Your first question for the Tesla rep.

[Chopr147]

So I ordered a model S after longing for one for years. Went to the Tesla store to speak with a rep.?,salesman? dealer? DS etc......... IDK what to call them. I have done my research, watched the videos etc.... I had a few questions and after looking at the parked/charging S and X's outside a thought popped into my head. Went inside and asked what I figured is a dumb question , but WTH.
Can a person drive away with the charger plugged into the car?
I had nightmarish scenes in my head of the plug being ripped out as I drive away. The plug then snaps back though my garage window and kills my dog resulting in a divorce from my wife
I assumed one could not drive away with it plugged but , one should never assume for fear of making an ass out of U and me

 

[FlatSix911]

The car will not engage drive/reverse while plugged in.

 

[jelloslug]

Nope.

 

[Austin Powers]

All edge-case scenarios seem to have been accounted for and tested thoroughly. Just like any other tech company. Oh wait!

 

[int32_t]

Not only can you not drive away with it plugged in, but the plug locks into the car when the car is locked so random strangers can't interrupt your charge.

 

[timk225]

Not only can you not drive away with it plugged in, but the plug locks into the car when the car is locked so random strangers can't interrupt your charge.

How is that? Do you have to have the key fob nearby to unlock it? And if so, they might not be able to remove it legitimately, but a good hard kick would break it out of there, which is a concern of mine.

 

[FlatSix911]

How is that? Do you have to have the key fob nearby to unlock it?
And if so, they might not be able to remove it legitimately, but a good hard kick would break it out of there, which is a concern of mine.

Correct.

 

[ecarfan]

How is that? Do you have to have the key fob nearby to unlock it? And if so, they might not be able to remove it legitimately, but a good hard kick would break it out of there, which is a concern of mine.

Yes you need to have the key fob present to unlock the charging cable from your Tesla, or you could use the smartphone app to unlock the car and then unplug the cable (doing it that way would require that both the car and your phone had a cell data connection, so that technique does not work everywhere).

And it would take more force than a "good hard kick" with your foot to dislodge the cable from the charging port, it would likely take a sledgehammer.

So the fears expressed in your post that started this thread are, in my opinion, unfounded. Congratulations on your Model S order, you are going to love your car! Post again after you receive it.

 

[malcolm]

I had nightmarish scenes in my head of the plug being ripped out as I drive away. The plug then snaps back though my garage window and kills my dog resulting in a divorce from my wife

Also, stop eating strong cheese last thing before you go to sleep.

OR start moonlighting as a TV comedy scriptwriter ;-)

In relation to charging, it's interesting to research other vehicle charging systems which have their RFID cards and different initiate/deactivate routines.

Tesla's is by far the most straightforward - I don't want to say "completely idiot-proof" because that always underestimates the ingenuity of complete idiots.

 

[Chopr147]

Nothing is idiot proof when i'm involved

 

[int32_t]

How is that? Do you have to have the key fob nearby to unlock it? And if so, they might not be able to remove it legitimately, but a good hard kick would break it out of there, which is a concern of mine.

Yes, but a good hard kick can do equal damage to any car. If that's the sort of neighbourhood you live in ... get a garage. Honestly I'd fear for more than my car!

And what are they going to do if they forcibly remove the connector from your car? Again, the car's still locked. It's not going anywhere without either the fob or the app.