Tesla: The Need to Know!
This post is to share helpful tips that Intoxalock doesn’t share with its Tesla owners. I’m unsure if it’s from a lack of knowing or hope that the lockouts add up and they can make extra money (probably the case). This is information is based on my personal experience in hopes to help others! I am based out of Pennsylvania so please do your own research on the laws and requirements of your state!
Not everyone will touch a Tesla! It’s a huge risk and many service centers/ technicians don’t want to be bothered with them. Call the service centers from the list that they send in the mail. OR if you can get through to a helpful Intoxalock representative, inform them that you have a Tesla. The rep that I worked with told me upfront that it may be difficult to find someone willing to perform the installation on a Tesla. Thankfully, the rep made all of the calls to the service centers to find someone willing to do the installation. He found someone, provided me an estimate, and his earliest availability for scheduling.
Once my vehicle was done, the service tech showed me how to power off the car from the touchscreen. He also told me to turn Sentry Mode off and to log out of the app on my phone. For the first couple of months I used the key card, but after a while that started to get annoying. I am still going through a trial period with using the app, but all good so far. Just make sure to power off the vehicle from the touchscreen controls and wait for the countdown to start before exiting and walking away.
Charging! This is the main cause of lockouts! If you need to charge and plan to exit the vehicle, allow the 3 minute countdown to fully count down before plugging in! I got my first lockout from a missed retest because I unknowingly put the car on the charger and went back in the house. Thankfully it was within the “grace period” that Intoxalock gives new customers as they familiarize themselves with the device. I believe the grace period is 14 days from the day you get the install.
Allow the device to turn fully off and the screen to black out. You can double check this by pressing the middle button— as long as you do not initiate a blow into the device, it will turn back off.I’ve read about customers getting lockouts from software updates. This has personally never happened to me. I manually schedule updates for a time that I know that I will not be in the vehicle or need it. I also manually schedule updates If I plan to charge overnight. As stated above, just make sure the countdown is off before plugging in to charge. With the recent update, you can automatically update vehicle software while parked and not in use. Me personally, I do not plan to toggle this feature on. I’m worried that the update might initiate while the countdown is still going so I am staying away for now.
Use the touchscreen to power off! I received my second lockout from exiting the vehicle without powering down. For the first couple of months; I would normally exit the vehicle, lock the door, and walk away. As allegedly stated by the rude Intoxalock manager that I spoke with, I missed a retest. She said that the “snapshot” is of me sitting in the car with the door open. If you’ve heard it before, you know how loud and annoying the beeping is. No matter how loud your music is, the beeps will overpower it.
All in all, I say that to say, the best way to “turn the vehicle off” is to use the touchscreen controls. It sends a signal to the device that the “vehicle is off.” The device will blink green and a 3 minute countdown will begin. As long as you do not make contact with the brake, you can exit carefree.I have roughly a 45 minute drive to work and I’ve noticed that my battery drains quicker. If allowed in your state, use the power save option as much as you can. I use power save at night and while at work since it sits parked for hours. I personally crack the car door, power off using the touchscreen, wait for the countdown to begin, then exit!
LASTLY, YOU WILL GET THROUGH THIS! No matter how stressful, depressing, overwhelming and financially draining the situation is right now; keep going! Better days are ahead. I hope these tips can help you avoid unnecessary fees.
**If your comments are surrounded around DUI’s or Tesla owners, please find some grass to touch… or eat!