Your vehicle’s tire pressures will drop in cold ambient
temperatures. If the TPMS indicator light appears, inflate
the tires before driving. The tires will lose one PSI for
every 10° F (6° C) drop in outside temperature (see Tire
Care and Maintenance on page 169). Proper tire
pressures help protect tires from potholes and improve
range when properly
inflated.
While Driving
Cold weather can increase energy consumption because
more power is required for driving, cabin and Battery
heating. Follow these suggestions to reduce energy
consumption:
•
Use seat heaters to keep warm. Seat heaters use less
energy than the cabin heater. Lowering the cabin
temperature and using seat heaters reduces energy
consumption (see
Climate Controls on page 124).
• Slow down your driving and avoid frequent and rapid
acceleration.
Regenerative Braking
Regenerative braking can be limited if the Battery is too
cold. As you continue to drive, the Battery warms up
and regenerative power increases (see
Regenerative
Braking on page 61).
NOTE: Limited regenerative braking can be avoided if
you allow enough time to precondition your vehicle or if
you use Schedule to precondition Model 3 before your
departure time (see Scheduled Charging and Scheduled
Departure on page 165).
NOTE: Installing winter tires can result in temporarily
reduced regenerative braking power but after a short
period of driving, Model 3 recalibrates to correct this.
Blue Snowflake Icon
A blue
snowflake icon appears on your
touchscreen when some of the stored energy in
the Battery is unavailable because the Battery is
cold. This portion of unavailable energy displays
in blue on the Battery meter. Regenerative
braking, acceleration, and charging rates may be
limited. The
snowflake icon no longer displays
when the Battery is suciently warm.
Warming the Battery Before
Supercharging
By using Trip Planner (see Trip Planner on page 133) to
navigate to a Supercharger, Model 3 pre-heats the
Battery to ensure when you arrive at the Supercharger,
the Battery temperature is optimal and ready to charge.
This reduces the amount of time it takes to charge.
NOTE:
Tesla recommends using Trip Planner to navigate
to a Supercharger for at least 30-45 minutes before
arrival to ensure optimal Battery temperature and
charging conditions. If the drive to the Supercharger is
less than 30-45 minutes, consider preconditioning the
Battery prior to driving (see
Before Driving on page 75).
Autopilot
To ensure optimal Autopilot performance, keep the
sensors free of snow, ice, mud, and dirt (see About
Autopilot on page 79).
After Driving
Leave Model 3 plugged in when not in use. This uses the
charging system, rather than the Battery itself, to keep
the Battery warm (see High Voltage Battery Information
on page 160).
Scheduled Departure
When parked, plug in Model 3 and use the Schedule
settings, available on both the charging and climate
control screens, to set a time when you want to
precondition Model 3 (see Scheduled Charging and
Scheduled Departure on page 165). Your vehicle
determines the appropriate time to begin charging so it
is complete during
o-peak hours and the cabin and
Battery are warm by your set departure time. For more
information, see Scheduled Charging and Scheduled
Departure on page 165.
Charge Port
•
If your charge port latch freezes in place and a
charging cable becomes stuck in the charge port, try
manually releasing the charge cable. See Manually
Releasing Charge Cable on page 166.
•
Use the mobile app to precondition your vehicle to
help thaw ice on the charge port latch so that the
charge cable can be removed or inserted (see Mobile
App on page 156).
NOTE: You can also prevent the occurrence of a charge
port latch freezing in place by using the Schedule
settings (see Scheduled Charging and Scheduled
Departure on page 165).
NOTE: If your charge port latch is frozen in place, it may
not lock the charging cable in place when inserted, but it
can still charge at a slow AC rate even if the latch is not
engaged.
Cold Weather Best Practices
77Driving
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