Hawaii Tesla Owners

[gmtom1]

I was reading through the warranty booklet today and noticed that roadside assistance & towing up to 50 miles is included as part of the warranty coverage for all 4 years of the original warranty. So my earlier concern about not having roadside assistance if you don't buy the annual service plan is irrelevant now. Sorry for the noob post if this is old news. Another funny note - the owners rights' booklet that describes all of the lemon law provisions does not include Hawaii, so I guess we have no rights. =)

Looks like TM didn't really think about us here when they were planning out the manuals.

 

[solar powered]

drtko147: I picked up a safety check plate from Ron's (on Nimitz) last week for $26. I got the side plate like ddruz's. O'Reilly in Salt Lake had only one in stock for $35.

- - - Updated - - -

Has any one with the tech package set up Homelink?
I was unable to get it to recognize my wife's gate and garage door opener transmitter and I lost my old one before we went away for a trip, so I really need to get this to work. I tried in front of the bumper and inside the frunk. Our gate and operator are only one year old and both use the new rolling code technology. One thing that I didn't have time to do is to get new batteries for the transmitter. Does that really increase signal strength? I also read on the Tesla forum that you hold it one inch from the T badge or inside the frunk just as close. Any pointers would be greatly appreciated.

 

[Akikiki]

Solar, How does that plate attach? Does it use the hole for the tag? Does it use an upper and lower tag hole on the right side?

I am working on an alternative method. Hope to have my pattern back tomorrow. Will let you know.

gmtom1, I am hoping that TM decided every car that they shipped here would be perfect and perfect owners would have no complaints, so they figured there's zero chance of there being a lemon.

Has anyone used a OpConnect charging station? I was under the impression that they were transitioning from free to pay-a-fee to use. And even to use it on a free basis, we would need their "card". I got their card and added a few dollars to it in case I got charged for use.

 

[Jkam]

Also, plugged into the charging station at Turtle Bay, but after an hour we got no charge. First time I've used a public station. Anyone: what else do you have to do besides plugging in?

Better Place owned those stations at Turtle Bay before they recently sold out to OpConnect. When Better Place owned them, you needed a Better Place fob (got one by signing up with them), and charging was free until April 2013, but it wasn't unlimited. There was a charge limit of 2 hours per day if I remember correctly.

I stopped using Better Place chargers even when it was free because the amount of charge was pitiful. If I remember correctly it was 208V/15A service, which got something like 8 miles of range per hour of charge.

Since OpConnect has taken over, I'm not entirely sure of their charging policy even though I signed up with them and got an OpConnect fob. Since Turtle Bay is probably the remotest destination on Oahu, OpConnect may have a one hour time limit and may give the first hour free.

That's a Better Place / OpConnect charging station. I'm assuming that you have a Better Place activation fob and touched it to the panel to start the charge, yes? If you don't have one, no charging will take place.

Unfortunately for those that don't already have a Better Place fob, OpConnect just told me last week that they ran out of the remaining inventory of fobs from Better Place. They're looking at trying to get another manufacturer to duplicate the fobs but until then, they won't be able to supply any more activation fobs to new Hawaii members or supply replacement fobs for members who lost theirs (sob).

I got a Better Place fob back in January/February 2013. It worked because I charged at their Aina Haina station a couple of times. Since Better Place has been bought by OpConnect, I know the original Better Place fob I got in Jan/Feb no longer works because I tried recently at the Polynesian Cultural Center with no luck.

I then signed up with OpConnect a little less than a month ago (Register Account
). I did get an OpConnect fob in the mail, but have not had the opportunity to test it out. I'm pretty sure it costs money to charge with OpConnect, so I only got the OpConnect fob in case of an emergency since I do go to the north shore a lot.

Unless you plan to spend a more than 2-3 nights at Turtle Bay in which case vampire loss comes into play, you really don't need to use any of the OpConnect stations if you use even minimal planning.

 

[ddruz]

Has any one with the tech package set up Homelink?
I was unable to get it to recognize my wife's gate and garage door opener transmitter and I lost my old one before we went away for a trip, so I really need to get this to work. I tried in front of the bumper and inside the frunk. Our gate and operator are only one year old and both use the new rolling code technology. One thing that I didn't have time to do is to get new batteries for the transmitter. Does that really increase signal strength? I also read on the Tesla forum that you hold it one inch from the T badge or inside the frunk just as close. Any pointers would be greatly appreciated.

Hopefully this may be of some help: I was able to set mine up with three different remotes/receivers--one new, one old and one ancient--by following the instructions on the 17" screen exactly. The trickiest part was finding the button on the receiver which you need to press at the appropriate time. Have you identified that button?

Also, do your lights blink at the appropriate time? If not then certainly check the batteries in your transmitter. If your lights blink at the appropriate time then put your attention on finding the correct button on your receiver.

 

[gmtom1]

Ok, so I see my VIN has been posted to My Tesla after confirming the order earlier today! I could probably search and find the answer, but I'm guessing that doesn't mean anything too exciting, just that its scheduled for production and the original 4-6 week delivery date + 2-3 weeks for shipping to HI is still reasonable? I see there's lots of posts about how TM is trying to push out the cars to boost Q2 production numbers.

 

[Akikiki]

gmtom1, geeezzz, from confirmation to VIN posted in just a couple of days? Most of us waited 4 months to get that info, and then we started the wait that you see ahead of you. That's amazing. You do not realize how lucky you have it buddy. Honest. DO NOT COMPLAIN.

 

[dsmith2189]

Better Place owned those stations at Turtle Bay before they recently sold out to OpConnect. When Better Place owned them, you needed a Better Place fob (got one by signing up with them), and charging was free until April 2013, but it wasn't unlimited. There was a charge limit of 2 hours per day if I remember correctly.

I stopped using Better Place chargers even when it was free because the amount of charge was pitiful. If I remember correctly it was 208V/15A service, which got something like 8 miles of range per hour of charge.

Since OpConnect has taken over, I'm not entirely sure of their charging policy even though I signed up with them and got an OpConnect fob. Since Turtle Bay is probably the remotest destination on Oahu, OpConnect may have a one hour time limit and may give the first hour free.

I got a Better Place fob back in January/February 2013. It worked because I charged at their Aina Haina station a couple of times. Since Better Place has been bought by OpConnect, I know the original Better Place fob I got in Jan/Feb no longer works because I tried recently at the Polynesian Cultural Center with no luck.

I then signed up with OpConnect a little less than a month ago (Register Account
). I did get an OpConnect fob in the mail, but have not had the opportunity to test it out. I'm pretty sure it costs money to charge with OpConnect, so I only got the OpConnect fob in case of an emergency since I do go to the north shore a lot.

Unless you plan to spend a more than 2-3 nights at Turtle Bay in which case vampire loss comes into play, you really don't need to use any of the OpConnect stations if you use even minimal planning.

I tried the BetterPlace chargers downstairst at Ala Moana and found them useless due to poor charging rate. I have also tried to use the ones at Moana Loa Shopping center near pearl harbor, but I left my BetterPlace card at home because OpConnect had taken over, the OpConnect card did not work. after an talking to OpConect I was assured that they were going to change over to the OpConnect style charging stations over time, but the old BetterPlace chargers would still need the old card. One person I spoke with (who was also trying to install chargers at my Condo) said that when they upgraded, the charge rate would be much improved, but they plan on charging a similar rate to what the Blink charging stations charge. (I know of one at WallMart on Keaumoku). I usually try to use one of the City's Chargepoint chargers (Free) or one of the (Free) Volta chargers. Note: some of the older Volta chargers like the one at the HI State legislature building charges a fee (and requires Credit Card)

- - - Updated - - -

drtko147: I picked up a safety check plate from Ron's (on Nimitz) last week for $26. I got the side plate like ddruz's. O'Reilly in Salt Lake had only one in stock for $35.

- - - Updated - - -

Has any one with the tech package set up Homelink?
I was unable to get it to recognize my wife's gate and garage door opener transmitter and I lost my old one before we went away for a trip, so I really need to get this to work. I tried in front of the bumper and inside the frunk. Our gate and operator are only one year old and both use the new rolling code technology. One thing that I didn't have time to do is to get new batteries for the transmitter. Does that really increase signal strength? I also read on the Tesla forum that you hold it one inch from the T badge or inside the frunk just as close. Any pointers would be greatly appreciated.

I tried to set up Homelink for my condo garage doors but never got it to work after programming the car side. I think that it is because I don't have access to the building side of the door openers/gates. they charge a $150 fee to replace and program the normal fob. so I probably have to pay that fee to my condo to get the Homelink to work.

 

[spleen]

Better Place owned those stations at Turtle Bay before they recently sold out to OpConnect. When Better Place owned them, you needed a Better Place fob (got one by signing up with them), and charging was free until April 2013, but it wasn't unlimited. There was a charge limit of 2 hours per day if I remember correctly.

I stopped using Better Place chargers even when it was free because the amount of charge was pitiful. If I remember correctly it was 208V/15A service, which got something like 8 miles of range per hour of charge.

Since OpConnect has taken over, I'm not entirely sure of their charging policy even though I signed up with them and got an OpConnect fob. Since Turtle Bay is probably the remotest destination on Oahu, OpConnect may have a one hour time limit and may give the first hour free.





I got a Better Place fob back in January/February 2013. It worked because I charged at their Aina Haina station a couple of times. Since Better Place has been bought by OpConnect, I know the original Better Place fob I got in Jan/Feb no longer works because I tried recently at the Polynesian Cultural Center with no luck.

I then signed up with OpConnect a little less than a month ago (Register Account
). I did get an OpConnect fob in the mail, but have not had the opportunity to test it out. I'm pretty sure it costs money to charge with OpConnect, so I only got the OpConnect fob in case of an emergency since I do go to the north shore a lot.

Unless you plan to spend a more than 2-3 nights at Turtle Bay in which case vampire loss comes into play, you really don't need to use any of the OpConnect stations if you use even minimal planning.

My old Better Place fob worked in all the current OpConnect chargers that I've tried to date (Ala Moana street level, Aina Haina Shopping Center, Stadium Marketplace). I do not have any money in place on my OpConnect account or my old Better Place account.

For those trying to figure out public charging infrastructure, most of the Volta chargers (Ala Moana mall level, Kahala Mall, Pearlridge Mall, Koko Marina Shopping Center, etc etc) are free to use and do not require activation fobs. The three big networks in Hawaii that require *something* to activate chargers are 1) Better Place / OpConnect (free) (probably the biggest network in Hawaii, requires fob which is no longer available from the company, and has very slow charging rates for Teslas (15 amps) until they upgrade the chargers), 2) ChargePoint (varies) (government facilities, some municipal parking lots, Disney Aulani) (requires RFID card of some kind to activate though in a pinch, you can call the 1-800 number on the front of the charger during business hours to get their help desk to activate the charger - there is an actual ChargePoint activation card that you can request, most ChargePoints seem to be 30 amps), 3) Blink (pay) (I've only spotted these in Walmart parking lots to date, don't know their charging rate but suspect it's 30 amps as well). I would go ahead and request an OpConnect, ChargePoint, and Blink activation card from their respective networks since they're free to obtain just in case you need them (as mentioned previously, the OpConnect cards are currently not compatible with the existing Better Place chargers but you'll definitely be in a good position whenever they upgrade the chargers to real OpConnect ones with a better charging rate).

Oh, and on a side note, I've got HomeLink working on both the garage door at my place as well as my parents house. As others have mentioned, it's just following the steps on the main screen as well as making sure that you hit the training button on the garage door opener motor at the appropriate time.

 

[gmtom1]

gmtom1, geeezzz, from confirmation to VIN posted in just a couple of days? Most of us waited 4 months to get that info, and then we started the wait that you see ahead of you. That's amazing. You do not realize how lucky you have it buddy. Honest. DO NOT COMPLAIN.

Sorry if it came across wrong - wasn't trying to complain at all. Just wondering since we're unique in HI with our ship delivery timing factored in. Getting a bit excited, but also realizing that I still have a long ways to go. I actually want it to take a while, as I won't have the necessary infrastructure and financing in place until mid- to late July.

 

[spleen]

Sorry if it came across wrong - wasn't trying to complain at all. Just wondering since we're unique in HI with our ship delivery timing factored in. Getting a bit excited, but also realizing that I still have a long ways to go. I actually want it to take a while, as I won't have the necessary infrastructure and financing in place until mid- to late July.

That's just Akikiki's dry humor. Don't worry, you're not offending anybody

 

[solar powered]

ddruz: No success yet. I put fresh batteries in the remote tonight. When I put the remote near the light below the trunk catch, the headlights finally flashed. My gate operator has a Chamberlin Liftmaster receiver. I need to call my technician to find out where the learn button is. I see nothing on the receiver. At least I do know where the learn button is on my Raynor (made by Chamberlin) garage door.
I have not been very successful with technical issues. My 1-1/2 yr old hand-me-down cell phone wouldn't pair with the car when I took delivery of the car. It paired w/Barry's phone, so the conclusion was that I needed a new phone. I brought a thumb drive with both MP3s and MP4a's (converted Apple Lossless Audio Codec files). The car played the MP3s, but it would only show the album art work for the MP4a's. Sigh! As long as I can get the Homelink to work, I can at least get into my garage. ddruz, thanks for the support.

 

[spleen]

ddruz: No success yet. I put fresh batteries in the remote tonight. When I put the remote near the light below the trunk catch, the headlights finally flashed. My gate operator has a Chamberlin Liftmaster receiver. I need to call my technician to find out where the learn button is. I see nothing on the receiver. At least I do know where the learn button is on my Raynor (made by Chamberlin) garage door.
I have not been very successful with technical issues. My 1-1/2 yr old hand-me-down cell phone wouldn't pair with the car when I took delivery of the car. It paired w/Barry's phone, so the conclusion was that I needed a new phone. I brought a thumb drive with both MP3s and MP4a's (converted Apple Lossless Audio Codec files). The car played the MP3s, but it would only show the album art work for the MP4a's. Sigh! As long as I can get the Homelink to work, I can at least get into my garage. ddruz, thanks for the support.

What kind of problem did you have when trying to pair your phone? What manufacturer and model?

 

[solar powered]

Solar, How does that plate attach? Does it use the hole for the tag? Does it use an upper and lower tag hole on the right side?

I am working on an alternative method. Hope to have my pattern back tomorrow. Will let you know.

.

Akikiki, the exposed portion of the plate shown in ddruz's Post#945 on p. 95 has a 3-1/2" wide by 3/4" high strip that extends to the left from the top of the plate This tab has only a single slot that connects only to the upper right license plate mounting screw. It looks like a mailbox flag. The salesperson at Ron's said that it has to be pretty tight to kept it from swinging around. The plate sold at Ron's is stainless steel & has some mass to it. You seem to be handy with sheet metal, so you could probably do something better.

 

[Akikiki]

Homelink experience and Sears GDO

Guys, my homelink experience is not going to make you feel any better. My homelink configured and connected the first time without any hiccups. Works every time. I took one tip and followed it. I think I saw it on the TM MS video on features. When using my transmitter, I opened the frunk and held the transmitter down at the big recessed hole closer to the windshield. Bingo, programmed first time.

- - - Updated - - -

gmtom1, oh sorry. Me too, I didn't mean you sounded like you were complaining. I wasn't picking on your situation. That's just the best turn around any of us have seen and we were much impressed. At least I was. Don't worry, you are among friends here. I was just having a little fun with you about the timeline.

- - - Updated - - -

thanks, spleen, you are right. Sometimes my very dry humor gets me in trouble. thanks for recognizing that it was in fun.

- - - Updated - - -

By the way folks, while we are on the subject of GDO's and homelink stuff. I have two spare (meaning free) garage door openers. Both are 1/2 horsepower Sears. Both worked. Long story short, (unlike me regular style), replaced one that did not need replacing was mis-diagnosed. Then a couple of months ago, I had a gift card to spend at the Sear Ala Moana, so I bought the Internet connected version of the Sears openered and installed it. Now, I have two GDO's looking for a new home. Anyone needs either/both are welcome to them. Screw drive and chain driven.


That new GDO with Internet connection probably improved my luck when I was programming my homelink. The Internet connected GDO is a hoot. I can check status and open or close the GDO from anywhere via an iPhone App.

 

[gmtom1]

@Akikiki - What brand/model is your internet enabled GDO? Sears/craftsman? Just wondering as I'm looking to replace mine with something internet friendly too and if it's Tesla compatible, even better. I've been looking into the various Z-wave home automation devices, but haven't yet found one that allows control over a GDO (easily).

 

[Akikiki]

gmtom1, Unfortunately, it is Sears second highest priced one, (second most expensive). And its chain driven. It does not have the back up Die hard battery. You can id it by looking for the one that says is has "Assure". That's the module that connects to your router and sends its signal as if its a remote to the GDO. See if that helps. Most older Seards GDO's the plastic light shield is on the back. On this one, there are two, one on each side. Tonight, I will check its model and report back to you.

 

[gmtom1]

@Akikiki - Found it. Thanks. Wow - big price difference.

 

[dsmith2189]

The Internet connected GDO is a hoot. I can check status and open or close the GDO from anywhere via an iPhone App.

Now, all you need is an iPhone...

 

[Papafox]

Nanimac and others awaiting your Teslas this week...

I would imagine that the shipload of Teslas that arrived this week will be at the SC today or Wednesday. The next step is the mandatory detailing. That may take place or Thursday, Friday, or Saturday. After that, the cars can be turned over to sales and you could get a "Your Tesla is ready for pickup" call. Even if you plan to get your Tesla detailed during a Glare application, you still need to get the detailing at the SC (I know because I asked).

If you want 2020 or a similar company to apply Glare, I suggest getting two or more owners together and asking for a group discount. The truth of the matter is that prepping the car for the glare application is the real work, and a brand new Tesla is a snap to prep. Less work needed by the detail shop translates into more bargaining opportunities for you.

Looking forward to hearing stories from the new owners and seeing photos too. The Model S will really dazzle you, and the feeling grows stronger as you get to know the vehicle and gain proficiency with all the cool high-tech stuff. I had to give a fairly-long ride to a friend's two young kids today and there was plenty of room for them to be buckled in on the back seat next to my dog (yes the seat was protected!). I took song requests and Slacker delivered. I told them that the next song had been requested by Iceman and played "Who Let the Dogs Out?", which fit perfectly with their musical tastes. Just another Tesla moment and another Tesla grin.