Using Model Y for Food Delivery: Concerns about 12V Battery Life Span

[kelkel]

Hey Tesla community,

I recently got a Model Y and am thinking about using it for food delivery to earn some extra money. I was wondering if any of you have done this before and have any tips or experiences to share?

I really appreciate the walk away and lock feature, especially when picking up food from restaurants, but it can be a pain during deliveries as the car shuts off every time. My main concern is that when I come back to the car, I have to restart it every time by pressing the brake, and I worry that doing this frequently will cause the 12V battery to die soon.

So, I was wondering how you guys manage this situation? Do you keep the car running while making deliveries or am I worrying too much at this point?

Thanks in advance for any advice you can offer.

 

[jjrandorin]

or am I worrying too much at this point?

I think you are worrying too much. If it were me I would be using sentry mode (which is going to keep the car awake anyway) every time I parked and hopped out of it to go pick up an order.

 

[Ostrichsak]

There's basically no load on a 12v battery in a Tesla. It's not like starting an ICE car which puts the 12v battery under tremendous load everytime it turns the engine over.

The low voltage battery in your Tesla is literally powering your MCU, headlights, wipers and various other accessories. The end.

This is one of the many reasons EVs are better. Your low voltage battery will likely last several years regardless of how many times you "start" the car.

Teslas typically warn you weeks/months before it actually fails so you plan the replacement too.

As an added bonus, if you just got your Model Y it likely has the new Tesla-made lithium low voltage battery pack. It runs at a slightly higher voltage but, more importantly, is engineered to last the life of the car.

Summary: I wouldn't waste energy thinking about the low voltage system of a new Tesla.

 

[exxxviii]

An EV doesn’t really “run“ like a gas car. And the 12V battery does not start it like a gas car. It only powers the computer and is almost immediately recharged by the high voltage battery. So, frequent starts and stops might have no material impact on the 12V battery life. The car’s on and off is more like a laptop in and out of sleep.