What tools are people using with their Tesla?

[melduk]

I was thinking today I am not doing enough with the Tesla API and not really using any tools.

Is anyone doing anything interesting with it? I know a lot of people use TeslaFi for stats but I am more thinking along the lines of smart integrations / automations etc.

Or anything people want to do but there's not really a solution for yet but could be achieved with the API?

 

[prabhu]

I use Tessie, which offers all the integrations and automation I need. The extra time I get, I use to browse TMC

 

[huntleth]

I use Tessie, I mostly use it for two shortcuts, one just to unlock the charge port and another "Get the car ready" shortcut that does something like:

• Get weather
• Get Interior temp
• Stop Charge, Unlock Port
• If weather < 3C max defrost
• If interior temp > 23 climate on
  • else if temp < 10 climate on, heated seats/wheel on

It's really handy when you're trying to get a 6 month old and all the assorted luggage they need into the car as I can just yell Hey Siri get the car ready and it'll get picked up by the watch/phone/homepod and do it.

 

[WannabeOwner]

a lot of people use TeslaFi for stats but I am more thinking along the lines of smart integrations / automations etc.

I have a "going somewhere" schedule in TeslaFi ... unfortunately TeslaFi tackles that with multiple tasks ... so if I leave at a different time I have to adjust all the START times

I don't use "One time" option in TeslaFi as that will delete the items after they have run ... and then I would have to re-create them, from scratch ...

Because of that I run the risk that I forget to DISABLE a100% charge ... and then I get that again "tomorrow"

Also, TeslaFi will "retry for 5 minutes" - in case the first attempt(s) fail. So I have the tasks staggered by 5 minutes to allow for that ...

Something that would schedule a "batch of tasks" as a single "job" would be much better, fiddling with them all individually is error-prone.

I have:

@ Departure -X Hours (sufficient to complete the charge, typically I allow 2 hours if car is already at 90%)

Wake Up (in case asleep)
Change Charge Limit to e.g. 100%
Start charge
change AMPs to 32 (in case reduced ... yeah, I've scheduled a 100% for departure only to find previous fiddling reduced AMPs to 5 )

@ Departure -15-Minutes
HVAC on

@ Departure +15-Minutes - i.e. didn't leave!
HVAC off
Charge Limit 90%

I also have a WORK schedule:

If CONNECTED and if @ HOME:

Drop Charge Limit to 80% at start of Off Peak
Increase Charge Limit to 90% X-Minutes before normal departure - weekdays only (Bank Holidays will falsely run this schedule)
Start charge - this intended to warm the battery in Winter
HVAC on @ Departure -15 mins
HVAC off @ Departure +15 mins

If CONNECTED and if @ WORK:

Start charge

The charger at work sometimes trips - so in order to know if car is not charging I have some alerts set up:

If Charge not at 80% 1 hours before departure send Alert
If Charge not at 70% 2 hours before departure send Alert
(i.e. whatever time interval would be "safe" to complete charge before departure)
...

HVAC on @ Departure -15 mins
HVAC off @ Departure +15 mins

 

[Buzzliteyear]

Tezlab here.

 

[candida]

When it phantom brakes, tempted to use a mallet

 

[Casss]

I thought I’d get into this more also, but truth is, whilst I wanted to tinker with automation and the api, I just haven’t needed to.

Hypervolt app does all the automation I need for charging, and likewise the Tesla app for the car.

I’m sure I’ll find something one day…. Maybe to do with geofencing and our driveway gate which I’m going to build and motorise at some point soon

 

[debrooker]

Its on my todo list to have a play with the API (haven't really looked in any great details as to what you have access too) but if anything interesting may knock up an app for shitz and giggles

 

[init6]

I find Teslamate to be a great way to spend time with the API. Read only, but its amazing what you can pull out of the data stream,

 

[GeorgeSymonds]

Teslamate for general data capture as it's hosted locally, but otherwise I'm not into givng my tokens away to anyone. I've tinkered with the API myself, lot's written on github, but although I got it working, I ran out of ideas over what to do with it.

You need to understand the implications of the tokens, they only expire if you change your password, they doesn't need 2FA once issued, with them they can locate and open your car, and it even allows the car to be put into drive mode circumventing Pin to Drive (although I think this can be prevented but the default is bypass). Token's are better than giving someone your car keys and a map to show where the car is.

I know many use these apps, but do some due dilligence on any provider first. Teslafi for instance put a whole spiel out about their security, but try finding an address for them or even which country they are in, let alone a privacy statement. I'm sure all these developers mean well, but they themselves may get hacked, so how good is their security in practice?

If you don't mind the above, and many are happy, then carry on, I only say the above so nobody says "I wish somebody had told me".

 

[Neilman]

TeslaFi for me.

Having looked at the Teslamate thread on here I considered my limited expertise with Raspberry Pi would drive me to tears attempting to use it.
I use TeslaFi in "read-only" mode just collecting data and monitoring the car. Don't need to control it as the Tesla App does that.

Considering how big the TeslFi user base must be right now I wonder how many million API requests are being thrown at Tesla per minute these days and whether there is a danger that Tesla might turn their API access off at some point due to overload?