# 12v now always on?



## crackers8199 (Jun 7, 2018)

My 12v is staying on since the update with sentry mode, even after I leave the car and it locks...is this normal? Is there a way to turn it off?


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## MelindaV (Apr 2, 2016)

this has been noted since the earlier 2019.x firmware releases. It will time out after a few minutes.


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## crackers8199 (Jun 7, 2018)

MelindaV said:


> this has been noted since the earlier 2019.x firmware releases. It will time out after a few minutes.


how long is a few minutes? i've left the car for at least 15 minutes since the update and come back to the outlet still on...


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## MelindaV (Apr 2, 2016)

crackers8199 said:


> how long is a few minutes? i've left the car for at least 15 minutes since the update and come back to the outlet still on...


Others have mentioned it powers down when the car goes to sleep. So if you keep poking it, the outlet will stay on longer


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## Long Ranger (Jun 1, 2018)

crackers8199 said:


> how long is a few minutes? i've left the car for at least 15 minutes since the update and come back to the outlet still on...


Do you have Sentry on? I don't think it shuts off the 12V with Sentry on. With Sentry the car doesn't sleep and it needs to have constant power to the USB flash drive.

With Sentry off it should shut off the 12V when the car goes to sleep, about 5 minutes.
https://teslaownersonline.com/threa...-2019-5-4-4c3c414-2-22-2019.11402/post-208287


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## crackers8199 (Jun 7, 2018)

Long Ranger said:


> Do you have Sentry on? I don't think it shuts off the 12V with Sentry on. With Sentry the car doesn't sleep and it needs to have constant power to the USB flash drive.
> 
> With Sentry off it should shut off the 12V when the car goes to sleep, about 5 minutes.
> https://teslaownersonline.com/threa...-2019-5-4-4c3c414-2-22-2019.11402/post-208287


i don't have it turned on, no...i'm wondering if leaving the onyx powered on is causing it to stay active, which is bad. i definitely left the car for more than five minutes twice tonight, and both times came back to the onyx still being powered on.


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## Scrutmonkey (Mar 30, 2018)

Yup my dash cam likes to stay on now, I have it plugged into the 12v. I haven’t checked since the 5.15 update though.


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## N54tt (Aug 18, 2018)

I just got 5.15 this morning. The cig lighter behavior is different as it doesn’t turn off immediately when you close the doors. But I can confirm that it does eventually power off. I have my Valentine 1 plugged into the cig lighter. When the car goes to sleep, after about 5-10 min, the lights on the detector go off and when you open the door it does it’s boot up sequence. FYI this is with sentry mode off. I have not tested to see what happens with sentry mode on.


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## Swoop (Nov 11, 2018)

I've noticed that after I use Sentry Mode that once I start the car, the Max360 needs to be manually turned on...which might mean that the Max360 is timing out with the 12v outlet powered (using Sentry).


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## N54tt (Aug 18, 2018)

Swoop said:


> I've noticed that after I use Sentry Mode that once I start the car, the Max360 needs to be manually turned on...which might mean that the Max360 is timing out with the 12v outlet powered (using Sentry).


That's interesting. I'm guessing the max360 uses an electronic switch to turn on and off. I shouldn't have that problem with my V1 since it uses a mechanical knob.


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## TMK26 (May 2, 2018)

I believe the Escort brand detectors have a time-out feature of 4 hours. I'm going to have to remember to turn off my detector when I get to work (with Sentry Mode on) and then remember to turn it back on when I leave for home (this one is important to remember!)


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## crackers8199 (Jun 7, 2018)

has anyone that pulled the console to add new power ports checked to see if the 12v source in the kick panel is still switched as soon as you leave the car, or if that exhibits the same behavior? if that one is still switched on exit i may have to expedite my pulling the console to add that second 12v outlet...


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## Eli (Apr 11, 2018)

Is it possible the car just happened to be awake for other reasons? Mine always stays awake for a couple hours directly following an update, I guess uploading logs or doing who knows what.


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## crackers8199 (Jun 7, 2018)

nope, it's definitely staying on and not timing out. i parked in my garage over 45 minutes ago, just went out and checked...my onyx is still powered on. ugh...why must they always change stuff like this without considering consequences?


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## diabox (Sep 3, 2018)

I have tied in additional outlets into the console wiring (behind the kick panel) and since the update I did last night the power is always on and does not time out. Validated by looking into the car without unlocking to see my radar detector still on 9 hours later.


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## BallzOne (Jul 18, 2018)

I have 5.15 and I’m using the 12v from the driver side left kick panel to run my radar detector and dashcam. Both turn off as soon as I close my door just like they’ve done previously. Sentry Mode is off.


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## crackers8199 (Jun 7, 2018)

BallzOne said:


> I have 5.15 and I'm using the 12v from the driver side left kick panel to run my radar detector and dashcam. Both turn off as soon as I close my door just like they've done previously. Sentry Mode is off.


thank you! to verify, you're talking about the wire shown in this video?


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## crackers8199 (Jun 7, 2018)

diabox said:


> I have tied in additional outlets into the console wiring (behind the kick panel) and since the update I did last night the power is always on and does not time out. Validated by looking into the car without unlocking to see my radar detector still on 9 hours later.


which wire did you use to draw power? i want to make sure i'm using the right one, as the reply below yours seems to indicate there is indeed at least one power source that will shut off when the driver exits the car...


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## BallzOne (Jul 18, 2018)

crackers8199 said:


> thank you! to verify, you're talking about the wire shown in this video?


Oh, nope, not that one. This one:


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## crackers8199 (Jun 7, 2018)

BallzOne said:


> Oh, nope, not that one. This one:


awesome thanks...that works too. just as long as i know there's something back there that's still switched on driver exit.


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## diabox (Sep 3, 2018)

crackers8199 said:


> which wire did you use to draw power? i want to make sure i'm using the right one, as the reply below yours seems to indicate there is indeed at least one power source that will shut off when the driver exits the car...


I wired into the source wires that feed the 12v power socket under the armrest.

I just went out and checked again and it seems that something is different now with the console power. It still doesn't shut off when you close the doors like before, but it seems stay on and then turn off less than an hour later. I'll set up a timelapse to watch and see how long it actually takes to shut off that power source after exiting the vehicle. Maybe it waits until the car goes to sleep to turn it off now.


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## crackers8199 (Jun 7, 2018)

diabox said:


> I wired into the source wires that feed the 12v power socket under the armrest.
> 
> I just went out and checked again and it seems that something is different now with the console power. It still doesn't shut off when you close the doors like before, but it seems stay on and then turn off less than an hour later. I'll set up a timelapse to watch and see how long it actually takes to shut off that power source after exiting the vehicle. Maybe it waits until the car goes to sleep to turn it off now.


the problem is that if you leave something plugged in that draws power, it won't shut itself off. i verified this by leaving my xm unit on when i parked in my garage this afternoon...i went back out an hour later and it was still on.


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## diabox (Sep 3, 2018)

I just did a timelapse video watching my radar detector and from the time the door closes until the power is turned off to the center console, it's 45 minutes. So it would seem that the car is turning off the console power at 45 minutes now. Either by design, or because the car shuts it off to preserve the 12v battery, not sure which. I know that after the software upgrade last night the console power was on all night until the morning, so today the behavior is different. The only thing I did is two thumb reset from the steering wheel.


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## crackers8199 (Jun 7, 2018)

diabox said:


> I just did a timelapse video watching my radar detector and from the time the door closes until the power is turned off to the center console, it's 45 minutes. So it would seem that the car is turning off the console power at 45 minutes now. Either by design, or because the car shuts it off to preserve the 12v battery, not sure which. I know that after the software upgrade last night the console power was on all night until the morning, so today the behavior is different. The only thing I did is two thumb reset from the steering wheel.


this is either not the case universally, or there's something wrong with my car. i was at right around one hour earlier this afternoon from the time i closed the door in my garage to the time i went back out to check, and my xm unit was still powered on...although i can't recall if i've done a scroll wheel reset. i'll have to try that tomorrow i guess.


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## JWardell (May 9, 2016)

Software updates are all over the place right now and we know more are coming soon. But if this remains an issue, it's possible I could make a module that watches sensors and switches a pass-through 12v output off whenever you want, like 2 minutes after the driver is no longer in the seat for example.


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## N54tt (Aug 18, 2018)

crackers8199 said:


> the problem is that if you leave something plugged in that draws power, it won't shut itself off. i verified this by leaving my xm unit on when i parked in my garage this afternoon...i went back out an hour later and it was still on.


One thing that seems universal is that the behavior of when the center console 12v is powered down has changed. It no longer shuts down immediately when the doors are closed and appears to be maybe be tied to when the car goes to sleep?

My car might be the anomaly, but I've verified that it shuts down at some point, even with my V1 connected and powered on. Which leads me to believe there is something else going on for those that don't experience that. Either there's a bug with the car going to sleep or depending on the power draw of the connected device, it's preventing the car from sleeping?

Again this is my experience when sentry is off. I haven't turned it on yet.

BTW was your car charging when you went back out to check it? I don't think the car sleeps while it's charging. If you checked after an hr and it was on...but car still charging...that may be why.


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## TMK26 (May 2, 2018)

I tested this out last night after installing the update. I have my radar detector plugged into the 12V.

With Sentry Mode turned on: I checked 1.5 hours after leaving the car and the radar detector was turned on.

With Sentry Mode off: The radar dectector stayed on after closing the door (it used to turn off at this time). I checked after about 15 minutes and it was turned off.


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## diabox (Sep 3, 2018)

I checked again with a time lapse video and while my first one took 45 minutes to shut off, the second one took 33 minutes. I'm thinking that it's shutting off to save the 12v battery since I believe it draws from that rather than the high voltage battery. I'm going to keep timing the shut downs.

This is while the car is in my garage plugged into the wall. It's possible that it was charging the first time for a moment to top off that last 1% to 90% since I was in and out of the car testing this scenario.


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## oripaamoni (Jan 25, 2018)

I wired to the terminal behind the kick panel (not the cig lighter) and the behavior is the same as previous versions for me.


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## SimonMatthews (Apr 20, 2018)

It's not just the 12V. I found an hour of TeslaCam video of the wall in my garage. 

It's possible that it might shut off after 45 minutes, but I also noticed that the car responded to the App very quickly during the day while my car was parked and untouched. I think the car is not sleeping.


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## GBX (Mar 7, 2019)

Took delivery of my model 3 yesterday. 
Blue/white
LR Dual Motor
18in Aeros 
Absolutely loving it!!
My first question is about the 12v. I have a Valentine 1 plugged in (for now until I hardwire) and it doesn’t seem to ever switch off. I’ve walked away and locked the doors and waited a few minutes to come back to the car to find it was still on. I looked thru the window...didn’t get close enough for the car to “see” me. Is the 12v still switched? Is there an easy way to test this? How long should it take for the 12v to turn off? Thanks everyone!


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## Bokonon (Apr 13, 2017)

GBX said:


> Took delivery of my model 3 yesterday.
> Blue/white
> LR Dual Motor
> 18in Aeros
> ...


Congrats on the new car!

The way the center-console 12V power behaves after exiting the car seems to have changed with a recent round of firmware updates (2019.5.x and later). Some people are reporting it takes only a few minutes to shut off, others closer to 15, and still others 45. Basically, it seems like 12v power in the center console is staying powered until the car falls asleep, and the amount of time required for that to happen can be influenced by a variety of factors (e.g. whether the car is connected to wi-fi, whether third-party services like TeslaFi are pinging it for data, etc). Sentry Mode will also keep the car awake until you turn it off.

FWIW here's someone else with a Valentine 1 plugged into the center console, and they're reporting that it powers off when the car falls asleep, after 5-10 minutes. But since you're planning to hardwire, it's worth noting that others who have tapped 12V from other locations are reporting no change in behavior, i.e., 12v still switches off when the driver exits (example 1, example 2).


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## GBX (Mar 7, 2019)

Bokonon said:


> Congrats on the new car!
> 
> The way the center-console 12V power behaves after exiting the car seems to have changed with a recent round of firmware updates (2019.5.x and later). Some people are reporting it takes only a few minutes to shut off, others closer to 15, and still others 45. Basically, it seems like 12v power in the center console is staying powered until the car falls asleep, and the amount of time required for that to happen can be influenced by a variety of factors (e.g. whether the car is connected to wi-fi, whether third-party services like TeslaFi are pinging it for data, etc). Sentry Mode will also keep the car awake until you turn it off.
> 
> FWIW here's someone else with a Valentine 1 plugged into the center console, and they're reporting that it powers off when the car falls asleep, after 5-10 minutes. But since you're planning to hardwire, it's worth noting that others who have tapped 12V from other locations are reporting no change in behavior, i.e., 12v still switches off when the driver exits (example 1, example 2).


Thanks. Big help!! Will the V1 drain the battery over time if it stays on like on an ICE?


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## Bokonon (Apr 13, 2017)

GBX said:


> Thanks. Big help!! Will the V1 drain the battery over time if it stays on like on an ICE?


In theory, the 12V battery should get recharged from the high-voltage battery as needed, so even if the V1 were running continuously, and even if the car didn't cut 12V power to protect the battery (as some have reported happens), it shouldn't be able drain the 12V battery to a dangerous level. That said, there have still been reports of accessories causing problems with the 12V battery if the power is tapped at the wrong location.

You might find this thread helpful for more information:
https://teslaownersonline.com/threads/heres-how-to-safely-tap-12v-power-for-add-ons.8011/

EDIT TO ADD: If anyone jumps in to correct what I've written above, believe them over me.


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## JWardell (May 9, 2016)

My 12v has been on for over five hours and counting!

Why? Because it's charging!

Yes, the recent updates don't turn off 12v until the car goes to sleep. Often this is only 15 minutes. Sometimes it is up to 45.
It's very easy for me to tell because I can see my dash cams blinking away from inside the house.
But with a long drive today the car has a very long charge and this just made me go look...yep, dash cams have been recording all this while!

Not really a big deal as long as you don't have anything too power hungry powered on.


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## AO - Pete (Jul 26, 2017)

Note there's varying levels of sleep too, which also seem to change with different software versions. It seems Tesla has a very granular level of control over the circuits (as I've mentioned elsewhere, the footwell lights, even though they're present and wired in the standard/partial premium 3's, are disabled in software). I suspect this latest weirdness wasn't intended, but the cars low-voltage power distribution is a lot more fragile than other cars with good ol' fashioned fuses!

My wish would be for a UI that at least shows the state of the fuses.


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## All About Jake (Jul 22, 2018)

oripaamoni said:


> I wired to the terminal behind the kick panel (not the cig lighter) and the behavior is the same as previous versions for me.


I can confirm this. If you're using the "trailer" voltage source on VCLEFT, it will power down immediately on exiting the car. (Even with sentry mode on) In fact, I'd almost say its too aggressive in shutting down. If you open the passenger side door to put something in the car, power goes on. Close the door, power goes out. Walk around to get int the driver's side door.... power goes on. Results in the radar detector going on and off every time you open the door until you sit down in the seat.


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## Skione65 (Apr 4, 2016)

JWardell said:


> My 12v has been on for over five hours and counting!
> 
> Why? Because it's charging!
> 
> ...


@JWardell,

How'd you wire your dashcam? VCLeft to tap 12V, overhead map light wire tap above rear view, center console side panel wire tap or just via cigarette lighter plug in? That's my next project. Leaning toward the overhead map light tap.

Ski


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## PaulK (Oct 2, 2017)

All About Jake said:


> I can confirm this. If you're using the "trailer" voltage source on VCLEFT, it will power down immediately on exiting the car. (Even with sentry mode on) In fact, I'd almost say its too aggressive in shutting down. If you open the passenger side door to put something in the car, power goes on. Close the door, power goes out. Walk around to get int the driver's side door.... power goes on. Results in the radar detector going on and off every time you open the door until you sit down in the seat.


This is also how the center console 12v used to behave, and it drove me nuts. I think this new "on until sleep" is better for this reason, but a better solution would be to have it just stay on for a few minutes after leaving the car.

The center screen and climate control go on and off instantly like this, which also bugs me. I think there should be some short delay before they shut off, in case I'm about to open a different door or trunk.


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## japhule (Apr 14, 2018)

I can monitor the car's sleep pattern by looking at the wifi logs on my router. With both the car's wifi and the raspberry pi wifi (powered by the 12v), they both appear to disconnect from wifi at the same time.


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## All About Jake (Jul 22, 2018)

My preferred behavior for the VCLEFT "trailer" connection would be to power on upon doors-unlock and power off when the vehicle locks. I think this would make sense from the perspective of what the trailer connection is meant for too-- when you unlock the car the lights come on for identification. If you had a trailer connected, it would make sense that the trailer lights would come on as well.

Sadly I don't think a feature request like this would make it very far with [email protected] -- "can you please change the behavior of this thing that a normal customer doesn't know even exists, involves dissembling part of your car to reach, and people shouldn't be using anyway."


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## Gabzqc (Oct 15, 2016)

Apologies for bringing back an old thread. 
What's the latest on this 12v off after 45mins situation?
Could one, for example, leave a mini fridge plugged in and cooling all night?
Perhaps if we are charging at a camp site?
Thanks!


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## MelindaV (Apr 2, 2016)

Gabzqc said:


> Apologies for bringing back an old thread.
> What's the latest on this 12v off after 45mins situation?
> Could one, for example, leave a mini fridge plugged in and cooling all night?
> Perhaps if we are charging at a camp site?
> Thanks!


the 12v turns off when the car goes to sleep - so will depend on if you are doing anything to keep it awake (IE Sentry Mode).


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## Franklin L (Sep 23, 2017)

So if Sentry Mode is on, will the 12v sources (both on the left, under the dash and via the cigarette lighter plug) always be on? Is there any way to keep Sentry on, but turn off the 12v power when the car is exited?

Thanks!


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## SimonMatthews (Apr 20, 2018)

Franklin L said:


> So if Sentry Mode is on, will the 12v sources (both on the left, under the dash and via the cigarette lighter plug) always be on? Is there any way to keep Sentry on, but turn off the 12v power when the car is exited?
> 
> Thanks!


I wish this were an option. Configure whether or not 12V is still on when the car is locked.


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## JWardell (May 9, 2016)

I think with Party Mode on the way soon (discovered in software), this will keep the music and 12v on indefinitely if you want.


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