Tesla Quality - Key Fob Indestructible???

[vangogh]

I went diving in Monterey Bay last week-end.
I accidentally left my X's key fob in the wet pocket of my dry suit
After returning from a 30 minute dive to over 80', I realized my mistake.
(At the time I found myself thinking it was going to be a very expensive mistake)

I opened the fob and took out the battery and shook out all the sea water.
Surprisingly, there was very little signs of corrosion.
I flushed the fob repeatedly in fresh water and shook out the remaining.
I was able to open the X, start it, and drive home with the app on my phone.
Later that evening, I put the fob in a bag of rice and let it sit for 3 days.

Today, I installed a fresh battery...And...WOW....the fob still works perfectly...All functionality appears to be present...

Kudo's to the design team of that fantastic fob....

 

[ecarfan]

Great story! As an X owner and a scuba diver, I truly appreciated it.

 

[jlund]

Hah. Nice!

I shamefully drove over my fob when it fell out of my pocket without me noticing. All the pieces popped apart with the weight of the car (and battery!). Surprisingly, I pressed the sides and top back together and it Was 100% functional.

 

[##BroadRipple]

Sounds like they are made

 

[##BroadRipple]

How often does the battery need to be changed? What are some signs to look for when the battery begins to fail on the FOB?

 

[pakman00]

As a fellow scuba diver, that's great to know and glad that it worked post dive but I'd be worried eventually you're going to get some nasty corrosion inside from the salt that remains after the water evaporates, unless Tesla had the foresight to seal all the electronics in silicon.

 

[CmdrThor]

How often does the battery need to be changed? What are some signs to look for when the battery begins to fail on the FOB?

That depends a lot on how close you keep it to the car. If you store it within range of the car it can go dead in a matter of months. Otherwise it should last a year or so. The car is supposed to tell you when the battery is low. The batteries are cheap, I also keep extra on hand.

 

[tomas]

Rice. More than just food! It has saved phones and watches for me.

 

[ecarfan]

How often does the battery need to be changed? What are some signs to look for when the battery begins to fail on the FOB?

Generally about a year, sometimes less. The car will display an alert when it senses the fob battery is low.

 

[McManX]

Also a diver myself. Good to know but still not going to try it.

My fob survived two or three laundry cycles, no rice and didn't replace the battery.