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I've seen others mention here that they plan on telling the valet that they don't have their key card on them and the only way to unlock and drive the car is with their phone. This should hopefully allow you to park the car yourself and not deal with the valet attendants at all. I plan on attempting this myself. The idea of some random kid driving and parking my Model 3 without at least having a crash course in how to operate it definitely scares me a bit!
For those times where I will have absolutely no choice but to valet I went and bought myself one of these: https://www.rpmtesla.com/product-page/model-3-valet-buddy
For those times where I will have absolutely no choice but to valet I went and bought myself one of these: https://www.rpmtesla.com/product-page/model-3-valet-buddy
The iPhone trick is a really good one. I'll have to try it. I usually give the valet an extra tip and tell him I'll park it myself and keep the key. I rarely have a valet say they can't do it. They all want the extra tip and like nice cars parked out front ;-)
DON'T!!! Sorry, I just can't understand why anyone would let a valet park their Model 3. Hell, my wife might not see the driver's seat for a year.
dhrivnak
Active Member
The sad thing is my 10 year old Roadster has a nice valet mode. Part of the software and easy to activate. It cuts power to half (range mode) and limits top speed to 50 mph and will not unlock the trunk. Not bad for 10 year old technology.
TES-E
Member
No way would I ever let a valet drive my car. Heck, I wouldn't even let a valet drive the Prius. There were stories about valets getting out without shutting the car off and it rolled into the wall. If I'm driving a rental car, sure, the valet can park that. MY car? No way!
I do like the "You can't drive it without my phone" excuse. That's a good one.
In Mexico there's a scam where some guy dresses up in a uniform and stands outside a fancy restaurant. You give him your car key and you never see him or your car again. It probably happens elsewhere as well. Mexico just happens to be where I heard about it.
I do like the "You can't drive it without my phone" excuse. That's a good one.
In Mexico there's a scam where some guy dresses up in a uniform and stands outside a fancy restaurant. You give him your car key and you never see him or your car again. It probably happens elsewhere as well. Mexico just happens to be where I heard about it.
The last and only time I let a valet drive my car, he hit the accelerator too hard coming up out of the garage and almost got into an accident. He apologized all red faced. He didn’t know how fast a Tesla can be.
Had my Model 3 valeted a few times now without issue. All were already familiar with the vehicle and knew exactly what to do with the key card. Maybe y'all should be going to some classier places 
@dhrivnak, like my S, the 3 also has 'valet mode' that can be enabled either locally in the car or remotely from the app
@dhrivnak, like my S, the 3 also has 'valet mode' that can be enabled either locally in the car or remotely from the app
Why is everyone freaking out about someone operating model 3? How exactly is that different from any automatic ICE? You put in drive and off you go. Park the car, use a reverse maybe and then put in park. Same thing you would do with ANY car. And being valets, driving in 1 minute, they are not going to adjust seats or mirrors and they drive shitloads of various cars every day. They're actually more likely to figure out how the car behaves in 2 seconds than anyone else.
Lots of people get freak out about other people driving their cars (ICE or Electric). I used to belong to BMW, Lexus, Mini Cooper forums and same thing with those on the subject of valet. But for the M3, there is the additional problem of not have a keyfob. People would be scared that the keycard will get lost (because they can't hang it on a hook without you providing them a sleeve) or it may be copied easily, etc... And with it being a Tesla, they are afraid that the valet may decided to give his/her friends a show and tell or demo drive on an electric car, etc...
Also with Tesla being so long to fix if damaged, they don't want to chance it letting someone else driving it. Having said that, our MX has been valeted many times already. ;p
We were in New Orleans about a week ago and were staying at the ritz carlton on canal. We got to witness a valet dude trying to figure out how to operate a model 3. Showed him where to put the card and all was well. My point with this is that model 3's aren't quite common in all areas of the country yet. So while the valets in your area might be familiar with the car at this point, a lot of people still haven't even seen one in person.
Ever had to deal with a valet damaging your car? I have. It was one of the most unpleasant experiences of my life, and once I learned how hard it is to get them to cover what they've done I vowed I will simply not go to a place if I have to use a valet.
It's not about the specific car, it's about the scum that try and weasel out of liability.
Never again.
Had my Model 3 valeted a few times now without issue. All were already familiar with the vehicle and knew exactly what to do with the key card. Maybe y'all should be going to some classier places
It also helps that you are in an area of CA where there's already a good amount of Model 3s driving around. I doubt there are more than 300 Model 3s in the NYC tri-state area at this moment, so many valets have probably never seen one around here.
K-MTG
Sunshade Captain of TMC
One of my friends had his Acura MDX stolen while it was valet...the hotel left the keys in the car and the hotel couldn’t find the car when it was pick up time. After the hotel checked security cameras...two guys simply hopped in whiteout anyone noticing.
It was later found in Compton....the thieves tried to steal components but they mostly broke everything.
It was later found in Compton....the thieves tried to steal components but they mostly broke everything.
I think there are two in Spokane. It's unlikely any valet in Spokane has ever seen one, and maybe they have never even heard of it. I don't care for my car to be the one they learn on. (But I admit I didn't even let anyone drive my 1989 Honda Civic.
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