a 12v battery jumper (or another car). You proceed on your way.

 

[dmurphy]

You follow the instructions in the manual. You gain access to the 12v. You jump start it with a 12v battery jumper (or another car). You proceed on your way.

... unless the 12V battery is so dead that the jumper won't give it enough juice to close the contactors.

Saw this exact scenario play out on a 2016 X this week at the airport. Poor guy had to get the X towed out to the service center. Which, being in a parking garage, meant a hook-em tow truck with a dolly -- can't get a flatbed into the garage. The car powered up on the jumpstarter box but it just wouldn't kick out enough voltage to get the contactors to close - most systems came online but never enough voltage for the air suspension to kick on or the contactors to shut. Bummer.

By the time they got to the service center, it was closed for the night, so he had to wait until the next day to get the X back. Total bummer of a day.

(Yes, I offered to help and checked in the next day to see how it went.)

Thankfully, no, not my X.

 

[brkaus]

I’ve had an ice (diesel) that a battery died bad enough with an internal short I had to replace the battery to start it. Even with the dual 12v batteries it would t start on a booster pack or a jump start. I’m still not clear how this is different?

I didn’t tow it, I put in a new battery.

 

[cbdream99]

I believe this scenario is correct:

1 - You park, lock your car, and walk away.
2 - Your 12v dies.
3 - You return and try to unlock the car.
4 - You can't unlock the car since 12v has died (unlocking needs the 12v).
5 - Even if you somehow gain access to the inside, by forcing the windows to open, etc., you can't drive away (having the contactor closed would need the 12v).
6 - You are stranded.

The terminals are just behind the nose cone of your Model S, some say you can use a credit card to pry open it, while others say it is as easy as just pressing down from the top and then it will pop out. Once you gain access to it then you can jump it. Hopefully, Tesla can replace yours soon and you don't have to worry about it for another year (they only warranty for a year), but it is good to know how just in case.

 

[Droschke]

Actually, I'm aware of the terminals behind the nose cone in order to jump the 12v. My scenario above was if the 12v can't even be charged (I should have said totally dead). It might be an extreme case, but nevertheless a case. I'm scheduled to have the 12v replaced this week as long as they don't cancel the appointment on me.

 

[brkaus]

Actually, I'm aware of the terminals behind the nose cone in order to jump the 12v. My scenario above was if the 12v can't even be charged (I should have said totally dead). It might be an extreme case, but nevertheless a case. I'm scheduled to have the 12v replaced this week as long as they don't cancel the appointment on me.

Mine was completed on Friday. Took him under 10 min. Said he’s done it a few times…

 

[Droschke]

Mine was completed on Friday. Took him under 10 min. Said he’s done it a few times…

Did he need to access the interior of the car, like the 17" display, etc., or was all the work done from under the hood outside?

 

[brkaus]

Did he need to access the interior of the car, like the 17" display, etc., or was all the work done from under the hood outside?

He requested to have the key. Verified the error on the center screen. Said alarm occasionally triggers after the swap if the key isn’t nearby nearby.

I went in to cleanup breakfast before our cat moved in on it, came back out hoping to see under the frunk tub, but he was already done.

 

[STS-134]

Not that it has happened to me, but I think I read here in the forum that when the 12v dies you can't even unlock a locked car to gain access inside.

When's the last time you saw this actually reported? If they haven't fixed those software bugs (both the one that didn't warn the user that the 12V battery is getting weak and the one that allowed the car to sleep after it did get weak) by now, they're idiots.

 

[dmurphy]

I’ve had an ice (diesel) that a battery died bad enough with an internal short I had to replace the battery to start it. Even with the dual 12v batteries it would t start on a booster pack or a jump start. I’m still not clear how this is different?

I didn’t tow it, I put in a new battery.

It really isn’t different at all, except that getting to the spot where Tesla installed the battery in the X is a royal hop in the butt. Not easily changeable in an airport parking garage.

 

[Droschke]

When's the last time you saw this actually reported? If they haven't fixed those software bugs (both the one that didn't warn the user that the 12V battery is getting weak and the one that allowed the car to sleep after it did get weak) by now, they're idiots.

I think it was sometimes last year that I read a post. The 12v warning coming up is working all right, at least for my car.

Are you saying if the car detects that the 12v is weak these days then it should keep the contactor closed constantly?

 

[brkaus]

Are you saying if the car detects that the 12v is weak these days then it should keep the contactor closed constantly?

At some point it is supposed to go to that state. My var definitely did not do that in the week the warning was on the screen.

 

[STS-134]

I think it was sometimes last year that I read a post. The 12v warning coming up is working all right, at least for my car.

Well the initial problem was warnings showing up only a few days before the 12V died completely, followed by the car going to sleep with a dead 12V battery which then requires the owner to apply 12V to the emergency access port in the bumper to unlock the frunk and replace the 12V battery in order to get access to the vehicle. So essentially it was two problems in the software that interacted in such a way that it required a 12V power source to get back into the car.

Are you saying if the car detects that the 12v is weak these days then it should keep the contactor closed constantly?

It should.

 

[Droschke]

My average vampire drain per 24-hour with the car parked and idle has been 6.5 miles. Not having a sentry, 3rd party app or any accessory, I wonder where all that energy is currently going? To frequent recharging of the weak 12v or keeping the car awake by having the contactor closed constantly?

 

[Droschke]

Update:
My 12v was replaced this week. A nice and experienced mobile tech guy. For my particular 2015 RWD MS car, due to the awkward tight location of the 12v, it took him exactly 50 minutes to complete the work. He did not access the interior of the car and even though the fob was placed near the windshield the horn went off nevertheless after connecting the 12v to the car. Hopefully no physical damage was done to anything since he really had to struggle and apply tremendous force by pushing and pulling for a long time to fit the battery in that super tight space. He complained about the ridiculous design of the 12v location for my model vs. later builds.

The 12v warning is gone and the car updated to the latest software right after. I’ve not test driven the car yet.

Also noticing, my vampire drain while the car is parked and idle has gone down to 3 miles per 24 hours vs. the previous 6.5 miles I was experiencing before the 12v replacement.

 

[NewbyMaybe]

Two advantages of the ohmmu is it's smaller size and lighter weight.

 

[cbdream99]

Update:
My 12v was replaced this week. A nice and experienced mobile tech guy. For my particular 2015 RWD MS car, due to the awkward tight location of the 12v, it took him exactly 50 minutes to complete the work. He did not access the interior of the car and even though the fob was placed near the windshield the horn went off nevertheless after connecting the 12v to the car. Hopefully no physical damage was done to anything since he really had to struggle and apply tremendous force by pushing and pulling for a long time to fit the battery in that super tight space. He complained about the ridiculous design of the 12v location for my model vs. later builds.

The 12v warning is gone and the car updated to the latest software right after. I’ve not test driven the car yet.

Also noticing, my vampire drain while the car is parked and idle has gone down to 3 miles per 24 hours vs. the previous 6.5 miles I was experiencing before the 12v replacement.

This is a similar experience for me about the higher drain. The older model is ridiculously hard to get to, The first time I tried to access mine to test the ohmmu took me more than an hour, mainly about the how to remove the emergency tab wire, once I figured that out, I can now replace the thing in 30 mins, probably faster with power tools.

 

[brkaus]

Two advantages of the ohmmu is its smaller size and lighter weight.

some advantages, but too many disadvantages for me.

 

[brkaus]

@Droschke the tech that said mine said the older models are a lot of work. What was the final cost?