Bug (more like logic error) with Model S app and Keyless Driving

Not a bug. Feature. The app is encouraging you to walk 2/10 of a mile next time.

LOL good one bonnie

AnOutsider said:

Next time I've got a trash can of bottles and a pallet of cardboard to drag down, I'll call you up.

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No problem. I'll be glad to encourage you.

Beer bottles, I hope.

Do you leave the door open?

Can you get around this by force-quitting the app between the two driving sessions? Note that you can't force-quit the current app, so you would need to exit, then force-quit the app to test this as a possible workaround.

Force an app to close in iOS - Apple Support

Good catch. It seems the third-party "Remote S" app doesn't have this bug. On top of that you don't have to enter your password to start the car if you have Touch ID on your iPhone.

AnOutsider said:

Hmm, I'll have to give that a try. It's not the biggest of deals, but, as a coder myself, I know how minor things like these could be overlooked (or assumed acceptable compared to the work needed for the alternative) so figured I'd give them a heads up.

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After I created the Remote S app, Tesla asked if I wanted to work with them. I spoke with them over the phone, and they told me that the apps were an afterthought. It was there just for the sake of having an app. There was only one person who worked on that app. They say that don't mind saying publicly that the official app is lacking, because they admit that it was a quick banged-out job to get an app out just because they're a tech company. Anyway, I wouldn't hold my breath waiting for a bug fix anytime soon. I wouldn't hold my breath on an official Apple Watch app anytime soon either.

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patp said:

Good catch. It seems the third-party "Remote S" app doesn't have this bug. On top of that you don't have to enter your password to start the car if you have Touch ID on your iPhone.

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I can confirm that Remote S doesn't have this bug. All commands are available to you even after you start the car. There is no 30 second wait.

This is so frustrating. Tesla has one iOS and one Android app. They are obviously not experts in app design or implementation.

There are thousands of developers who can do a better job then they can, because thats what they do for a living.

Why Tesla doesn't just farm this work out, do QC on the product and keep the apps up to date is something I can't understand. The iOS app should have been updated long ago to support TouchID and we know how the Android app has been behind.

And where is the 2.5 version?

They may have their plates full, but this is a case where there is no reason they can't be on top of this.

Just another issue that it raising my doubts about their ability to stay on top of things.

Regoapps: Please accept Tesla's offer. Would love to see what you could do with full support of Tesla and access to company information you'd need to further the app.

GaryREM said:

This is so frustrating. Tesla has one iOS and one Android app. They are obviously not experts in app design or implementation.

There are thousands of developers who can do a better job then they can, because thats what they do for a living.

Why Tesla doesn't just farm this work out, do QC on the product and keep the apps up to date is something I can't understand. The iOS app should have been updated long ago to support TouchID and we know how the Android app has been behind.

And where is the 2.5 version?

They may have their plates full, but this is a case where there is no reason they can't be on top of this.

Just another issue that it raising my doubts about their ability to stay on top of things.

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Their explanation was that their software engineers are busy doing the software in the car, which has a higher priority for them. Now that they're doing Autopilot, they have an even higher need for software developers to work on their car software instead of their apps.

But, the fact that they want to hire me is a good sign. They're acknowledging that Tesla owners want a better app, and I guess trying to hire me was their first step in trying to get a better app for their customers.

AnOutsider said:

Seeing how important it is to me (and it seems to many others) in daily use, it's discouraging to hear that may be their position on it. Did you decline Tesla's offer?

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I told them that I'm having surgery in June and that I'd be in recovery (i.e. need to go to the hospital every day for three months) in Florida. They were hoping that they could hire me full-time and have me work in California. The recruiter's going to speak with the higher-ups to see if they can arrange for me to work remotely and not full-time (I can't really work full time while I'm recovering from surgery). I haven't heard back from them yet (it's been only two days, though). I hope that they're not taking back their job offer due to my condition. I wouldn't mind working part-time on a contract basis for them remotely.

dsm363 said:

Regoapps: Please accept Tesla's offer. Would love to see what you could do with full support of Tesla and access to company information you'd need to further the app.

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I'd most likely add the ability to call your car to drive up to you from your Apple Watch (or other devices). I'd probably add all the other neat autopilot stuff on it. And I'd probably add the ability to put a GPS coordinate/address on your device and it'll automatically tell you the amount charge you need, and where your first supercharger station will be, and route the rest of the path for you. And then it'd communicate with your car and transfer that intention to travel to that location onto the car, and the car will automatically load up the route and start up autopilot for you to take you there.

swaltner said:

Note that you can't force-quit the current app, so you would need to exit, then force-quit the app to test this as a possible workaround.

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That used to be true, but isn't anymore. As of iOS 8 you can force quit the current app. Just double-click home and it'll be the preview on the left. Swipe it up and it's forced closed.

Edit: Oops, I thought I read to the end of the thread, but only read to the end of the page. Sorry. The above may still be useful so I'll leave it.

AnOutsider said:

Once a week (once a month for recycling) I load up the trunk with our garbage cans and drive it to the curb. My driveway is about 2/10 of a mile, so it's maybe a 25 second drive once I get rolling and get turned around at the bottom.

When I hop out the car, unload, and get back in, I press the "start" button in the app, and I'm usually stuck waiting for about 30 seconds as the app still thinks keyless driving is enabled (it's not, I started the car, drive, and then got out, so it's back to "off"). Seems to me like the app just remembers its own internal timer and doesn't "check" with the car to see if it is indeed still in keyless driving mode.

Submitted an audio bug report through the car as well.

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This won't solve the programming problem with the app, but might make your trips quicker : What about putting the car in park using the center console? When you get out, the car will still run, and won't turn off. (I haven't used keyless driving in a while, so hopefully this hasn't changed with the firmware upgrades).

AnOutsider said:

Doesn't the car automatically shut off once your butt has left the seat? I dunno, something to try, but by the time I need to do it again, I'll probably have forgotten

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If you put it in park using the stalk, yes it will turn off once your butt is off the seat. But using the center console to go into park, it stays on. I do this all the time when I get the my mail from the street mailbox. Good luck next time!