Elon Musk is teasing a fix to Tesla’s huge issue with its 12-volt batteries not lasting long inside its vehicles and more to come regarding the electric architecture.
Like in most cars, the 12-volt battery system in Tesla vehicles powers the lights, media unit, windows, and much more.
Tesla has had a recurring issue with its
12-volt batteries, especially in Model S and Model X.
They have a tendency to die pretty fast – or seemingly faster than in other vehicles.
How fast depends on many factor including climate and how often you drive the vehicle since driving it more often can actually help with longevity.
Unlike several other cars, Tesla is also able to warn that your 12-volt battery is about to die soon , but many owners are getting that warning a bit too often.
CEO Elon Musk addressed the issue in response to an owner last night on
Twitter.
Again, there’s already a warning, but it looks like Musk agrees that it could be better and also announces upcoming “major software improvements” to extend the 12-volt battery life in Tesla vehicles.
Futhermore, the CEO teases that they will be “more coming.”
In the past, Musk has talked about Tesla moving away from a 12-volt electric architecture in its vehicles.It was first supposed to be introduced in Model Y, but Musk had to delay the plan to bring the SUV to market sooner.This would be a welcomed
improvement for all owners.
Tesla should be able to extend battery life by better managing the charge of the 12-volt system just like they do for the main propulsion battery inside their vehicles.
The problem doesn’t affect all Tesla owners, but it can be annoying and expensive outside of warranty.In Model S and Model X vehicles, especially earlier versions of the vehicles, the 12v battery is not easily accessible and replacing it yourself can easily take more than hour.
It can take half an hour even for experienced Tesla technicians.
I recently had it replaced on my Model S 2014 and it cost $380 and 2 hours of watching videos on
youtube .