Driving new 2008 roadster back home -- some issues...

Great Pictures
1) Tesla has to reset the PIN
2) no Idea in that issue (does the headunit have a USB port where you can plug your charging cable into)
3) Do you get the message "Low state of charge - power reduction" I am not sure, but I think this also causes the yellow fault light. All faults should be named in the touch screen on the left)

Nothing really to worry about. The the low power light comes on by design at about 30 miles or so. It is to give you a clear warning. Nothing wrong but you should know your next charging stop.

I do not have an iPhone but on my Android I have to physical disconnect and connect the adapter to get the head unit to recognize.

CONGRATULATIONS!

- I think you have time to hit the Canyon and you can probably find a 14-50 to charge there while you hike around the park.

- I don't use the dock connector with adapter on my iPhone 6. I think the music was working, but it wasn't charging? I can't remember. I just use bluetooth, but you might have to turn your phone off and on to get it to pair. It was a little wonky, but I got it to work with the JVC. I'd grab a 12V-USB charger somewhere in Flagstaff and just use your lighting cable with your iPhone.

- Not sure about the fault light.

Wish I could have met you before you left Phoenix! I'm only 10-15 minutes from Sky Harbor. Good luck with your trip home!

Good luck.

I had Tesla replace the cable with a lightening 0.5m (I think) cable. I have had problems keeping it charged. If you are running something like Google Maps it will continue to discharge even though there is a charge icon on the screen. I've had Tesla look at the port and they say it's normal. Maybe the iPhone 6 simply draws too much power.

I will PM you the default Roadster PIN. if it hasn't been reset by a previous owner the default should work. It did for me when I bought my 1.5 last year.

I could not get my iPhone to charge from the dock connector but I think that is normal, that connector is only for the iPhone audio output. I use a 12V cable to the iPhone. My iPhone audio output goes to the car via Bluetooth, though initially I could not get that to work and used an adaptor cable from the dock connector in the car to my iPhone 6. Then mysteriously, a few weeks later I was able to play music or podcasts from my iPhone to the car via Bluetooth without me making any changes, so I dispensed with the cable to the dock connector. The 1.5 Roadster Bluetooth functionality seems a bit flakey.

The yellow "Fault" light comes on when your range goes below about 20, I think. Normal behavior. Freaked me out the first time I saw it too

It's easy to scrape the front spoiler lip. Always enter/exit driveways at a 45 degree angle, and go slowly.

Congratulations on the car! You will love it. After a few months of ownership you will get used to its idiosyncrasies and feel more comfortable with the car. There is nothing like a Roadster!

One other option is to buy one of those portable chargers like from Anker or others at a Best Buy to keep your phone charged. Can charge it up at night at each hotel stop.

Charging iPhone

dsm363 said:

One other option is to buy one of those portable chargers like from Anker or others at a Best Buy to keep your phone charged. Can charge it up at night at each hotel stop.

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I don't know why the trouble charging an iPhone. I was able to charge my old iPhone on the 30-pin connector (granted it was a 2.5 Sport with the Alpine unit, not JVC), and when I moved up from the 3GS to the iPhone 5s, I put a 30 pin-to-Lightening adapter on the end of the cable and can still charge. As another person noted, if you are using a really high intensity app (eg, something using the phone GPS or continuous cell usage like MLB.com), you will still have a net drain on the battery, although it will be much slower than if not plugged in.

David

Awesome adventure and congrats!

If you're in Max Range and you get that yellow bar, its ok as people have said. Just make sure to charge the Roadster back up some, batteries don't like sitting at very low SOC's or high SOC's. Note that when you get down to about 20 miles of range, you'll get a message that says "Range unknown". That's where you really have to take it easy since you have approx 15-20 miles all depending on driving conditions. But you don't get any feedback now on how close you really are! So keep that in mind.

Lastly the Grand Canyon National Park LOVES Electric Vehicles! I was talking to a ranger there a couple of years back and they welcome them since most of the tourists drive ICE vehicles which contribute to the poor visibility and haze they now see around the canyon. They told me they'll allow the EVs to charge for free, to just ask them and tell them you're driving an EV and need a charge.

ViperDoc said:

I don't know why the trouble charging an iPhone. I was able to charge my old iPhone on the 30-pin connector (granted it was a 2.5 Sport with the Alpine unit, not JVC), and when I moved up from the 3GS to the iPhone 5s, I put a 30 pin-to-Lightening adapter on the end of the cable and can still charge. As another person noted, if you are using a really high intensity app (eg, something using the phone GPS or continuous cell usage like MLB.com), you will still have a net drain on the battery, although it will be much slower than if not plugged in.

David

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I never had a problem keeping it charged until the iPhone 6. Not sure why but I mainly use my phone for Google Maps since the Alpine is worthless so it does still discharge to empty in a few hours even when plugged in. You almost need a spare charging unit if you are going on a long trip and using your phone for NAV.

dsm363 said:

I never had a problem keeping it charged until the iPhone 6. Not sure why but I mainly use my phone for Google Maps since the Alpine is worthless so it does still discharge to empty in a few hours even when plugged in. You almost need a spare charging unit if you are going on a long trip and using your phone for NAV.

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Not really. All you need is a 12V to USB convertor like this Amazon.com: OXA 5V/4.2A DC 12-24V Dual USB Car Charger Vehicle Power Adapter Designed for iPad, iPhone, Samsung, and Android devices (Black): Cell Phones Accessories and a USB to Lightning cable like this Amazon.com: [Apple MFi Certified] Anker® Lightning to USB Cable 3ft / 0.9m with Compact Connector Head for iPhone 6 Plus 5s 5c 5, iPad Air mini mini2, iPad 4th gen, iPod touch 5th gen, and iPod nano 7th gen (White): Cell Phones Accessories (there are many different manufacturers or each of those items, those two are just examples).

Then you charge your phone from the 12V port in the Roadster and play music/podcasts/make phone calls via Bluetooth.

I have a 1.5 with the stock JVC head unit. When I first got the car I was not able to get my iPhone 6 to play music/podcasts via Bluetooth, but it would make phone calls via Bluetooth. Then for some reason Bluetooth magically started working for music and podcasts.

The original head units in the 1.5s were from the timeframe before Apple switched charging from the FireWire to USB pins on the 30 pin connectors, or something to that effect anyway. You can buy a little 30pin to 30 pin dongle that moves the power over to the pins expected by the newer phones (every non-ancient iPhone). You can then stick a 30 pin to lightning converter on that and it'll charge your lightning connector phones including the 6 and 6 plus. Audio works over the cable regardless but you need the dongle for power.

Or like other said use the 12v plug and Bluetooth, but quality isn't as good.

Mine did. But I was talking 1.5 and JVC head unit. It needed the dongle adaptor I mentioned. Old threads exist that detail this. That's where I found the part in the first place.

Just went and looked it up. My old link doesn't work anymore but does go to a page that looks like they have updated item that may work better anyway. cablejive charge converter. Note the ones that say they include the charge conversion circuitry for older docks.

ra-san said:

Just went and looked it up. My old link doesn't work anymore but does go to a page that looks like they have updated item that may work better anyway. cablejive charge converter. Note the ones that say they include the charge conversion circuitry for older docks.

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CableJive has three variations of the charge converter. This is the one I have been using since years ago with an iPhone 4S. (Before that, with an iPhone 3G, I used a similar device from Scosche, but it introduced annoying background noise with the 4S). With the JVC head unit that came in the Sig 100 cars, it works to charge the iPhone and to play audio through the dock connector. In earlier times it was necessary to switch the JVC head unit from "iPod" mode to "external audio" mode because the iPod control protocol did not work, but improvements in iOS fixed that for the 4S. Recently I got an iPhone 6 and added on Apple's 8-inch 30-pin-to-lightning cable, and that works, too.

I replaced the old iPhone adaptor with a female USB port adaptor so I can plug in whatever I want

xytor said:

Thanks guys!
Bluetooth is a great idea, I'll try it out. Although it would be nice to keep the phone charged...
It's clear I need to visit a tesla service center.
Not just for the PIN and making sure the FAULT is just the low charge, but also because the top of the ≡ on the back is falling off and the plastic fan control knobs are broken...
But I'll probably do that when back in Seattle assuming nothing else goes wrong.

Another issue I've had is scraping the bottom front thing (not sure what it's called) while entering/exiting driveways. Need to remember to enter at an angle...

But overall, the car is a dream to drive

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For the knobs, I've had the same problem with them on my 2.5. The first time the knob fell off, I accelerated and the knob stayed put (and then rattled and rolled around until it ended up under a seat). Highly amusing to me, but annoying if it's one you're using regularly. Over a couple of years, all 3 have been replaced. You can handle that when you get home as you noted. I found that a microfiber or other bit of cloth worked in a pinch to still be able to change settings on fan/temp/location.

xytor said:

Update: Charging at the Barstow KOA now. They made me pay full price for an RV spot, which no other KOA has done.
Next stop: Bakersfield! It's only 124 miles but I hope those mountains don't suck me dry!

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Whenever we travel over the hills we always try to have at least 120% range of the miles needed. This is from our experience going from Jackson, Ca to Tahoe.