5 Best Suggestions From New Tesla Model S Owners

Tesla Model S and X owners seem to be quite a close-knit bunch as evident by the Tesla forums with swapping recommendations and advice. One such post in the forum highlights not just suggestions to Tesla from new owners, but also lots of feedback on how to get the best use out of your Model S or Model X. The title of this piece is '5 Best Suggestions' but it will probably end up being two or three times that amount as there is such a wealth of information swimming about in those forums.

Suggestions to Tesla
Unsure of the vehicle for some time you start to notice the little things that could be made better or just plain optimised. The Tesla Model S is no different with the Bluetooth facility being one of the first highlighted by owners.

Bluetooth and dialling
It's been said that Bluetooth sometimes sporadically connects to smart phones and the collection can be intermittent. A small gripe, but nevertheless a feature that should be automatic. Voice requests also can be intermittent where a voice request shall be all that is needed to bring up contact rather than looking at the menu while driving. However, feedback says that you just need to try turning the Bluetooth on and off on the phone to reconnect. Be patient seems to be the key.

Opening the back hatch.
Talking about keys, one user said that if you hold the key you should be able to open the back hatch by just using the latch, without having to unlock the car first. Feedback was that this can be set up quite easily with one user saying their S60 is setup so that it automatically unlocks when the key is nearby. It just need setting up with the vehicle. Some are happy with this, some are not comparing it to the likes of the Nissan LEAF which just plain works they say. Double pressing on the trunk part of the fob seems to be the way to go.

Mapping software.
There seems to be some complaints about Google maps and Garman. Some feedback said that it's completely logical as you have to have a constant cell signal for Google maps while the Garnin overlay usually works fine.

Estimate of range.
Everybody gets some form of range anxiety with an EV vehicle, so you just need to check the recent average for the amount of real miles left during your journey. The energy app. just shows the average energy use for a past number of miles. This can't really take into account weather predictions or elevation ahead, but the terrain you have already been driving on.

Auto-steer.
Software rollout of the more autonomous features of the Model 3 and Model X seem in general to be in the interim stage. There have been some complaints about the auto steer but ultimately, with features such as these and safety consciousness being paramount, it is best to stick to manual control until self driving features are completely bullet-proof. It's a kind of better safe than sorry scenario. So if you are in any doubt, just go manual.

Cabin Airflow.
Air conditioning can be turned on and off quite easily in the custom menu. You can also find venting choices for things like the vents. Digging through the menus is always a good idea if something isn't quite working right. Fan speed can also be controlled by the switch on the right of the steering wheel.
Best not to leave it on auto mode and keep the fan speed set to the top vents. also when using air conditioning use recirculate as it's more powerful than using outside air.

Like any vehicle it's always advisable to read the owners manual as thoroughly as possible and with OTA update coming regularly, many features can be in there without initially knowing. It's a bit like using Microsoft Word or Excel, the functionality is usually buried in there somewhere, it's just a case of finding it. Just like digging through the Tesla forums themselves, if you can't find an answer, start a thread yourself for your concern. You'll usually get a helpful reply.
https://forums.tesla.com/