Correct Driving PositionThe seat, head support, seat belt and airbagswork together to maximize your safety. Using
these correctly ensures greater protection.
Position the seat so you can wear the seat belt correctly, while being as far away from the
front airbag as possible:
1. Sit upright with both feet on the
floor and
the seat back reclined no more than 30
degrees.
2. Make sure you can easily reach the pedals and that your arms are slightly bent whenholding the steering wheel. Your chest
should be at least 10 inches (25 cm) from
the center of the airbag cover.
3. Place the shoulder section of the seat belt mid-way between your neck and your
shoulder. Fit the lap section of the belt tightly across your hips, not across your
stomach.
Model S seats include integrated head
supports that cannot be adjusted or removed.
Adjusting the Driver
Wearing Seat Belts
Using seat belts and child safety seats is the
most
effective way to protect occupants if a
collision occurs. Therefore, wearing a seat belt is required by law in most jurisdictions.
Both the driver and passenger seats are
equipped with three-point inertia reel seat
belts. Inertia reel belts are automatically
tensioned to allow occupants to move
comfortably during normal driving conditions.
To securely hold child safety seats, all
passenger seating positions are equipped with
an automatic locking retractor (ALR) that, by
pulling the seat belt beyond the length
needed for a typical adult occupant, locks the
belt into place until the seat belt is unbuckled
(see Installing Seat Belt Retained Child Seats
on page 25).
The seat belt reel automatically locks to prevent movement of occupants if Model Sexperiences a force associated with hard
acceleration, braking, cornering, or an impact in a collision.
The seat belt reminder on the
instrument panel alerts you if a seat
belt for an occupied seat is not
fastened. If the belt remains unfastened, the reminder
flashes and
an intermittent chime sounds. If all
occupants are buckled up and the
reminder stays on, re-fasten seat
belts to ensure they are correctly
latched. Also remove any heavy
objects (such as a briefcase) from an
unoccupied seat. If the reminder
light continues to stay on, contact
Tesla.
To Fasten a Belt
1. Ensure correct positioning of the seat (see Correct Driving Position on page 17).
2. Draw the belt out smoothly, ensuring the belt lays
flat across the pelvis, chest and
mid-point of your collar bone, between
the neck and shoulder.
3. Insert the latch plate into the buckle and press together until you hear a click
indicating it is locked in place.
4. Pull the belt to check that it is securely fastened.
5. Pull the diagonal part of the belt toward the reel to remove excess slack.
To Release a Belt
Hold the belt near the buckle to prevent the
belt from retracting too quickly, then press the
button on the buckle. The belt retracts
automatically. Ensure there is no obstruction
that prevents the belt from fully retracting.
The belt should not hang loose. If a seat belt does not fully retract, contact Tesla.
Wearing Seat Belts When Pregnant
Do not put the lap or shoulder sections of the seat belt over the abdominal area. Wear thelap section of the belt as low as possibleacross the hips, not the waist. Position the
shoulder portion of the belt between the
breasts and to the side of the abdomen. Consult your doctor for
specific guidance.
Seat Belts
Seating and Safety Restraints19
Airbag Warning IndicatorThe airbag indicator on the
instrument panel remains lit if the airbag system is malfunctioning. The
only time this indicator should light
up is
briefly when Model S firstpowers up, in which case it turns offwithin a few seconds. If it remains lit,
contact Tesla immediately and do
not drive.
Airbag Warnings
Warning: No objects should be placed
over or near the air bag on the instrument panel, because any such objects couldcause harm if the vehicle is in a crash
severe enough to cause the air bag to
inflate.
Warning: All occupants, including the driver, should always wear their seat belts,
whether or not an airbag is also provided
at their seating position, to minimize the
risk of severe injury or death in the event
of a collision.Warning: Front seat occupants should not
place their arms over the airbag module,
as an
inflating bag can cause fractures or
other injuries.
Warning: Do not use seat covers on
Model S. Doing so could restrict
deployment of the side air bags if an
accident occurs. It can also reduce the
accuracy of the occupant detection
system, if equipped.Warning: Airbags inflate with
considerable speed and force, which can
cause injury. To limit injuries, ensure that occupants are wearing seat belts and are
correctly seated, with the seat positioned as far back as possible.Warning: Do not use a child safety seat or
seat young children on a seat with an
operational airbag in front of it. Doing so
can cause injury or death if the airbag
inflates.
Warning: To ensure correct inflation of the
side airbags, maintain an unobstructed
gap between an occupant
IndicatorDescription
Parking lights (side marker lights, tail lights, and license plate lights) are on. See
Lights on page 51.Front fog lights (optional). See Lights on page 51.Rear fog lights. See Lights on page 51.Adaptive Front Lighting. See Adaptive Front Lighting System (AFS) on page 54.
Electronic stability control systems are actively minimizing wheel spin by
controlling brake pressure and motor power (indicator flashes). See Traction
Control on page 59. If this indicator stays illuminated, a fault is detected (contact
Tesla immediately).Smart Air Suspension
8. Use the right steering wheel buttons to change what displays on the right side of theinstrument panel whenever a phone call is not active (see Using Right Steering Wheel Buttons
on page 40).
9. Total estimated driving distance (or energy) available. Instead of driving distance, you can display the percentage of battery energy remaining. To do so, touch Controls > Settings >Language & Units > Energy & Charging (see Settings on page 101).
Note: When anticipating when you need to charge, use range estimates as a general guideline only.
Note: In cold weather, some of the stored energy in the Battery may not be available on your drive because the Battery is too cold. When this happens, a portion of the Battery meter isblue and the driving distance value has a
snowflake image next to it. If Model S is plugged in,
you can heat your Battery using wall power by turning on climate control using the mobile app. When the Battery warms up, the blue portion on the meter and the
snowflake image are
no longer displayed.
10. The speed limit (if available) that is currently being detected by Speed Assist (see Speed
Assist on page 91).
11. The car in front of you (if applicable).
Note: In situations where Autosteer is unable to detect lane markings, the driving lane isdetermined based on the vehicle you are following. In these situations, the car in front of you
is highlighted in blue.
12. Pay attention to important driving-related messages that appear at the bottom center of the instrument panel.
13. Your Model S.
14. When Autosteer is active and detects the driving lane, it is highlighted in blue (see Autosteer
on page 76).
15. Currently selected gear: Park, Reverse, Neutral, or Drive.
Instrument Panel
50Model S Owner
Controlling LightsTouch Controls on the bottom corner of the touchscreen to control most of the lights.In addition to the lights that you can control from the touchscreen, Model S has convenience lightsthat turn on and
off automatically based on what you are doing. For example, you will notice
interior lights, marker lights, tail lights, door handle lights, and puddle lights that turn on when you
unlock Model S, when you open a door, and when you shift into Park. They turn
off automatically
after a minute or two or when you shift into a driving gear or lock Model S.
Note: Depending on options chosen at time of purchase, some vehicles are not equipped with fog
lights.
Lights
Driving51
1. If you turn on DOME lights, all interior dome (map) lights turn on when you unlock Model S,open a door upon exiting, or shift into P (Park). They turn off after 60 seconds, when you lock
Model S, or when you shift into a driving gear. If set to AUTO, dome lights turn on only when
little or no light is detected.
You can also manually turn an individual dome light on or
off by pressing its lens. If you
manually turn a dome light on, it turns off when Model S powers off. If Model S was already
powered off when you manually turned the light on, it turns off after 60 minutes.
2. If you turn on AMBIENT lights, the lights on the door armrests turn on whenever the headlights are on.
3. If you turn on AUTO HIGH BEAM, high beam headlights turn on and
off automatically based
on whether or not light is detected in front of Model S (see High Beam Headlights on page
54). This feature is available only if Model S is equipped with the optional Autopilot Tech Package.
4. Touch to turn fog lights (if equipped) on or
off. Fog lights operate only when low beam
headlights are on. Fog lights do not operate when headlights are turned off or when high
beam headlights are on.
The Front Fog indicator displays on the instrument panel whenever front fog
lights are on.The Rear Fog indicator displays on the instrument panel whenever rear fog
lights are on.
Note: Depending on the market region and vehicle options, your vehicle may not be equipped
with front and/or rear fog lights.
Note: In some regions, there is no control for the front fog lights. They operate in conjunction
with the headlights and turn on only in situations where low beam headlights are on.
Lights
52Model S Owner
5. If Model S is equipped with a coil suspension system, you can adjust the angle of theheadlights to accommodate the load you are carrying. You may need to lower the angle of theheadlights to avoid blinding oncoming drivers in situations when you are carrying a
significantamount of weight in the rear trunk. After touching LEVEL, drag the slider to the desiredposition:
0Headlights are not lowered. No change is needed when all front and rear seats are
occupied and only the front trunk is laden.1Headlights are lowered one level. Suitable when the front and rear seats are occupied and the rear trunk is laden.2Headlights are lowered two levels. Suitable when carrying heavy loads.
Note: Headlight adjustments are not available if Model S is equipped with Smart Air
Suspension because Model S levels automatically.
6. Exterior lights (headlights, tail lights, side marker lights, parking lights, and license plate lights) are set to AUTO each time you start Model S.
AUTOExterior lights automatically turn on when driving in low lighting
conditions. If you change to a different setting, lights always revert to this
AUTO setting on your next drive.
Touch one of these options to temporarily change the exterior light setting:
OFFExterior lights turn off until you manually turn them back on or until the
next time you drive Model S. If daytime running lights are required in your
region, the exterior lights used for this purpose do not turn
off.Only the side marker lights, parking lights, tail lights and license plate
lights turn on.Exterior lights turn on.
Note: Model S has a series of lights along the lower rim of the headlights, also referred to as
"signature" lights. These lights automatically turn on whenever Model S is powered on and a driving gear is engaged.
Warning: Always ensure that your headlamps are switched to AUTO or ON, as
appropriate, during all low visibility conditions. Failure to do so may result in a collision.
Lights
Driving53