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Driving away while plugged in

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Patrick W

Active Member
Mar 17, 2015
1,524
943
SLC, UT
Ever wondered what would happen if you absentmindedly got in your S and drove away while forgetting to unplug from the supercharger? I've only had the car a couple of weeks but driving unplugged is one thing I wondered about but did not have the nerve to find out.

For those who might be wondering what would happe: Nothing

Hurring to get home tonight I jumped in the car, pressed on the brake, moved the shift lever down to the drive position and ... nothing happened.

Instead a message appeared reading:

! Unable to Drive
Check Charge Port

Which was a nice way of saying:

Hey dummy, you forgot to unplug!

Just goes to show that while Tesla can't make the car idiot proof they at least try to make it idiot resistant. :)

So any other "stupid human tricks" out there?
 
You can't alter the suspension if the doors are open. This reduces the chance of damaging the car or injuring the occupant.

You can't shift the car out of park if you aren't sitting in the driver's seat. Likewise, if you are driving the car and stop sitting in the driver's seat, the car will shift into park. [Hey dummy, you forgot to shift into park before exiting the car!]

You get warnings if you press on both the accelerator and the brake at the same time. The brake will override the accelerator. [Hey dummy, make up your mind!]
 
What happens if you're flying down the highway and need to reach into the back seat and lift your bum entirely off the front seat (unsafe while driving,I know)?

Less than 5 mph, it will go back into park. Over 5 mph, you get warning chimes. At least that was my experience a few versions ago. Can't say I've tested it recently. :)
 
You get warnings if you press on both the accelerator and the brake at the same time. The brake will override the accelerator. [Hey dummy, make up your mind!]
I've been left foot braking for 30+ years and thought I was quite smooth and accurate with my right foot accel pedal and left foot brake. First test drive in Model S proved I was very close but occasionally would get the warning as a reminder I'm human and not a machine!
 
Less than 5 mph, it will go back into park. Over 5 mph, you get warning chimes. At least that was my experience a few versions ago. Can't say I've tested it recently. :)
There's at least one other thread on this. Anyway, I tested it in my driveway a few releases back. (Lifting off the seat while moving slowly.) Seatbelt on, no switching to Park. Seatbelt off, the car switched to Park when rolling with no pressure on either pedal for a moment.
 
There's at least one other thread on this. Anyway, I tested it in my driveway a few releases back. (Lifting off the seat while moving slowly.) Seatbelt on, no switching to Park. Seatbelt off, the car switched to Park when rolling with no pressure on either pedal for a moment.

Even at > 5 MPH? The question was whether this would happen traveling at highway speeds or not. I found the car will not go into park unless you're traveling < 5 MPH - so, for instance, if you readjust yourself in your seat with the seatbelt off, the car doesn't do a hard stop with the E-brake.
 
Hey, dummy...did you mean to drive with the frunk open?

When I did this, the car would not allow me to go faster than 5km/hr with bells and warnings the whole way. (The first latch had partially released, but not the second. I couldn't open it or close it. Finally got it unstuck by pressing down a bit to relieve pressure on the latch, and press the unlock frunk button so the first latch fully released.).
 
Less than 5 mph, it will go back into park. Over 5 mph, you get warning chimes. At least that was my experience a few versions ago. Can't say I've tested it recently. :)

I tested it "the hard way" a month or two ago. I was going through a car wash when I felt the need to pull my cell phone out of my pocket. I unbuckled, lifted my butt to access my pants pocket and the car slammed into Park! The car wash rollers kept going and the car kinda violently "jumped" as the roller went under the now locked wheel. I quickly got it back into Neutral and nothing seemed to have been damaged in the incident, but it was one of those things that when it happened, I immediately realized what I had done.
 
Ever wondered what would happen if you absentmindedly got in your S and drove away while forgetting to unplug from the supercharger? I've only had the car a couple of weeks but driving unplugged is one thing I wondered about but did not have the nerve to find out.

For those who might be wondering what would happe: Nothing

Hurring to get home tonight I jumped in the car, pressed on the brake, moved the shift lever down to the drive position and ... nothing happened.

Instead a message appeared reading:

! Unable to Drive
Check Charge Port

Which was a nice way of saying:

Hey dummy, you forgot to unplug!

Just goes to show that while Tesla can't make the car idiot proof they at least try to make it idiot resistant. :)

So any other "stupid human tricks" out there?

Not being able to move the vehicle while plugged in is part of the SAE J1772-2009 standard, used by most electric vehicles (and supported by the Model S).

But even if you somehow could do this, the J1772 handle/cable is designed to break away.
 
Just goes to show that while Tesla can't make the car idiot proof they at least try to make it idiot resistant. :)

So any other "stupid human tricks" out there?

Hi Patrick,

I was attempting to reposition my Model S in my driveway. I was sitting firmly in the driver's seat, but my driver's side door was open and I had my seat belt unfastened. After I started to back up when the car reached 2 mph it shifted into park by itself.

Larry
 
Hi Patrick,

I was attempting to reposition my Model S in my driveway. I was sitting firmly in the driver's seat, but my driver's side door was open and I had my seat belt unfastened. After I started to back up when the car reached 2 mph it shifted into park by itself.

Larry

This happened to me tonight as I got out the car a few times to make sure I wasn't backing into the curb or something before I realized the car was shifting to park.
 
I had an annual service a while back and the service guy went for a test drive with me. When we got back he just jumped out, didnt put it in park or anything. The car figured he was gone and shifted to park and shut down but it was pretty odd/scary to see him do it. I asked him about it and he said he did it all the time. I think for a bit the car could roll couldn't it? (it was level ground so no risk on this one).
 
When we got back he just jumped out, didnt put it in park or anything. The car figured he was gone and shifted to park and shut down but it was pretty odd/scary to see him do it. I asked him about it and he said he did it all the time.

Seems like risky behavior to me, especially with someone else's car.That feature is meant to be a secondary safety feature, not the primary way to park and turn off the car. What if the seat sensor wasn't working properly?