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Question about power shutdown for DIY service

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I have to install an automatic trunk opener for Model 3. Tesla will not install aftermarket parts and none of the authorized repair shops (here in Dubai) want to do it. Before I install this, I want to power shutdown to make sure none of the systems are damaged as the wiring is installed/connected. What is the best way to do this? The Power Off button on the display scares me since the car turns back on if you do anything. I heard about a "Service Mode". Does that have a proper power shutdown option? If yes, how to I enable it?
 
You can power off the car using the Controls > Safety > Power Off option, but you’ll need to do it from outside the car through an open window because opening the door will power back on. If you need access to the cabin for wiring, that won’t help. You might have to disconnect the 12V battery or something like that, but I don’t know so hopefully someone else who’s done similar work can weigh in.

The only Service Mode is Wiper Service Mode which isn’t applicable.

PS: You said you’re in Dubai but your profile says NJ.
 
You can power off the car using the Controls > Safety > Power Off option, but you’ll need to do it from outside the car through an open window because opening the door will power back on. If you need access to the cabin for wiring, that won’t help. You might have to disconnect the 12V battery or something like that, but I don’t know so hopefully someone else who’s done similar work can weigh in.

The only Service Mode is Wiper Service Mode which isn’t applicable.

PS: You said you’re in Dubai but your profile says NJ.
The problem with this is that I have to open close trunk and doors during installation. (As to your question re: my location, I live both in NJ and Dubai and have Teslas in both location.)
 
Remove the rear seat cushion, roll the windows down, and open doors/frunk/trunk (you won't be able to open them with the power off- except for the front doors from the inside). Power down from the main menu (reach in through the door to do this). Wait. Disconect 12v battery then disconnect the main battery connection that is under the rear seat. Power up in reverse.
 
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Is it safe to leave the 12 volt battery connected and pull the main battery plug situated under the rear seat. My thinking is when leaving the car for a period of time, say at an airport, to reduce battery drain isolating the main battery but still leaving 12 volts would mean being able to lock unlock the car.
 
Is it safe to leave the 12 volt battery connected and pull the main battery plug situated under the rear seat. My thinking is when leaving the car for a period of time, say at an airport, to reduce battery drain isolating the main battery but still leaving 12 volts would mean being able to lock unlock the car.
That would be the worst thing possible for the car. You would come back to a dead 12V battery and a car that was inoperative. The car needs to be able to re-charge the 12V from the main battery.

If you want to reduce battery drain at the airport turn off sentry mode and cabin overheat protection. And don't check on the car from the app.
 
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Is it safe to leave the 12 volt battery connected and pull the main battery plug situated under the rear seat. My thinking is when leaving the car for a period of time, say at an airport, to reduce battery drain isolating the main battery but still leaving 12 volts would mean being able to lock unlock the car.

Unless you're leaving it for an very extended time and starting from a really low SOC, you should be fine.

Per @smatthew just turn off anything that consumes extra power and you're looking at a 1% every couple of days or so, unless you're talking about parking where it gets extremely cold.

Parking for 2 weeks (which seems like a pretty long time), would be like 7-10%, even with the occasional remote hit, so if you arrive with 50% or more, it's a non-issue. Now if you're wheeling into an airport at under 10% and parking for a month, you're going to need to rethink how you handle this (probably need to charge before parking if you don't have a park~n~charge type option).

This was one of the things that gave me anxiety as a new owner, I had only owned the car for a like a month before we did a 130 mile trip to the airport to park for a week - I had a sense of battery drain from the car being in the garage, but I was still a little worried. After one time, no sweat :)
 
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Unless you're leaving it for an very extended time and starting from a really low SOC, you should be fine.

Per @smatthew just turn off anything that consumes extra power and you're looking at a 1% every couple of days or so, unless you're talking about parking where it gets extremely cold.

Parking for 2 weeks (which seems like a pretty long time), would be like 7-10%, even with the occasional remote hit, so if you arrive with 50% or more, it's a non-issue. Now if you're wheeling into an airport at under 10% and parking for a month, you're going to need to rethink how you handle this (probably need to charge before parking if you don't have a park~n~charge type option).

This was one of the things that gave me anxiety as a new owner, I had only owned the car for a like a month before we did a 130 mile trip to the airport to park for a week - I had a sense of battery drain from the car being in the garage, but I was still a little worried. After one time, no sweat :)
And if you forget to turn off Cabin Overheat Protection - don't worry! It only functions for 12? hours after you last used the car anyways.....
 
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Thanks for replies but with everything turned off as suggested, and car parked in an enclosed space at home, no passing cars or pedestrians anywhere near, I still loose 15 to 20 miles a day. Its as if the car never goes to sleep and every so often, about once every 5 mins, I can hear the cars main relay clunk in then out which could be the main cause of the drain? or something somewhere in the car is still activated and not letting the car close down. I'm sure this all stems from the last update about a 6 weeks ago.
 
Thanks for replies but with everything turned off as suggested, and car parked in an enclosed space at home, no passing cars or pedestrians anywhere near, I still loose 15 to 20 miles a day. Its as if the car never goes to sleep and every so often, about once every 5 mins, I can hear the cars main relay clunk in then out which could be the main cause of the drain? or something somewhere in the car is still activated and not letting the car close down. I'm sure this all stems from the last update about a 6 weeks ago.

That's an excessive amount of battery loss. You say everything is turned off, but then you say, "no passing cars or pedestrians anywhere near", kind of implying you have Sentry mode on (i.e., something that would be triggered by movement).

Do you have any 3rd party apps that might be polling the car?

15-20 miles a day, is what, like 7-8% a day? If that's consistent, that means in my example above about parking at the airport, that was ~50% SOC and parked for a week, I'd come back to a dead car. :oops:

I'd review my settings, maybe reboot the car, do a little research. You should not be losing that much (and the solution shouldn't be having to disconnect the main battery or anything).
 
Thanks again for replies. No third party apps. No sentry mode. No pre-conditioning set. Heating ventilation shut off. The reason I mention passing cars and pedestrians is if the car although "asleep" still has peripheral sensors active so trying to imply nothing should be disturbing the cars slumber. Have done several reboots. Hence my earlier post about disconnecting the main battery but leaving 12 volt connected. If I did this, say at home overnight, and the battery did not loose range then I could eliminate main battery degradation and look to the main computer or an on board app not shutting down.. BTW I have a LR DM 2020 since new and covered 25K miles and this sudden range drop has only started in the last month.