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The definitive phone key thread...
- Thread starter DblOSmith
- Start date
BitJam
Active Member
I posted these instructions for setting up an Android phone. You don't need the app on or the screen on in order to use the phone key to unlock your car.
laservet refined this with the suggestion to add "Tesla" to the never sleeping apps list:
Settings > Battery and device care > Battery > Background Usage Limits > Never Sleeping apps
TunaBug
Member
I use an iPhone Xr, which is a 2018 model. I used to be frequently frustrated at holding the handle to open the car for several seconds before it would identify me (just like the OP). Since reading here that it's problematic to have the phone in my back pocket I just don't do that anymore, and the phone pretty much Just Works. It would be interesting to know if some phones are better than others in the regard. But at the same time, I wouldn't drive the car with the phone in the back pocket anyhow, so removing before I get to the car is only a hassle if I have both hands full when approaching the car.
eCharcoal
Member
We have a 2018 model 3 and a 2021 model Y. Both bought new. We’ve used numerous iPhones over the years from iPhone 7 to now iPhone 13 pro. For the past 4 years, I always have the app running. Never swiped it away. Bluetooth always on. Phone in front pocket. Etc etc. Basically we’ve done everything we could. Everything people have mentioned here.
I’d say the phone key works 80%. I still cannot find out what the culprit is. All phone seems to work the same. We have less of this problem with the model 3 than the model Y.
The routine is… I approach the car. Lift the door handle. Nothing. Sentry mode kicks in and recording. Frustrated, I take my phone out. Take on the screws (does not need to unlock). Then doors open. Sometimes I could go a week without any issues. Sometimes it happens to me 5 times a day.
Yes it sounds like it’s a problem with the phone. But 6 different phones later, no real improvement. I drive the model 3 for 3 years before switching to the Y, and wife took over the 3. She RARELY has issues with unable to open door with phone key. But I have a lot of issues with the Y. I say it’s more of a car issue.
I’d say the phone key works 80%. I still cannot find out what the culprit is. All phone seems to work the same. We have less of this problem with the model 3 than the model Y.
The routine is… I approach the car. Lift the door handle. Nothing. Sentry mode kicks in and recording. Frustrated, I take my phone out. Take on the screws (does not need to unlock). Then doors open. Sometimes I could go a week without any issues. Sometimes it happens to me 5 times a day.
Yes it sounds like it’s a problem with the phone. But 6 different phones later, no real improvement. I drive the model 3 for 3 years before switching to the Y, and wife took over the 3. She RARELY has issues with unable to open door with phone key. But I have a lot of issues with the Y. I say it’s more of a car issue.
Try opening the door with your phone close to the B pillar - the seam between the front and back doors. I keep my phone in my front left pocket and don't have any problems opening the doors on the driver's side, but if I try to open the passenger's side rear door, it won't work unless I get the phone closer to the B pillar (by moving my body - not by taking the phone out of my pocket), which is kind of an awkward movement.
Is it possible to disable the phone key temporarily, say at night?
The Bluetooth range is excellent and the Tesla app will regularly say connected when I'm quite some distance away in my house. The only suggestion I've found online is to disable Bluetooth. But that then renders my smart watch and headphones useless.
The Bluetooth range is excellent and the Tesla app will regularly say connected when I'm quite some distance away in my house. The only suggestion I've found online is to disable Bluetooth. But that then renders my smart watch and headphones useless.
That shouldn't be cause for concern. The car will sleep normally and remain locked.
Transformer
Do the math. Save the world. — Mark Leon
Good question.
Does the phone app say it's connected as a phone key (under "Security"), or is it connected only via the Internet?
Via the Internet, the phone can remotely operate its climate controls, windows, lock/unlock, etc. but pulling a door handle won't unlock the car.
You could also test it by leaving the phone in the house then pulling the car door handle.
Hi, it's definitely the phone key connected under Security as you say. Also the persistent notification changes.
So to check. After 5 minutes of the car being stationary, it goes into sleep mode. Unless I actually open the app, the car won't unlock even though the app key has connected over Bluetooth. Have I understood this correctly?
Transformer
Do the math. Save the world. — Mark Leon
No.
It's complicated.
- If walkaway-lock is enabled, the car will lock when the phone that unlocked it moves outside the car far enough or long enough. I guess that distance is measured via Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) signal strength.
- If you enable "Exclude Home", the car won't auto-lock at home. The car determines this location via GPS with a large radius. So if you set this to avoid locking in the garage, remember to manually lock the car when parking on the street in front of the house.
- See Model 3 Owner's Manual | Tesla for all the cases where walk-away lock won't happen, and other authoritative info.
- When the car locks, it will honk the horn if "Lock Confirmation Sound" is enabled. ("Honk on lock" would be a clearer name.) Get used to listening for this feedback while walking away.
- When the car locks, it will fold the mirrors unless you turn off "Fold Mirrors." This is also useful feedback, but it's audible only nearby.
- Locking the car does not put it into sleep mode. Sleep mode takes longer. It won't go to sleep at all while climate control or Sentry mode is running.
- Sleep mode does not prevent walk-up unlocking.
- For walk-up unlocking, you need the phone to have Bluetooth turned on, be logged into your Tesla account, be configured as a key for this car (you need to use a card key to set this up), be near the car, and then open a door handle (Model 3 or Y).
- The Tesla app does not need to be open for walk-up unlocking, nor does the phone's display need to be on. Some people find this doesn't work reliably when the phone is in a back pocket. (Metal underpants?) It can also be unreliable if Android has "battery optimization" enabled for the Tesla app, or the iPhone equivalent.
- The app uses Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) communications to lock/unlock the car. I'm not sure that the term "connection" really applies to this communication; it has nothing whatsoever to do with any paired Bluetooth connection for audio streaming, hands-free phone calls, and SMS text messaging.
- Even beyond Bluetooth range or when Bluetooth is turned off, the app can communicate with the car via the Internet so it can still remotely do things like lock/unlock the car, adjust climate, open the frunk, close the windows, or start the car (so you can enable a neighbor to move the car).
- If you and your partner together walk-up to the car with phone keys that can unlock the car, the car is not great at deciding which one of you will be the driver. I think it picks the phone that happens to contact first. Then it will pick that driver profile and move the seat for that driver when they tap the brake pedal.
- Each driver profile can have a "preferred Bluetooth device" for the purposes of audio streaming, hands-free phone calls, and SMS text messaging. It's BLE connection --> driver profile --> preferred streaming/calling/texting phone. The "preferred connection" has nothing to do with preferring a driver profile.
Still, it's possible that the phone from inside the house is close enough to let someone open the car door. If you're concerned, consider turning on "PIN to drive." That's a useful security feature esp. since it's possible for hackers to relay your phone's Bluetooth signal to/from the car while you walk away.
eCharcoal
Member
Oops I meant to type “tap on the screen”.
The fact that I need to tap my screen to wake the phone and unlock the car is silly. Yes that sounds like it’s the phone’s issue. But I cannot explain why it happened with the Y wayyyy more often than the 3. The 3 is 3 years older than the Y.
eCharcoal
Member
I'm happy to report that I was right the first time. Even when the app is running in the background, I'm around 80% chance that it works well. 1 in 5 chance I'll be waiting by my door for at least 20 seconds or I have to go into the app and manually unlock the car.
Is it only a recent change that we can "swipe" away the Android notification? I always thought this was a persistent notification but I freaked out when I swiped it away the other day. Obviously I can relaunch the app, but I'm surprised it allowed me to do that. I thought the idea of a persistent notification was to force apps that need to run in the background to be noticed by users. Based on that I thought you weren't allowed to swipe away and the only way to avoid the notification was to disable that notification specifically.
You can swap away. When you restart the phone this notification don't come back until you start the app.
I think this may be Android versino dependent, but I think Android 13 doesn't really require apps to display a persistent notification anymore. when you swipe down the notification bar fully where it shows the Quick Settings tiles, I can see X apps active:
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