Rapid discharge while parked at airport, how to contact a human for help?

[AlanSubie4Life]

Is that native Tesla app widget available on Android? When trying to add widgets to my phone Home screen, I see a ton(including Tesla Desktop) but nothing from the Tesla app(which is installed and has been logged into on my phone.

I do not YET have a car, so maybe the widget does not "install itself" until a car has been connected to the app?

I have heard it is, but I do not have Android so I don’t know for sure. Perhaps someone here can comment. Widget would not have any info without a car, so that could be it.

EDIT: Sounds like based on other feedback that there may be no Android widget. Might be iOS only.

 

[acarney]

My vision of an Airport Mode is an option list to tick off what you want to happen and what the effects will be. For example, right now the car stops eating up power at the 20% point. I'd like the option to choose other levels - 50% - 30% - whatever. I'd like to use Sentry Mode, but not if it kills the battery. Simplify the decisions, show the results of the decisions.

Honestly Tesla could get really powerful for the users that want it. Could I leave the car for 10 days and set a "Smart Schedule" when sentry mode was only active 1 hour after sundown to 1 hour before sun up or something? Or specific hours when the airport or parking lot was closed or very minimally staffed? It might be more likely during those times to have a break in, etc. Then you could also set the power level where you want everything to go into standby mode where it uses the lowest drain available. Maybe the car could even suggest that based on two settings, "standby to go home" and "standby to supercharge" or something. The first would shut down everything to the lowest power level while leaving enough range to drive from the current location back to your home, plus some amount of buffer for cold weather, etc. The other would look at the closest supercharger and do the same thing but with the assumption that you'll drive directly to a supercharger when picking the car up from the airport. You could have "normal" and "airport mode" and then "advanced" which gives you all the other options.

For someone in a large airport with a well lit parking garage with people coming and going at all times maybe they're not worried about sentry being on. For a regional airport with just a smaller surface parking lot with just a fence around it or something and no flights between 11pm and 6am maybe they just want sentry working during that time. For someone that needs to drive 50+ miles from home to the airport maybe 20% isn't going to be enough and they want the car shutting down at 50%. For someone that's 8 miles away from the airport maybe they don't care if the car doesn't shut down till like 10%....

 

[SMAlset]

Don't know how Android phones work with this but on an iPhone when you are at the home screen and wipe to the right to get to the widgets, at the bottom of the list it will either say "X new widgets available" or you press the "Edit" button and it takes you to a list of widgets you have already and shows ones can add.

 

[emailrob]

Where's clippy when the world needs him

"I see you've parked at the airport. Would you like me to pick you up from departures when flight DL2314 lands tomorrow at 2pm?"

 

[emailrob]

Is that native Tesla app widget available on Android? When trying to add widgets to my phone Home screen, I see a ton(including Tesla Desktop) but nothing from the Tesla app(which is installed and has been logged into on my phone.

I do not YET have a car, so maybe the widget does not "install itself" until a car has been connected to the app?

I don't see any widgets for Android unfortunately.

 

[ilyak]

@AlanSubie4Life

Are we for sure that the widget doesnt wake the car ? Where did you get that info from ?

Yes, at least for the iOS version. The widget will explicitly say the car is asleep and offer an option to update the displayed information by waking the car up.

 

[drtimhill]

I've never used Sentry mode, but I double checked that it is off. I don't have anyone to go charge it.

Sadly if you have EITHER Sentry Mode or Standby Mode (for Smart Summon) on, then you will get the same drain, as both require the computer to be awake. Worse (imho), Tesla seem to have made Standby Mode for Smart Summon the default. Couple with that the lack of an on/off toggle in the app, and you are stuck in the same place I (and many others) have been.

Do what I did .. ping Tesla support and tell them we need an on/off toggle for Standby Mode in the app .. the more people who do it, the greater the chance it will get added.

 

[ucmndd]

Do what I did .. ping Tesla support and tell them we need an on/off toggle for Standby Mode in the app .. the more people who do it, the greater the chance it will get added.

Even better than that, I’d love to see an “airplane mode” macro setting that temporarily disabled all the energy sapping crap at once, and restored to your original settings when you turn it back off.

 

[Eno Deb]

This feature is also available natively with the Tesla app widget, which is available to everyone.

This is an example when the car is charging, but when it is asleep the widget ensures it stays asleep, unless you ask for a wake up.

I find the widget pretty much useless because it doesn't update even if the car is awake or driving without either opening the app or tapping the refresh button. In my case this means it's almost always out of date since I rarely open the app. What it should do IMO is regularly check via the Tesla API server whether the car is awake, and if yes, update the range status without having to interact with the app.

 

[AlanSubie4Life]

I find the widget pretty much useless because it doesn't update even if the car is awake or driving without either opening the app or tapping the refresh button. In my case this means it's almost always outdated since I rarely open the app. What it should do IMO is regularly check whether the car is awake, and if yes, update the range status without having to interact with the app.

I haven't found this to be the case. It seems to update fairly reliably. YMMV I guess. Maybe I just haven't noticed the times that it has failed. Anyway, maybe the OP here has iOS and can let us know if it actually works in this case.

 

[Eno Deb]

I haven't found this to be the case. It seems to update fairly reliably. YMMV I guess. Maybe I just haven't noticed the times that it has failed. Anyway, maybe the OP here has iOS and can let us know if it actually works in this case.

Are you saying your widget updates in the background when the car is awake without you interacting with the app or widget in any way? My widget currently shows the range from two days ago, since the car is asleep and that was the last time I opened the app.

 

[AlanSubie4Life]

Are you saying your widget updates in the background when the car is awake without you interacting with the app or widget in any way? My widget currently shows the range from two days ago, since the car is asleep and that was the last time I opened the app.

That's correct. I'm currently charging, so that's an easy case, but I have not opened my app today and I didn't have to click on the widget or anything to have it show the status.

And I've never seen it delayed by a couple days. I've used it to check the status and I've seen it updated "yesterday at 9PM" or something like that, but it seems to get the new status as soon as the car wakes up. How reliably does this happen? I have not checked.

 

[Eno Deb]

That's correct. I'm currently charging, so that's an easy case, but I have not opened my app today and I didn't have to click on the widget or anything to have it show the status.

OK, for science I just woke my car up by opening the trunk. When swiping to the widget screen on my iPhone, the range updated. So it seems there are 3 ways to update it: (1) open the app, (2) look at the widget while the car is awake, or (3) hit the refresh button when the car is asleep. But if you don't do either of these things, the widget will not be updated in the background from my experience (which is common for me since I rarely use the widget screen or open the app).

 

[AlanSubie4Life]

But if you don't do either of these things, the widget will not be updated in the background from my experience (which is common for me since I rarely use the widget screen or open the app).

I'll keep an eye on this. But even if this is the case, and the update cases are limited to these, it still provides utility because it for sure allows you to see and capture the status if the car is awake. So it's the thing to do if you don't want to wake the car.

 

[Eno Deb]

I'll keep an eye on this. But even if this is the case, and the update cases are limited to these, it still provides utility because it for sure allows you to see capture the status if the car is awake. So it's the thing to do if you don't want to wake the car.

True. And it's the best way to remotely check whether something is keeping the car awake ...

 

[vickh]

we need a solar trickle charger for situations like this. Any way to DIY this Hyundai launches car with a roof-based solar charging system

Cybertruck will have such an option. Tesla needs to develop a retro fit version for older cars

 

[haliboot]

we need a solar trickle charger for situations like this. Any way to DIY this Hyundai launches car with a roof-based solar charging system

Cybertruck will have such an option. Tesla needs to develop a retro fit version for older cars

With sentry mode off, I can't see any reason why the car should be using much more energy than a smart phone. 70kwh should last a lot longer than a week or two. What could smart summon (or whatever else) possibly need to be doing while parked other than listening for you to connect... like a smart phone does? Is it mining bitcoins on the side?

 

[toolman335]

FYI, when this type of range loss occurs, it's not degradation. The overuse of that word is really starting to drive me beserk. The OP didn't post it but someone else did. Call it range loss, battery drain, etc., but degradation? Come on lol.

 

[Eno Deb]

What could smart summon (or whatever else) possibly need to be doing while parked other than listening for you to connect... like a smart phone does?

The only purpose of the Smart Summon standby option is that the car responds a few seconds faster. For some reason Tesla apparently thought that waiting for the car to wake up before using Smart Summon is an unacceptable hassle, so they made the standby option the default. Of course, in the real world most people rarely use Smart Summon, so it's just a waste of energy and backfires in situations like the OP's.

 

[SteeveeLeevee]

This is getting ridiculous, put the car to bed last night power button off, all wifi wiped out, air con fans were off before power down no usb, sentry, dashcam.
64 miles in the battery, woke up this morning with 47 miles in the "tank", drove to the golf club with 44 miles left, came back to the car 5 hours later (weather had warmed up during play) and had 34 miles left.

So it seems I am losing more than I am using, there must be a drain somewhere, any ideas as to where I might look next? Or do I have to ask Tesla?