Just got Sentry Mode on my MS. I noticed the vampire drain seems to be about 3 miles range / 5 hours. Of course my car has a weird quirk: whenever the battery is “on” (charging, A/C, wake up from app, sentry mode) my left front headlight eyeliner light comes on. Anyway how does this compare? Also, do u need USB for Sentry Mode to work correctly? Thanks!
Sentry Mode battery drain
- Thread starter Darth Tater
- Start date
TiggerTime
Member
So first off Yes, you need a USB drive installed for sentry mode to be able to actually record anything. You only need 1 USB drive for both the Teslacam and sentry recordings.
Typically I have seen about 2miles/hour drain when sentry is active on my car. IF you do not have USB installed then yours may be using much less since it isn't recording anything.
Typically I have seen about 2miles/hour drain when sentry is active on my car. IF you do not have USB installed then yours may be using much less since it isn't recording anything.
SpudLime
Active Member
Mine does this as well. Based on other threads, as well as my own experience its a precursor that your headlight will need to be replaced soon. I noticed the dim light on a few months back. Now when my lights are on, the eyeliner light is much dimmer than the other. I have a service coming up soon and they are replacing the headlight.
martinsfsu
Member
i had my model 3 parked with sentry mode on but without a usb. i just noticed my better lost 35 miles in 4 days. i just noticed now and turned it off as my battery is now only 51 miles with 4 days of travel left. should lose no more than 4-5 miles with 4 days left now that sentry mode is off? it’s 2019 model 3 so if battery is dead upon return will roadside assistance cover a tow to nearby charging station? any other tips to preserve battery or check on status?
Tam
Well-Known Member
In the very pioneering days, Tesla would cover the tow. Nowadays, it does not cover for drained battery because of unplanned charging practice.
Now that you shut down all you could, you should not use the app to wake your car up until you will be physically there and ready to see if you can drive.
martinsfsu
Member
I don't think removing the USB makes a difference as your car sends Sentry mode clips to Tesla. You should turn Sentry mode off, uncheck "Always Connected" and turn on range mode. Also avoid using your Tesla app as it forces your car to wake up, which also uses juice. Roadside will charge you for dead battery tow unfortunately, unless there is a malfunction and your warranty is still active.
The last time we checked, enabling Sentry Mode not only increased battery consumption while parked, it also disabled Overheat Protection.
For now, we decided not to bother with Sentry Mode - and prefer to keep our cars (in Texas) cooler while parked, protecting the interior (including the MCU touchscreen).
Sentry Mode appears to be an interesting feature, but unless they can address the battery usage, fix Overheat Protection, and better handle what happens when the USB device is full - we won't use it.
What we have now is a good "version 1" solution - hopefully they are addressing these issues - and we'll see the feature improved enough that it could be used in more situations - such as enabled while parking for extended periods (at an airport).
For now, we decided not to bother with Sentry Mode - and prefer to keep our cars (in Texas) cooler while parked, protecting the interior (including the MCU touchscreen).
Sentry Mode appears to be an interesting feature, but unless they can address the battery usage, fix Overheat Protection, and better handle what happens when the USB device is full - we won't use it.
What we have now is a good "version 1" solution - hopefully they are addressing these issues - and we'll see the feature improved enough that it could be used in more situations - such as enabled while parking for extended periods (at an airport).
