Metromile insurance Pulse installation question

[Reekdog]

I just picked up my 2016 model S and went with Metromile insurance. My Pulse device came in the mail today but my not sure where to plug it in. I was told that they insure many tesla owners and was wondering if someone who's using MM can tell me how/where to install it.

It's supposed to plug into the OBD-2 port but my sales guy said he didn't know if the car has one. Pictures would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks

 

[Reekdog]

Bump

 

[tonyquan]

Bump

Before getting into this there's a very high chance this device won't work, it just depends on what it's designed to do.

Per federal requirements that all vehicles have an OBD-2 port, yes the Tesla does have an OBD-2 port. It's underneath the left side of the dash, near the "dead pedal" Dead pedal - Wikipedia
The issue with OBD-2 devices and the Tesla is that OBD-2 doesn't make much sense on the Tesla. Most of what OBD-2 does is relay data that is only relevant for ICE cars. So while the Tesla does have an OBD-2 port, it actually doesn't do anything except supply power. None of the data lines on it are active. (The federal regulations don't require that the OBD-2 port do anything specifically in the Tesla's case) If the Metromile device needs any of the expected OBD-2 data, it will not work. If all it needs is power, then it may work.

So go ahead and try to plug it in, but don't be surprised if it doesn't work/doesn't report any data to Metromile. In particular, I know that the OBD-2 port in a Tesla doesn't supply any mileage data (which is what an insurance company like Metromile needs), while the OBD-2 port in a gasoline car normally does. So I don't think the Metromile device will actually work. However, you can give it a try, it won't hurt anything to.

 

[tonyquan]

BTW a bit of searching showed this thread where a Tesla owner said the Metromile Pulse did not work, and they had to substitute a different Metromile device that plugged into the cigarette lighter instead. My guess is that this alternate device measures mileage itself using GPS or similar. Metronome with Tesla Model S? | Metromile Community

 

[JPP]

A GPS based device can measure speed/acceleration/deceleration and infer your driving habits (fast starts, speeding, fast stops, etc). Not sure what else these devices capture to give insurers the data they need/want to tweak your rates.

 

[Reekdog]

Thanks for everyone's response, I went ahead and took my car to the SC and they plugged in the metromile pulse for me. The red light came on and I immediately recieved a text from metromile letting me know it was activated.