Phone key disconnected but car is unlocked

[Skotty]

Can anyone with more knowledge than me explain why I can get into the car with the phone key disconnected?

Multiple times now I have come out to my Model 3, got in, only to discover I could not start the car because the phone key is not connected. Setting aside the all too common issue of phone key not connecting (I often have to turn bluetooth off and back on before it will connect), why am I able to get into the car at all? The phone key is not connected. Thoughts?

 

[Skotty]

Perhaps related? Even more obnoxious, at least once it started playing music from my phone over bluetooth but the phone key was disconnected. I had to turn the phone bluetooth off and back on for the phone key to connect.

Are there 2 different kinds of bluetooth connections going on here?

 

[Skotty]

I haven't ruled out the possibility that maybe the phone key was connected until I got in, then it disconnected. So maybe that could be happening? Though that doesn't explain how the car could be playing music on my phone while the phone key is disconnected; this would seem to suggest that the bluetooth connection isn't the problem; something else about the phone key is failing (though turning bluetooth off and back on again seems to reset it).

It would be nice if the phone key could connect via USB. Then I could just use my phone more like a traditional key -- plug it in and go without having to fight bluetooth issues. (as a side note, it is unfortunate how the convenience of the phone dock is at odds with security and phone key, as it makes it far easier to forget your phone in the car, leaving it unlocked and essentially running to anyone who wants to drive off with it)

 

[jjrandorin]

Perhaps related? Even more obnoxious, at least once it started playing music from my phone over bluetooth but the phone key was disconnected. I had to turn the phone bluetooth off and back on for the phone key to connect.

Are there 2 different kinds of bluetooth connections going on here?

Yes, there are two different bluetooth connection types. one is low power bluetooth and the other is regular bluetooth. I dont know anything about how the model S handles this and underneath your name you show a model S as a car.

 

[jjrandorin]

I haven't ruled out the possibility that maybe the phone key was connected until I got in, then it disconnected. So maybe that could be happening? Though that doesn't explain how the car could be playing music on my phone while the phone key is disconnected; this would seem to suggest that the bluetooth connection isn't the problem; something else about the phone key is failing (though turning bluetooth off and back on again seems to reset it).

It would be nice if the phone key could connect via USB. Then I could just use my phone more like a traditional key -- plug it in and go without having to fight bluetooth issues. (as a side note, it is unfortunate how the convenience of the phone dock is at odds with security and phone key, as it makes it far easier to forget your phone in the car, leaving it unlocked and essentially running to anyone who wants to drive off with it)

Phone as key bluetooth and the bluetooth connection for music are separate. If you remember, you needed to connect the phone as key in one setting, and then connect the bluetooth for music in another setting. You can remove the phone as key and still play music, and conversely you can remove the bluetooth music connection and it doesnt effect the phone as key.

Thats how "the music could be playing on your phone with the phone key disconnected"

You also dont mention what kind of phone you have, but you can always remove both the phone as key, and the bluetooth for music, and re set them back up to see if that helps. I would also recommend that you make sure you are not force closing the tesla app on your smartphone, or that your smart phone is not "power managing" your tesla app and not allowing it to run fully in the background.

 

[Skotty]

Yes, there are two different bluetooth connection types. one is low power bluetooth and the other is regular bluetooth. I dont know anything about how the model S handles this and underneath your name you show a model S as a car.

My first Tesla was the Model S pictured that I picked up in 2016. Just a few weeks ago we replaced our 2nd vehicle (a Ford Escape) with a Model 3, so we have both an S and a 3 now. My inquiry is specific to the Model 3, which I'm still getting acquainted with.

My phone is an iPhone SE. (I prefer classic headphone jacks and small phones that take up minimal space in my pocket, and this makes me heavily resist upgrading to newer phones)

 

[juls_esp]

I have been haviing issues with my phone key since updating to 36.2.3
pretty annoying

 

[srs5694]

As others have said, the phone-as-key and Bluetooth music streaming are separate functions. Both rely on Bluetooth, but in different ways, so one can work even if the other doesn't.

I've experienced the problem of the phone unlocking but the car not driving once or twice myself, but it's been pretty rare. (I've had my Model 3 for about 8 months now.) Based on my own experience, I'd chalk it up to a random glitch -- it could be caused by some weird RF interference, the phone or car computer rebooting (although you'd probably notice those, especially the car), etc. You might also want to consider whether you have any other phones configured as keys. It's conceivable that their Bluetooth signals are interfering with one another in some odd way....

To elaborate on the above, I have three phones configured as Tesla keys. Just today, I returned from running some errands and then needed to go back to my car, but it wouldn't let me in. The phone I was using reported a Tesla app status of "disconnected." My other phone reported it was "connected" -- but I knew from prior testing that it wouldn't work as a key even when "connected" from the location in which it was sitting (about 30 feet away from the car, through a wall). Long story short: To get my primary phone working as a key again, I had to temporarily set my other phones to airplane mode and re-pair my primary phone as a key. I have no idea what went wrong, but the trick that finally got it working was to disable those other two phones' radios. After re-enabling them, they all seem to be working again. This bit of weirdness is obviously not analogous to your situation in any detail; I mention it simply to point out that there can be weird interactions between multiple phones when they're all configured as keys. Simplifying by turning them off or setting them to airplane mode may help you diagnose and correct the problem.

 

[bolero]

Make sure in the setting under Tesla. the Location is set to Always. see if that helps..

 

[BourneM3]

I have been haviing issues with my phone key since updating to 36.2.3
pretty annoying

Yep, what phone do you have? I have an iphone 11 pro and won't unlock the car unless I unlock the phone. Was working fine before the update

 

[juls_esp]

7plus

 

[Cochrane]

Can anyone with more knowledge than me explain why I can get into the car with the phone key disconnected?

Multiple times now I have come out to my Model 3, got in, only to discover I could not start the car because the phone key is not connected. Setting aside the all too common issue of phone key not connecting (I often have to turn bluetooth off and back on before it will connect), why am I able to get into the car at all? The phone key is not connected. Thoughts?

Here is an interesting and possibly related factoid that I discovered yesterday. We are newbies. When I set up our phones, I also downloaded the app on my iPad and made it a key JIC. What I found is that if my iPad is in the car, the Autolock won’t lock as I walk away with my phone. I guess it thinks someone is still in the car.

Here’s a new question: My understanding is that the car is supposed to be smart enough to read my phone and set the seats to my setting. It doesn’t. If my wife drove the car last, it sets the seats to her settings. How do I tell the car to set my seat settings when my phone comes aboard and her settings if it is her phone? Thanks!

 

[animorph]

My Nokia 6.1 usually likes to be outside my pocket before the doors will unlock on our 3. Once I'm in I have to take it out again about 50%-75% of the time in order to start the car. I can't really check to see if it is disconnected at those times, but it usually remains connected while walking through the house.

 

[drtimhill]

Perhaps related? Even more obnoxious, at least once it started playing music from my phone over bluetooth but the phone key was disconnected. I had to turn the phone bluetooth off and back on for the phone key to connect.

Are there 2 different kinds of bluetooth connections going on here?

Yes .. the lock/unlock uses BTLE (low energy), which allows the car to triangulate distance to phone. The audio uses regular BT.

 

[jjrandorin]

Here’s a new question: My understanding is that the car is supposed to be smart enough to read my phone and set the seats to my setting. It doesn’t. If my wife drove the car last, it sets the seats to her settings. How do I tell the car to set my seat settings when my phone comes aboard and her settings if it is her phone? Thanks!

when you have used your phone as a key to get into the car, select your profile as normal (if it opens with hers), then go into the LOCKS menu and find your phone as key and touch it, to add your profile to that key. Repeat with adding the appropriate profile to the appropriate key.