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How To Make Sure Your Tesla Saves Camera Footage When You Are In An Accident

Being in an accident is no fun. If you own a Tesla, it's important to know how the dash cam footage is saved to the USB drive, as there are cases it might not get saved.
How To Make Sure Your Tesla Saves Camera Footage When You Are In An Accident

Tesla vehicles equipped with the Dashcam feature generally record footage when an accident occurs, but there are several factors that could influence whether the incident gets saved:

Dashcam Mode Settings:

  • Auto Mode: The vehicle is designed to automatically save a recording when it detects a safety-critical event like a collision or if airbags deploy. However, if the impact is not severe enough or if other criteria for a safety-critical event aren't met, the system might not save the footage automatically.
  • Manual Mode: You need to manually press the save button or honk the horn shortly after the event to ensure the last few minutes of footage are saved.

USB Drive Capacity and Format: 

  • If the USB drive is full or not formatted correctly, it might not record or save footage. Users are advised to use a properly formatted USB drive with enough space. If the drive is nearly full, existing footage might be overwritten before an accident is recorded.

Power and System Functionality:

If the vehicle's power system is compromised in the accident (like a complete loss of electrical power), recording might stop abruptly.

Timing and User Error:

If the driver doesn't honk or manually save the footage right after an incident in manual mode, or if the incident happens in such a way that the automatic save mechanism doesn't trigger, the event might not be recorded.

System Limitations:

The Tesla system might not always interpret an event as an accident if it's not severe or if the sensors don't detect it as such.

For instance, very minor bumps or if the vehicle's sensors are obstructed, the system might not save the footage.

From what we can gather, there's a possibility that under certain conditions, an accident might not be recorded or saved:

  • If the impact is below the threshold for what the car considers a safety-critical event in Auto mode.
  • If the USB drive isn't functioning properly or lacks space.
  • If the driver fails to take action in Manual mode.

Therefore, while Tesla's system is designed with safety and recording capabilities in mind, there are scenarios where an accident might not be saved to the USB drive.

It's always good practice for Tesla owners to ensure their USB drive has ample free space and is properly set up, and to understand how to manually save footage if needed.

Other Things To Consider

If your vehicle was made in 2020 or later, it should have a pre-formatted USB drive in the glove compartment. If not, you can insert your own USB drive into a front USB port that supports video.

For vehicles made after November 1, 2021, the center console USB ports may only support charging devices and you should use the USB port in the glove box.

In order to prepare a USB drive, you can go to Controls -> Safety -> Format USB Drive. This will erase any content on the inserted USB drive.

Tesla also has a page of documentation regarding their dash cam that you can read here.

Was anything missed here? How can you ensure that a Tesla saves camera footage in the event of an accident?

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Hi! I'm Jeremy Noel Johnson, and I am a Tesla investor and supporter and own a 2022 Model 3 RWD EV and I don't have range anxiety :). I enjoy bringing you breaking Tesla news as well as anything about Tesla or other EV companies I can find, like Aptera. Other interests of mine are AI, Tesla Energy and the Tesla Bot! You can follow me on X.COM or LinkedIn to stay in touch and follow my Tesla and EV news coverage.

Image Credit: Tesla, Screenshot

Article Reference: Tesla

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