Tesla MODEL Y - About Autopilot; How It Works

• Using the seat heaters to keep warm is
more ecient than using climate controls.
Lowering the cabin temperature and using
seat heaters will reduce energy
consumption (see Climate Controls on
page 124).
• Slow down your driving and avoid
frequent and rapid acceleration.
Regenerative Braking
Regenerative braking may 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
69).
Note: Limited regenerative braking can be
avoided if you allow enough time to
precondition your vehicle or use scheduled
departure before your drive, as mentioned
previously.
Note: Installing winter tires may result in
temporarily reduced regenerative braking
power but Model Y will recalibrate itself to
correct this after a short period of driving.
Blue Snowflake Icon
A blue snowflake icon appears on
your touchscreen when some of
the stored energy in the Battery
may not be available due to cold
Battery temperature. 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 suciently warmed.
Warming the Battery Before Supercharging
If you are using Trip Planner (see Trip Planner
on page 133) and navigate to a Supercharger
station, your vehicle will allocate energy to
pre-heat the Battery in cold weather. This
ensures you arrive at the Supercharger with an
optimal Battery temperature, reducing the
amount of time it takes to charge.
Autopilot
To ensure optimal Autopilot performance,
keep the sensors and radar free of snow, ice,
mud, and dirt (see About Autopilot on page
82).
After Driving
Leave Model Y plugged in when not in use.
This uses the charging system, rather than the
Battery itself, to keep your Battery warm (see
Battery Information on page 157).
Scheduled Departure
When parked, plug in Model Y and set a time
at which you want your vehicle to be ready to
drive. Your vehicle determines the appropriate
time to begin charging so that charging is
complete and the cabin and Battery are warm
by your set departure time. See Scheduled
Charging and Scheduled Departure on page
164 for more information.
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 160.
• Use the mobile app to precondition your
vehicle on HI to help thaw ice on the
charge port latch so that the charge cable
can be removed or inserted (see Mobile
App on page 152).
Note: If your charge port latch is frozen in
place, it may not lock the charging cable in
place when inserted, but it is still able to AC
charge at a slower rate even if the latch is not
engaged.
Storage
If you leave Model Y parked for an extended
period of time, plug it into a charger to
prevent normal range loss and maintain the
Battery at an optimal temperature. Your
vehicle is safe to say plugged in for any length
of time.
When not in use, Model Y automatically enters
a sleep mode to conserve range and energy.
Reduce the number of times you check your
vehicle’s status on the mobile app, as this
automatically wakes up your vehicle and starts
normal energy consumption.
Note: See Wipers on page 80 and Mirrors on
page 80 for more information on preventing
ice buildup when parking your vehicle.
Cold Weather Best Practices
Driving 81