# Does WIFI stay on?



## theloneranger08 (Sep 29, 2017)

I live in an apartment complex and don't have access to WIFI so I bought the Nighthawk LTE Mobile router so I can download map updates (which will only download over WIFI) so I can get software updates. If I leave it plugged in (it's hooked up to my dashcam battery and it also has a battery itself), will my Model 3 stay connected to it?


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## android04 (Sep 20, 2017)

The Model 3 will disconnect from Wifi once it goes to sleep. I just checked on my Wifi network (I have Google Wifi and can see what devices are connected and their usage), and Model 3 is not listed because it's been parked for hours. That means that it is in sleep mode and disconnected from Wifi.


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## garsh (Apr 4, 2016)

theloneranger08 said:


> If I leave it plugged in (it's hooked up to my dashcam battery and it also has a battery itself), will my Model 3 stay connected to it?


It should, yes.


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## theloneranger08 (Sep 29, 2017)

android04 said:


> The Model 3 will disconnect from Wifi once it goes to sleep. I just checked on my Wifi network (I have Google Wifi and can see what devices are connected and their usage), and Model 3 is not listed because it's been parked for hours. That means that it is in sleep mode and disconnected from Wifi.


Looks like you're right. What's frustrating is it won't automatically reconnect upon waking up.


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## panpanbebe (Feb 14, 2019)

How to keep Wifi stay on even car go to sleep in order to receive the software update?


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## garsh (Apr 4, 2016)

theloneranger08 said:


> Looks like you're right. What's frustrating is it won't automatically reconnect upon waking up.


Mine does.
How are you determining that it doesn't reconnect in your case?


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## theloneranger08 (Sep 29, 2017)

garsh said:


> Mine does.
> How are you determining that it doesn't reconnect in your case?


If I connect my car to my hot spot, leave it parked for a few hours and come back, the car isn't connected to the hot spot anymore even though the hot spot is still on. Upon getting in the car which wakes it up, it doesn't automatically reconnect to the hot spot, I have to manually tap the LTE icon and connect to it.


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## garsh (Apr 4, 2016)

theloneranger08 said:


> If I connect my car to my hot spot, leave it parked for a few hours and come back, the car isn't connected to the hot spot anymore even though the hot spot is still on.


If the car went to sleep during that time, then I believe this is expected behavior.



> Upon getting in the car which wakes it up, it doesn't automatically reconnect to the hot spot, I have to manually tap the LTE icon and connect to it.


As long as you didn't put the car into drive or reverse, then this is NOT expected. It should re-connect to any known wifi network when you get back into the car.

I wonder why it isn't doing that in your case.


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## theloneranger08 (Sep 29, 2017)

garsh said:


> If the car went to sleep during that time, then I believe this is expected behavior.
> 
> As long as you didn't put the car into drive or reverse, then this is NOT expected. It should re-connect to any known wifi network when you get back into the car.
> 
> I wonder why it isn't doing that in your case.


Oh interesting. No, I didn't actually put the car in drive/reverse. I'll test to see if it connects when I do that. Would the car use a lot of data if I leave it connected when driving around? I don't use slacker and just stream using bluetooth on my phone. I mean, when is the most likely time for the car to download these map updates? I'd imagine it would be when the car is parked.


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## theloneranger08 (Sep 29, 2017)

garsh said:


> If the car went to sleep during that time, then I believe this is expected behavior.
> 
> As long as you didn't put the car into drive or reverse, then this is NOT expected. It should re-connect to any known wifi network when you get back into the car.
> 
> I wonder why it isn't doing that in your case.


Oops definitely read your post wrong. Well I connected it, left for a while and came back, started driving and it didn't automatically connect then either so in both scenarios (driving and not driving but just getting in), it didn't automatically connect.


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## android04 (Sep 20, 2017)

theloneranger08 said:


> Oops definitely read your post wrong. Well I connected it, left for a while and came back, started driving and it didn't automatically connect then either so in both scenarios (driving and not driving but just getting in), it didn't automatically connect.


As long as your hotspot maintains power all the time, your Model 3 should connect to the Wifi as soon as you wake it up by opening the door. As soon as you put the car in Drive or Reverse it will disconnect from Wifi and revert to LTE.


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## theloneranger08 (Sep 29, 2017)

android04 said:


> As long as your hotspot maintains power all the time, your Model 3 should connect to the Wifi as soon as you wake it up by opening the door. As soon as you put the car in Drive or Reverse it will disconnect from Wifi and revert to LTE.


Maybe it should, but it does not. Most of time, I find my car's WIFI is completely turned off, not just disconnected even when I didn't turn it off.


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## alexf (Dec 16, 2018)

Does teslafi show offline if you use WiFi? Every time I connect my car to my full bar WiFi network it eventually goes offline in teslafi and. Won’t even report charging. Very, very annoying.


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## Bernard (Aug 3, 2017)

theloneranger08 said:


> I live in an apartment complex and don't have access to WIFI so I bought the Nighthawk LTE Mobile router so I can download map updates (which will only download over WIFI) so I can get software updates. If I leave it plugged in (it's hooked up to my dashcam battery and it also has a battery itself), will my Model 3 stay connected to it?


I think there are two confusions here.
You car connected on wifi to the Nighthawk is still connected to the internet through the LTE connection. It's possible that the Nighthawk has a better receiving antenna than the car (I have not checked the specs of the Nighthawk and have not seen a specific sensitivity test of Model 3's antenna), in which case you do gain some download speed, but otherwise it's no different from letting the car connect through LTE, not using wifi at all.
The other confusion is the notion that you can only download maps using Wifi -- that's not true, you will be able to download them strictly on LTE, but you will get lower priority if you only have an LTE connection and of course it could take a lot longer.


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## Bernard (Aug 3, 2017)

theloneranger08 said:


> If I connect my car to my hot spot, leave it parked for a few hours and come back, the car isn't connected to the hot spot anymore even though the hot spot is still on. Upon getting in the car which wakes it up, it doesn't automatically reconnect to the hot spot, I have to manually tap the LTE icon and connect to it.


What firmware are you running? My wifi worked perfectly from the first firmware that enabled it (some 6mos ago) until I got 2018.50.6 (the one I am still on) and wifi stopped working properly as soon as it was installed. (Not a question of waking or not waking, though: it detects the router and connects, but once connected cannot communicate in either direction.)
Software problem, it would seem, which should be fixed once a new firmware gets installed -- but I am still on 2018.50.6 (along with about 10% of Model 3 owners, I think).


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## alexf (Dec 16, 2018)

2019.5.15 fixed all my problems.


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## JoeP (Sep 7, 2018)

i have this problem in my car. Every now and then i notice wifi has dropped off. (I normally notice when i get in the car and it doesnt display my calendar in the morning). Looking at wifi it just says "wifi is off". Turning it on connects instantly. It seems very intermittent, it'll stay on for weeks, then just turn itself off. I thought it had to do with updates turning it off, but it doesnt seem to always happen then either.


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