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How long does the rear defroster take to work for you?

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Been really enjoying my Model S for the past month I've had it, but now summer has left Seattle and the morning mists have started arriving, completely blanketing my car in dew (I have to park outside for now). I'm kind of missing my rear windshield wiper on my old car. Ideally the rear defroster would help here, but I find it takes close to 15 minutes before it has a noticeable effect (even while driving). Sure, in the mean time I rely on the rear camera when backing out of the driveway, but I'd still like to be able to see out the rear windshield.

Is this a common problem for others? Any recommendations?

One thing I'd love to see that might help here is the ability to turn on the defrosters from the phone app. At least then I can turn them on 15 minutes before driving out.
 
Same here, and also in Seattle. Mine took >15 mins to work late last night. I thought it was defective but maybe that is just the design?
Is this a common problem for others? Any recommendations?

One thing I'd love to see that might help here is the ability to turn on the defrosters from the phone app. At least then I can turn them on 15 minutes before driving out.
 
Depends on how cold, and humidity.

Driving in -20C on highway, climate set to about 18C... rear defrost is taking 10+ minutes to defrost. In dry Alberta weather.

It's about on par with all the other cars I've owned.

Frankly don't use rear defrost often. What's behind, stays behind. Don't need to see it any more.
 
I've noticed mine to be pretty slow as well... turn it on when I get in the car and it takes several minutes to even notice it start to defrost.
And it's not even when I'm dealing with serious frost... just standard foggyness of condensation on the outside when if I'm leaving the office late on a coldish night.
 
now that you guys mention it, i did notice the other night that it took so long to defrost even a little of the nighttime condensation (not ice!), that i wound up sitting in the work parking lot for a few minutes until it was safe to drive.

maybe the defrost system is underpowered?
 
Mine is weak too. It will never melt snow at around 20f or colder. In other cars I've had the rear defrost would be strong enough to slightly loosen the snow and the bumps and wind would shake the snow loose. The snow sticks and does not let go.
 
Tried to use my rear defroster this morning to get rid of the morning dew. It did't do anything during my 10 minute drive. I thought maybe it was not working. The rear glass was barely warm.

My Infiniti Q50 would have evaporated most of it by that time.

Some people seem to be satisfied, so how do we know if the slow ones are actually broken?


eLectric DeLorean
Tesla Model S
 
My new MS rear defroster does not appear any slower than my previous Lexus RX450h or MBZ SLK. None are super speedy I suppose, but I guess I've learned to live with it over the years. My SLK rear window was half (or less) the size of my MS, and IIRC it had specific wording in the owner's manual to limit use, and it would shut itself off after a short time, given the draw it had on its 12V battery.