Interior Emergency Trunk ReleaseAn illuminated mechanical release located
inside the rear trunk allows you to open the rear trunk from the inside if Model 3 has no
electrical power. This mechanical release also
allows a person locked inside to get out.
1. Firmly push the illuminated button in the
direction of the arrow to release the latch.
2. Push the rear trunk open.
Note: The button glows for several hours after
a brief exposure to ambient light.
Warning: Do not allow children to play
inside the trunk or become locked inside.
An unrestrained child could suffer serious
injury or death in a crash. A child could
suffer heat exhaustion if trapped in the
vehicle, especially without climate control
on.
Rear Trunk
20Model 3 Owner
Press the interior release button to open the
front trunk, then push up on the hood.
Note: The interior release button glows
following a brief exposure to ambient light.
Warning: People should never climb
inside the front trunk. Never shut the
front trunk when a person is inside.Warning: Care should be taken to ensure
that objects inside the front trunk do not
bump against the release button, causing the trunk to accidentally open.
Opening Hood with No Power
In the unlikely event that Model 3 has no 12V power, you will be unable to open the front
trunk using the touchscreen, key fob, or
mobile app. To open the front trunk in this situation:
Note: The following will not open the front
trunk if Model 3 is locked and has 12V power.
1. Locate an external 12V power supply
(such as a portable jump starter).
2. Release the tow eye cover by pressing
firmly on the top right perimeter of the
cover until it pivots inward, then gently pulling the raised section toward you.
Note: Depending on production date,
either the positive or negative terminal
may be attached to the tow eye cover.
3. Pull the two wires out of the tow eye
opening to expose both terminals.
4. Connect the 12V power supply
Lights
Controlling Lights Touch Controls > Lights on the touchscreen to
control the lights.
In addition to the lights that you can control
from the touchscreen, Model 3 has
convenience lights that operate automatically
based on what you are doing. For example, in
low ambient lighting conditions, the interior lights, marker lights, tail lights, and puddle
lights turn on when you unlock Model 3, when
you open a door, and when you shift into Park.
They turn off after a minute or two or when
you shift into a driving gear or lock Model 3.
Note: The image below is provided for
demonstration purposes only. Depending on vehicle options, software version and market
region, your touchscreen may appear slightly
different.
1. Exterior lights (headlights, tail lights, side
marker lights, parking lights, and license
plate lights) are set to AUTO each time
you start Model 3. When set to AUTO,
exterior lights automatically turn on when
driving in low lighting conditions. If you
change to a different setting, lights always
revert to AUTO on your next drive.
Touch one of these options to temporarily
change the exterior light setting:
6.If you turn on Headlights after Exit , the
exterior lights remain on for a short period of time after you stop driving and parkModel 3 in low lighting conditions. See
Headlights After Exit on page 59.
7. If you turn on Steering Wheel Lights , the
arrows associated with the scroll buttons
are backlit in low ambient lighting
conditions.
High Beam Headlights Push the left-hand steering column lever away
from you and release to turn the high beam
headlights on continuously. To cancel, push the lever away from you again.
To brie
Caution: If the brakes are not functioning
properly, stop the vehicle as soon as safety permits and contact Tesla Service.
See Park on page 56 for information on
using the Park button to stop the vehicle
in case of emergency.Warning: Always maintain a safe driving
distance from the vehicle in front of you
and be cautious in hazardous driving
conditions. Do not rely on brake disc
wiping or hydraulic fade compensation to act as a substitute for adequate braking.
Regenerative Braking
Whenever Model 3 is moving and your foot is
off the accelerator, regenerative braking slows
down Model 3 and feeds any surplus energy back to the Battery.
By anticipating your stops and reducing or
removing pressure from the accelerator pedal
to slow down, you can take advantage of regenerative braking to increase driving range.
Of course, this is no substitute for regular braking when needed for safety.
Note: If regenerative braking is aggressively
slowing Model 3 (such as when your foot is
completely off the accelerator pedal at
highway speeds), the brake lights turn on to
alert others that you are slowing down.
Note: Installing winter tires with aggressive
compound and tread design may result in
temporarily-reduced regenerative braking
power. However, your vehicle is designed to continuously recalibrate itself, and after changing tires it will increasingly restore
regenerative braking power after some
moderate-torque straight-line accelerations.
For most drivers this occurs after a short
period of normal driving, but drivers who
normally accelerate lightly may need to use
slightly harder accelerations while the
recalibration is in progress.
Warning: In snowy or icy conditions
Model 3 may experience traction loss
during regenerative braking, particularly
when in the Standard setting and/or not
using winter tires. Tesla recommends
using the Low setting (see To Set the
Regenerative Braking Level on page 66)
in snowy or icy conditions to help maintain vehicle stability.The amount of energy fed back to the Battery
using regenerative braking can depend on the
current state of the Battery and the charge
level setting that you are using. For example,
regenerative braking may be limited if the Battery is already fully charged or if the
ambient temperature is too cold.
Note: If regenerative braking is limited, a
dashed line displays on the energy bar (see
Driving Status on page 63).
To Set the Regenerative Braking Level
You can use the touchscreen to change the
level of regenerative braking:
1. Touch Controls > Driving > Regenerative
Braking .
2. Choose from two levels:
Battery Information
About the Battery
Model 3 has one of the most sophisticated
battery systems in the world. The most
important way to preserve the Battery is to LEAVE YOUR VEHICLE PLUGGED IN when
you are not using it. This is particularly important if you are not planning to drive
Model 3 for several weeks. When plugged in,
Model 3 wakes up when needed to
automatically maintain a charge level that
maximizes the lifetime of the Battery.
Note: When left idle and unplugged, your
vehicle periodically uses energy from the Battery for system tests and recharging the
12V battery when necessary.
There is no advantage to waiting until the
Battery’s level is low before charging. In fact, the Battery performs best when charged
regularly.
Note: If you allow the Battery to discharge to
0%, other components may become damaged
or require replacement (for example, the 12V
battery). In these cases, you are responsible for repair and/or transporting expenses.
Discharge-related expenses are not covered
by the warranty or under the Roadside
Assistance policy.
The peak charging rate of the Battery may
decrease slightly after a large number of DC
Fast Charging sessions, such as those at
Superchargers. To ensure maximum driving
range and Battery safety, the Battery charge
rate is decreased when the Battery is too cold,
when the Battery’s charge is nearly full, and when the Battery conditions change with
usage and age. These changes in the condition of the Battery are driven by battery physics
and may increase the total Supercharging
duration by a few minutes over time.
Battery Care
Never allow the Battery to fully discharge.
Even when Model 3 is not being driven, its
Battery discharges very slowly to power the
onboard electronics. The Battery can
discharge at a rate of approximately 1% per day, though the discharge rate may vary
depending on environmental factors (such as
cold weather), vehicle configuration, and your
selected settings on the touchscreen.
Situations can arise in which you must leave
Model 3 unplugged for an extended period of time (for example, at an airport when
traveling). In these situations, keep the 1% in
mind to ensure that you leave the Battery with a sufficient charge level. For example, over a
two week period (14 days), the Battery may
discharge by approximately 14%.
Discharging the Battery to 0% may result in
damage to vehicle components. To protect
against a complete discharge, Model 3 enters
a low-power consumption mode when the
displayed charge level drops to approximately
0%. In this mode, the Battery stops supporting
the onboard electronics and auxiliary 12V
battery. Once this low-power consumption
mode is active, immediately plug in Model 3 to
prevent a jump-start and 12V battery
replacement.
Note: If the vehicle is unresponsive and will
not unlock, open, or charge, then the 12V
battery may have become discharged. In this
situation, contact Tesla.
Temperature Limits
For better long-term performance, avoid
exposing Model 3 to ambient temperatures
above 140
wall outlet instead of using energy stored in
the Battery. For example, if you are sitting in
Model 3 and using the touchscreen while
parked and plugged in, Model 3 draws energy
from the wall outlet instead of the Battery.Caution: The connector end of the charge
cable can damage the paint if dropped
onto the vehicle.
During Charging
During charging, the charge port light (the Tesla "T" logo) pulses green, and thetouchscreen displays the charging status. The
frequency at which the charge port light
pulses slows down as the charge level
approaches full. When charging is complete,
the light stops pulsing and is solid green.
Note: If Model 3 is locked, the charge port
light does not light up.
If the charge port light turns red while
charging, a fault is detected. Check the
touchscreen for a message describing the
fault. A fault can occur due to something as
common as a power outage. If a power outage
occurs, charging resumes automatically when
power is restored.
Note: When charging, particularly at high
currents, the refrigerant compressor and fan
operate as needed to keep the Battery cool.
Therefore, it is normal to hear sounds during charging.
Note: Air conditioning performance is
generally not affected by charging. However,
under certain circumstances (for example, you
are charging at high currents during a
particularly warm day), the air coming from
the vents may not be as cool as expected and
a message displays on the touchscreen. This is
normal behavior and ensures that the Battery stays within an optimum temperature range
while charging to support longevity and optimum performance.
Warning: Never spray liquid at a high
velocity (for example, if using a pressure
washer) towards the charge port while
charging. Failure to follow these
instructions can result in serious injury or
damage to the vehicle, charging
equipment, or property.
Stopping Charging
Stop charging at any time by disconnecting
the charge cable or touching Stop Charging
on the touchscreen.
Note: To prevent unauthorized unplugging of
the charge cable, the charge cable latch remains locked and Model 3 must be unlockedor able to recognize your authenticated phone
before you can disconnect the charge cable.
However, in cold ambient temperatures below
41
Index
A ABS (Anti-lock Braking System) 65
absolute speed limit 114
access panel, removing 176
accessoriesplugging into power socket 26
adjacent lane speed 108
aero covers 167
air circulation 126
air conditioning 125
air distribution 126
air filter 128
air vents 127
airbags 41
alarm 143
all-season tires 170
Always Show Estimated Round Trip Energy
133
ambient lights 58
anti-lock braking (ABS) 65
application launcher 4
audioequalizer 138
immersive sound 138
playing files 136
steering wheel scroll button 50
volume control 136
auto fold
52
Auto High Beam 59
Auto Lane Change 95
auto tilt 52
AUTO wipers 64
automatic emergency braking 112
automatic navigation 130
Autopark 100
autopilotblind spot collision warning 108
side collision warning 108
staying inside lane markings 108AutopilotAuto Lane Change 95
automatic emergency braking 111
Autopark 100
Autosteer 93
collision avoidance assist 111
forward collision warning 111
Navigate on Autopilot 96
overtake acceleration 87
overview 84
speed assist 114
speed limit warning 114
staying within speed limits 114
Summon 102
Traffic-Aware Cruise Control 87
Autopilot components 84
Autosteer 93
average range 74
B
backup camera 75battery (12V)complete discharge 155
specifications 189Battery (high voltage)care of 155
coolant 176
specifications 189
temperature limits 155
battery (key), replacing 12
blind spot collision warning 108
blind spot collision warning chime 108
Bluetoothdevices, playing audio files from 138
general information 139
phone, pairing and using 139
body repairs 181
body touch up 173
brakesautomatic in emergencies 112