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My Model S is BACK! Timing didn't allow me to film the update in the Model S, as we had to take our Model X out of town during the Holiday weekend (3 adults, and 3 children do not fit well in a Model S) and I did not want to wait longer to do the update. Plus I did the update driving a different kind of EV :)
Cars running, repair cost consisted of 84 Delicious Donuts and 24 yummy cookies :)
While I would have liked more details, they did spend a lot of time working on the car and diagnosing it.
 
A video that shows how to get at the 12V battery on different cars would probably be a help too. The rear wheel drive cars, the early dual drive cars, and the refresh S all have different procedures. I had a tough time finding anything on how to get into the refresh frunk.
 

Kman reviews Tesla Authorized Body Shop. Unfortunately, this video comes 11 months after the ordeal happened. Midget #1, Vincent, got ahold of my memory card with all the video on it from this ordeal, and I recently found it between the couch cushions...
This video covers starting at drop-off, the damage, the STRUGGLE IS REAL DRIVING A GAS CAR! back for pickup and completed work, and then the complete overview recap of the ordeal and thoughts on the process.

Want to skip to the recap and commentary, jump ahead to 8 Minutes 20 Seconds.
 
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AMAZING! My Model X was previously restricted to 94 kW Supercharging/DC Fast Charging Rates. This was due to Tesla determining that my Model X was DC Charged too many times... (See Electrek's Article on it here: Tesla explains why it limits Supercharging speed after high numbers of DC charges - Electrek ) With a recent Firmware release, the 94 kW supercharging limitation has been removed.
At the Oak Creek, Wisconsin (Milwaukee) supercharger, which currently supports a Maximum of 150kW charge rate per supercharger cabinet.
I was very pleasantly surprised when I took a peek down at my charging stats and saw the speeds going up and up and up.

As of May 2019, Firmware update unlocked the 94 limitations and I was able to hit 108 kW charge rate. As of July 6, 2019, I am now able to hit 132 kW charge rate on my 2016 Tesla Model X 75D.

I will note, the max charge rate and how long it is sustained does not seem to be impacted by Battery Temperature. I have another video following shortly while charging, showing the BMS data while I narrate.


My Model S also has this limitation however that vehicle is on Firmware 8.1 yet. My 2016 Tesla Model S 90D, January 2016 build, has had the supercharge limitation since the second month of ownership. At this time, my 90D will not be updated.
 
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In the future, hopefully, the Auxiliary battery will be Lithium based. However, in the present, and past, that Auxilary 12v battery is good, ol, trusty and reliable Lead Acid. While Lead Acid is very reliable if properly maintained, failure can creep up on you at an inconvenient time if you don't keep an eye on its condition.
So today I show you a simple and cheap way to do so for your Tesla!!!

Resistance Guide:
-If IR greater than 30 milliohms, the battery is in bad condition. Replace Immediately.
-If IR is between 10 to 30 milliohm, poor condition but may be usable for the short term.
-If IR is between 5 to 10 milliohm, good condition decent life remaining.
-If IR is less than 5 milliohm, it is in Excellent condition.

Low-Cost Multimeter: https://amzn.to/2LJPxsV
Digital Battery Analyzer As Shown in Video: https://amzn.to/2MfaTOi

Information about Sulfation: Sulfation: What is it and How to Avoid it?


Some past sulfation recovery videos I've done, Circa 2012:
Lead Acid Battery Desulfation Using Epsom Salt -Attempting to use Capacitive Charger Part 5 of 6
 
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As of my current firmware, AP2.x now handles this construction zone with no problems, even though no lines. Notice, the car extrapolates it's own lines based on what it sees. No, it is not just following the car ahead, though it can be using it's position for additional data points. If my vehicle was following the car ahead, it would not display lines, and instead, the screen would outline that lead vehicle in blue. Either way, my AP1 Model S CAN NOT handle this construction zone, even when following a lead vehicle. It drifts off the side and either attempts to hit the curb or the cones. Final note, while not shown in this video as the message pops up and disappears quickly, but when AP is activated, a message pops up that "Construction Zone Detected". Separate video on that coming soon!

Autopilot Navigates Construction with No Lines! 2019.28.3.1 Firmware
 
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It started when a poorly designed piece of plastic that holds the trunk floor cover-up in my Model X broke. A piece that holds up a great deal of weight, was made using fairly brittle plastic. Of which I determined is most likely glass fiber infused, though the plastic had the condition that you would expect if it was sitting out in the sun for a few, dozen, years (UV Deterioration, even though the piece never sees the sun!).
Back on track, the exploration of what panels to remove to get at the said piece. Interesting on where things are and routed on the Model X. In the end, it is a bit different than the Model S! The biggest thing that surprised me was how the Air ducting was routed.
A second runner up would be why they put the charger where they did. One love tap right below the charge port and there is a $3500 charger. Still, they fit a lot in a small space!
 
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Some Tesla Model S and Model X's have a bit of an issue with the center screen, also known as a MCU. The problem becomes, a yellowing border around the screen. This happens over time.
Tesla has made a statement, that the Yellowing Screen is due to Adhesives not properly being cured in the screen at the time of manufacture. Personally, based on MY experience with automotive-grade UV Cured adhesives and paints, and given how the yellowing border is appearing on the screen, I believe it is more or less a result of the screen getting "cooked" by bright, hot, sunlight, being amplified by reflecting off the silver trim around the screen. My Model S and Model X, both 2016's. I always use sun-shade in my Model S, and my Model X, the previous owner did not. Guess which has the yellowing border?
Now, the UV light wavelength to cure these adhesives, according to hours of online research for touch screen adhesives, is UV-A 365nm to 405nm wavelength. I have acquired a UV nail lacquer dryer from my sister, that uses 365nm to 405nm. I jumped the timer board so once plugged in, the UV light is always on.
Now to put this in perspective, it takes 10-60 seconds to cure nail lacquer or fake nail adhesive, with 90% of the curing to happen almost instantly when the light hits it. Unfortunately, after 3 1/2 to 4 hours, I did not see any difference in my screen, leading me to believe that the UV cure probably doesn't work and I may be right about the cooked screens, or, the UV Cure doesn't work on all cases.
While not quite the same, After the nail dryer over-heated, I switched to a (Rather Dangerous) UV-C bulb, This is also known as a Germicidal bulb and can be extremely damaging to the eyes. I let this go for quite a while, and again, no change in the screen.
 
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With Tesla's Firmware 10 installed for all of 20 minutes, what better way to test out Enhanced Summon than on one of the worst possible parking lots and roads! No lines, no pavement, LOTS of obstacles, low light level! For a first try, I'd still give the car a 15 out of 100 in terms of performance, and in reality, that is actually in my opinion REALLY GOOD!!!
It can only improve from this point! So this really was pretty awesome!

Filmed at www.DellsTrain.com the Riverside & Great Northern Historical Railway in Wisconsin Dells, Wi. We had a nice turn out of members that wanted to see the first try as it was our Annual Members Meeting.
 
Beginners guide to using Enhanced Summon & Come to Me, which are the two new features of Tesla's Full Self Drive hardware & software suite. Along with the How-To, is a STERN WARNING, both verbally and visually that THESE FEATURES ARE STILL BETA AND THE MOST EXTREME CAUTION MUST BE TAKEN!
 


I've always been a big supporter of Tesla, though yes, I do point out Tesla's flaws so they can improve. I have been eagerly awaiting the release of Tesla Enhanced Summon/Tesla Smart Summon/Tesla Come To Me as the next step in the progression to Full Self Drive cars. This time, however, I believe Tesla took the "next step" a little quicker than they should have.

This happened during the filming of my How-To Enhanced Summon video (
). The first attempt with come to me worked perfectly. Second attempt using enhanced summon to place the Model X at the end of the empty parking lot and again to move it about 30 ft worked. The last attempt, however, could potentially have ended up fatal or with life-altering injuries!

The Tesla Model X slowed like it was going to stop, as it did the first time. However, it decided to KEEP GOING! I'm sorry I did not turn the camera quick enough, however, once I realized it was going to keep going, I released the COME TO ME button on the app, which will prompt an immediate stop, or AT LEAST IT IS SUPPOSED TO! After I released the button, it proceeded to travel for a few more ft before it stopped.

After having Geno move out of the way, I opened the car door to check the dashboard (see the picture in the video), to see if the car saw the wall with the sonar. Well, YEP! IT DID! You can see the big STOP on the dash picture showing an object is directly in front of the vehicle. Also, what the car reports as seeing on the app when using come to me, is off by about 4 ft.

Unlike my first Enhanced Summon video (
) which was purposely filmed in a Worst Case scenario parking lot and driveway, THIS video was filmed in the BEST CASE Scenario!
Clear sky, great weather, EMPTY PARKING LOT (for the most part), only obstructions in the lot were a couple concrete light poles.

At this time, as well as seeing the other FAIL videos and reports that are being posted, and seeing what it did in a relatively easy situation, I do believe the Enhanced Summon / Not So Smart Summon was released prematurely. (Some are reporting Tesla released it when they did to realize some income from the paid-for feature that had not been delivered yet right before End of Quarter, and speaking with some Tesla employees, this makes some good sense!). While it saddens me, I believe in good faith that the feature should be pulled pending more internal Beta testing. Sorry Tesla, this is a case where PUBLIC BETA TESTING is just not good enough.

PLEASE BE CAUTIOUS EVERYONE! USE ENHANCED SUMMON RESPONSIBILITY AND KEEP THESE VEHICLES AWAY FROM PEOPLE!!!!!
 
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EDIT: I was NOT TESTING ANYTHING ON MY SON! HE WAS SITTING ON THE WALL MINDING HIS OWN BUSINESS playing Plants VS Zombies on his phone. I was filming a How-To for Enhanced Summon in a basically empty parking lot when the Model X decided NOT TO STOP. Purpose of the video is to show how dangerous Enhanced Summon is in it's current form. /EDIT.
 
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