# cabin overheat protection



## allev4me

New owner question. I find that my cabin overheat protection setting is greyed out and can not be turned on. I have read the owners manual and it only specifies not being able to be used if your charge is below 20%, which mine is not. Any suggestions?


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## FRC

You may have to be in park to access.


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## FRC

Also, and I don't think I'm alone here, I never use cabin overheat protection because it is notorious for battery drain. I'm in the habit of using Dog Mode when cabin protection is needed.


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## Klaus-rf

I did not immediately disable the factory 105F setting for Cabin Overheat protection when I first got the car. After one day in So Arizona's end of September heat and the 50 mile loss, I have disabled it completely. Added ceramic tint on all windows (although not very dark) and it's fine for me. 

Note that I usually don't even turn on the AC until it's at least 100F outside. Just open the windows. Except when I'm carrying out-of-towners with limited heat tolerance.


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## allev4me

Definitely wouldn't use the AC option, only the fan. Really trying to figure out why I don't even have the option to turn it on???


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## AutopilotFan

allev4me said:


> Definitely wouldn't use the AC option, only the fan. Really trying to figure out why I don't even have the option to turn it on???


Have you checked while your car is in Park? There are a bunch of settings that you can't change if your car is in Drive or Reverse.

I use Cabin Overheat protection (set to the default of 105 F), but I live in the Northeast where it only kicks in during the summer anyway.


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## SR22pilot

I love overheat protection. Most days I have plenty of excess range relative to my needs. I like the idea that the interior doesn’t get too hot. Leaving dog mode on all day would be a greater drain on the battery and keep the car cooler than needed. If you are worried about battery drain you can set it so it only uses the fan and not the AC.


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## FRC

SR22pilot said:


> I love overheat protection. Most days I have plenty of excess range relative to my needs. I like the idea that the interior doesn't get too hot. Leaving dog mode on all day would be a greater drain on the battery and keep the car cooler than needed. If you are worried about battery drain you can set it so it only uses the fan and not the AC.


Interesting...I live right down the road from you @SR22pilot, and I don't use cabin overheat at all...never have. The car cools so quickly that I've never considered it necessary to waste ANY range on this feature. I wonder if the difference is that my car is rarely parked outside my garage. My wife doesn't use overheat protection, but she does use Dog Mode when she's shopping in hot weather.


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## Mr.K

allev4me said:


> Definitely wouldn't use the AC option, only the fan. Really trying to figure out why I don't even have the option to turn it on???


I need to turn off the "tilt/intrusion" alarm to be able to enable it.


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## SR22pilot

FRC said:


> Interesting...I live right down the road from you @SR22pilot, and I don't use cabin overheat at all...never have. The car cools so quickly that I've never considered it necessary to waste ANY range on this feature. I wonder if the difference is that my car is rarely parked outside my garage. My wife doesn't use overheat protection, but she does use Dog Mode when she's shopping in hot weather.


My car stays out in the sun while I am at work. Keeping the heat down protects the interior and anything I have in the car. My electricity is pretty cheap so I figure it's worth a few pennies a day during summer.


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## msjulie

Is there no benefit to keeping the display from roasting?


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## garsh

msjulie said:


> Is there no benefit to keeping the display from roasting?


I haven't heard any reports of a screen going bad from excess heat. It's probably designed for such heat.


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## msjulie

garsh said:


> I haven't heard any reports of a screen going bad from excess heat. It's probably designed for such heat.


Here's what someone in the Tesla-host forum said. It's not gospel of course but I have to wonder. This refers to an S or X I I think and I hope they have learned a lot about failing ic components over time.

Just FYI 

*MDMatt* | May 22, 2019
There is no official word from Tesla about why this feature is here except to make it more pleasant, or something like that. BUT, many of the earlier cars, the screen in them would stop working, show vertical lines across the entire screen, or something else making the entire screen unusable. One of the factors that has been attributed to this is a high temperature in the car. Tesla went with "non-automotive grade" screens, so their tolerance for heat is not as good and can cause display issues. This feature in question is rumored to help reduce the heat in the car to help control this issue. But, this is only rumors and speculation based on some known information about issues with screens.
Hope that helps.


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## Klaus-rf

I don't see heat as being a major issue unless the screen quality is poor to start with. Don't all cars now come with some form of display screen? And maybe 1% of them have cabin cooling without occupants??


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## JasonF

Car heat doesn't harm iphones or ipads, and the Model 3 screen is very similar to those. Also, if heat did harm the screen directly, the cabin cooling would certainly not be optional.

It's basically a quality of life feature, with a side benefit of preventing heat over a long term from damaging the interior. Nothing fancy like screen failures, just your standard leather and plastic cracking when it gets old because of too much heat exposure.


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## iChris93

JasonF said:


> Car heat doesn't harm iphones or ipads


iPhones and iPads should not be left in cars exceeding 113ºF or 45ºC
https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT201678


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## JasonF

iChris93 said:


> iPhones and iPads should not be left in cars exceeding 113ºF or 45ºC
> https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT201678


They shouldn't, but they can handle it. People go to theme parks and restaurants and leave their mobile devices in the car, but I haven't seen tons of reports of them being killed by it.


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## iChris93

JasonF said:


> They shouldn't, but they can handle it. People go to theme parks and restaurants and leave their mobile devices in the car, but I haven't seen tons of reports of them being killed by it.


Yup, it's mostly bad for battery longevity.


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## Klaus-rf

iChris93 said:


> iPhones and iPads should not be left in cars exceeding 113ºF or 45ºC


 We have 115 F here outside during out not-cold season. It gets MUCH hotter in the car. I've recorded 155-160 in the dash area (with a sun shade in place).


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## msjulie

My phone has been known to give me overheat warnings way back when I could take it on the beach and it was in the sun - fwiw

I guess I view keeping the cabin less than broiling can't hurt the hardware or other bits in there but truth be told I also am pretty good about keeping a sunshared in the window


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## GDN

I use the COHP - and do it just because we all know extreme heat sure doesn't "Help" electronics. I'll leave the argument if it hurts them to others, but I'm pretty sure the hotter a battery or screen is and the length of time it stays there is not good for it. Almost every piece of electronics gear you buy has operating temperatures listed. 

As others have noted - even in April on a sunny day the interior of the car can easily hit 120 and up to 140 to 150 or more in the hottest parts of the summer. I've wondered about the hit on the battery for cooling, but figure I'd rather give the electronics a bit of protection if I can.

I'm quite certain Tesla thinks they'll be OK at that heat level or they would force the heat protection on. We also know almost every other car on the road has a couple of computers in it and at lest one screen of some sort and they continue to start and run just fine. Does it shorten the life, maybe, but we don't study it that close. So it almost becomes a matter of preference.

I use it and think it likely gives my equipment a longer life. YMMV.


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## JasonF

Cabin Overheat Protection is one of those things that I leave on and use because it's included with the car, and it provides some benefit at no real cost (unless you have barely enough battery power to get where you need to go after you're done parking). If it would be an extra-cost option, though, I probably wouldn't buy it.


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## SR22pilot

JasonF said:


> They shouldn't, but they can handle it. People go to theme parks and restaurants and leave their mobile devices in the car, but I haven't seen tons of reports of them being killed by it.


I've had my iPad momentarily stop working after being left in direct sunlight. It cooled down and was fine.


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## JWardell

Every part in a car is designed and qualified for 125C/250F. Cabin overheat protection is not at all needed for what comes with your car.
But it IS nice not just for the humans who will get in it, but all the electronics you add to your car. Phones, ipads, cheap dashcams, USB devices...they can easily be harmed by bright sun greenhouse temperatures in a car, and the most sensitive part is their batteries.
Setting overheat protection to AC will drain a lot of range, but leaving it set to fan does not. It's one of my favorite Tesla features and almost forgotten now. I wouldn't dare leave a USB battery in any other car.


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## denouche

I also like this feature. So the USB key I put in the car can pass the summer 🔆🔆🔆
I wish this feature to be available in the Tesla application. It's very annoying to go in the car every day to enable it for 12 hours.


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## GDN

denouche said:


> I also like this feature. So the USB key I put in the car can pass the summer 🔆🔆🔆
> I wish this feature to be available in the Tesla application. It's very annoying to go in the car every day to enable it for 12 hours.


If you enable Overheat protection, it stays on and works each day for you. It does not have to be re-enabled every day.


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## denouche

GDN said:


> If you enable Overheat protection, it stays on and works each day for you. It does not have to be re-enabled every day.


Oh really?
But the manual says it is active only for the 12 hours after driving the vehicle.


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## iChris93

denouche said:


> Oh really?
> But the manual says it is active only for the 12 hours after driving the vehicle.


Yes, it'll turn off if you have not driven the car for 12 hours. Each drive resets that clock and if 12 hours has elapsed a drive will turn it back on too.


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## denouche

iChris93 said:


> Yes, it'll turn off if you have not driven the car for 12 hours. Each drive resets that clock and if 12 hours has elapsed a drive will turn it back on too.


Thank you for this information!


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## psppbb

Got my M3 in March and initially I couldn't get the COHP to work either, was always greyed out. Had original 2019 software version it came with, updated to 2020.3 I think and then it started working, is set now. Have 2020.5 now.


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## orekart

iChris93 said:


> Yes, it'll turn off if you have not driven the car for 12 hours. Each drive resets that clock and if 12 hours has elapsed a drive will turn it back on too.


This was (I suspect) a regression in 2019.16.3.2

The email last summer I have into customer service N.A.:



> Sent: Jun 4, 2019 2:09 PM
> To: [email protected]
> Subject: Software regression 2019.16.3.2 cabin overheat protection
> My Model 3 lives outdoors and I leave it plugged into solar charging. I went to use my car today and the cabin temperature was 127degF. I have cabin overheat protection on so how is this possible?
> Looking at the feature I see overheat protection is now limited to 12 hours even when connected to charging. This is unacceptable for me.
> ref:_00D506dxX._5003asjuTL:ref


and the reply:



> Sent: Jun 6, 2019, 5:23 PM
> From: Customer Support Tesla <[email protected]>
> Subject: RE: Software regression 2019.16.3.2 cabin overheat protection [ ref:_00D506dxX._5003asjuTL:ref ]
> Hello,
> Thank you for contacting Tesla! Please allow me to apologize for the delay in our response to this email.
> We appreciate your feedback and will pass it to the appropriate team. This doesn't necessarily mean that this single request will be acted upon. We prioritize all feature requests, and based on the number of similar requests, will consider if this would enhance the overall customer experience.
> Please visit our Support Page, which covers frequently asked questions about Tesla and your vehicle. If you have any further questions or concerns, you can reach Customer Support 24/7 at [email protected] or by phone at 1-877-79-TESLA (83752).


My Model 3 driver seat fake leather material appears to have decomposed (melted) due to this as of yesterday 7th-May-2019:










Sticky gel consistency with a bubbled surface. Noticed my T-shirt sticking to the back of the seat when I went to use the car and then the thick goo in that spot on that seat. Not sure then what it might be so tried wiping off residue with water but decomposed material was wiping away and the surface remained bubbled and sticky. I suspect Cabin Overheat Protection "12 hour timeout" regression last year around version 2019.16.3.2 is a contributing factor to heat build up and decomposition of the material.

I don't use any weird cleaners. I've never noticed this kind of decomposition on fake leather of other parts of the car before yesterday. Passenger seat appears to be unaffected.

Car has 54,600mi ODO in 18 months from new so... it's kind of outrageous that the drivers seat didn't last 2 years.


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## JWardell

orekart said:


> This was (I suspect) a regression in 2019.16.3.2
> 
> The email last summer I have into customer service N.A.:
> 
> and the reply:
> 
> My Model 3 driver seat fake leather material appears to have decomposed (melted) due to this as of yesterday 7th-May-2019:
> 
> View attachment 33894
> 
> 
> Sticky gel consistency with a bubbled surface. Noticed my T-shirt sticking to the back of the seat when I went to use the car and then the thick goo in that spot on that seat. Not sure then what it might be so tried wiping off residue with water but decomposed material was wiping away and the surface remained bubbled and sticky. I suspect Cabin Overheat Protection "12 hour timeout" regression last year around version 2019.16.3.2 is a contributing factor to heat build up and decomposition of the material.
> 
> I don't use any weird cleaners. I've never noticed this kind of decomposition on fake leather of other parts of the car before yesterday. Passenger seat appears to be unaffected.
> 
> Car has 54,600mi ODO in 18 months from new so... it's kind of outrageous that the drivers seat didn't last 2 years.


That has to be a major defect, you should schedule Tesla service appointment. Cabin overheat protection certainly isn't needed for any materials inside the car, no normal part of the car should have any issue baking in the sun all day with it off.


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## orekart

JWardell said:


> That has to be a major defect, you should schedule Tesla service appointment. Cabin overheat protection certainly isn't needed for any materials inside the car, no normal part of the car should have any issue baking in the sun all day with it off.


Service quoted me $1950+ in parts for a replacement seat since warranty is expired (54k miles ODO). Car is in the queue for service now. I've stressed that the seat didn't even make it to two years, that I would put a cover over it if they don't expect the material to last, and that I contacted customer service a year ago when the software update nerfed cabin overheat protection to 12 hours only; Nothing in the manual says don't park outside or don't drive it a lot of miles?  I suspect some combination of sweat and extreme heat contributed to the fake leather decomposing. Waiting now to hear back from the service center.


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## iChris93

orekart said:


> I suspect some combination of sweat and extreme heat contributed to the fake leather deconposing.


Was the seat possibly exposed to DEET or other insect repellent? That stuff has been shown to melt seats 
*


https://www.reddit.com/r/teslamotors/comments/9c2501
*


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## orekart

iChris93 said:


> Was the seat possibly exposed to DEET or other insect repellent


The only thing different was the car being parked outside stationary for two weeks and some sustained hot sunny weather. Since COVID-19 shelter in place I don't drive much. Normally I would drive every day. I've noticed cabin temperatures exceeding 140degF occasionally last summer since overheat protection times out. I haven't thought much about it since.

Good point about solvents and vinyl. The seat has some dirt and sweat but I never had any solvent but water on it during winter snow and rain.

Maybe just got unlucky and the sun lined up just so, lensing and melting the seat? But why only the driver's seat that has got some seat time on it.


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## garsh

orekart said:


> Maybe just got unlucky and the sun lined up just so, lensing and melting the seat? But why only the driver's seat that has got some seat time on it.


I think it's more likely that you sat in the seat when you unknowingly had some deet on the back of your shirt.


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## orekart

garsh said:


> I think it's more likely that you sat in the seat when you unknowingly had some deet on the back of your shirt.


I don't use bug spray, or any other spray for that matter. The seat was fine before baking in the sun for some weeks. Anyways the Tesla Service Center attempted to clean the seat and made a determination that no defect was found so it must be due to outside influence. No warranty repair is possible as the warranty is past. They suggest using a sun visor but also acknowlege there's no information from Tesla to say the car should not be parked outdoors (i.e. hot sunny weather).

Cabin overheat protection is nerfed and there is no workaround other than manually controlling climate from the phone app. I'm supposed to contact customer support via the website as the service center has no access to engineering.

If I have the seat replaced that repair is warrantied for 1 year. However I still don't have enough confidence that it would last long enough to be worth spending $2k potentially every year just for some upholstery materials issue. Looking for an upholstery shop now to see about redoing the seat in a durable material that won't randomly fall apart. For $2k wonder if I can get some real leather.

Never had this issue on a new car before from Subaru / Ford / Chevrolet. Wouldn't mind if I could get at least 4 years out of a "premium" model driver's seat. This is disappointing.


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## FRC

orekart said:


> I don't use bug spray, or any other spray for that matter. The seat was fine before baking in the sun for some weeks. Anyways the Tesla Service Center attempted to clean the seat and made a determination that no defect was found so it must be due to outside influence. No warranty repair is possible as the warranty is past. They suggest using a sun visor but also acknowlege there's no information from Tesla to say the car should not be parked outdoors (i.e. hot sunny weather).
> 
> Cabin overheat protection is nerfed and there is no workaround other than manually controlling climate from the phone app. I'm supposed to contact customer support via the website as the service center has no access to engineering.
> 
> If I have the seat replaced that repair is warrantied for 1 year. However I still don't have enough confidence that it would last long enough to be worth spending $2k potentially every year just for some upholstery materials issue. Looking for an upholstery shop now to see about redoing the seat in a durable material that won't randomly fall apart. For $2k wonder if I can get some real leather.
> 
> Never had this issue on a new car before from Subaru / Ford / Chevrolet. Wouldn't mind if I could get at least 4 years out of a "premium" model driver's seat. This is disappointing.


Certainly something odd going on in your case. Never mind what Tesla claims, we've heard no reports of this issue in the forums as far as I know. While this being an isolated case is probably bad news for you, hopefully that's good news for the rest of the fleet. I think you can get a premium upholstery on the front seats for 2K, good luck!


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## JWardell

orekart said:


> I don't use bug spray, or any other spray for that matter. The seat was fine before baking in the sun for some weeks. Anyways the Tesla Service Center attempted to clean the seat and made a determination that no defect was found so it must be due to outside influence. No warranty repair is possible as the warranty is past. They suggest using a sun visor but also acknowlege there's no information from Tesla to say the car should not be parked outdoors (i.e. hot sunny weather).
> 
> Cabin overheat protection is nerfed and there is no workaround other than manually controlling climate from the phone app. I'm supposed to contact customer support via the website as the service center has no access to engineering.
> 
> If I have the seat replaced that repair is warrantied for 1 year. However I still don't have enough confidence that it would last long enough to be worth spending $2k potentially every year just for some upholstery materials issue. Looking for an upholstery shop now to see about redoing the seat in a durable material that won't randomly fall apart. For $2k wonder if I can get some real leather.
> 
> Never had this issue on a new car before from Subaru / Ford / Chevrolet. Wouldn't mind if I could get at least 4 years out of a "premium" model driver's seat. This is disappointing.


Is that the only spot this happened? Was there any sign of it before you left the car for two weeks? How hot were outside temperatures in that time?
I said right away this looks to be a defect because I have never seen it before...and we have thousands and thousands of tesla drivers in all the forums and reddit that I read daily for years. The seats are vinyl just like is used by many other car brands. It will not melt with any interior car temperature, regardless of overheat protection. This would require a heat gun or chemicals, or as I am thinking some type of bad mixing at the vinyl plant.


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## FRC

JWardell said:


> or as I am thinking some type of bad mixing at the vinyl plant.


If this was the culprit, logically there would be a batch of cars with the same issue. You, and apparently, Tesla say that heat couldn't do it(and I agree...heat wouldn't damage the driver seat only). OP states that no chemicals or solvents were ever used. So, what else could be the culprit? Nothing that I can think of...

Edit: Looking back at the picture of damage; If you forced me to bet, some chemical or solvent adhered to OP's shirt(apparently without his knowledge) and was left on the seat causing the damage. Then again, maybe he's just the first, and we'll all be screaming bloody murder in a few months.


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## JWardell

Doesn't have to be a batch, depending how the material is made, could be a one-off that was missed in inspection or something.
But I do agree, considering how it disappears with the seam indent, its as if whatever caused it was pressed up against the seat. Some solvent worn by someone...and it doesn't have to be the owner of course.
Or maybe someone stood on the roof with a giant magnifying glass...


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## aste154

Do any of you Tesla owners experience foul smell from A/C when you leave the overheat protection to A/C on? My M3 is only 6 months old, only 4k miles on it and I'm noticing this vinegary smell when I enter the car and the A/C kick in. Although it's not all the time, it's intermittent. Before I take it in to SC I want to try about a week with the fan only mode. Oh and not to forget to mention, I park the car outside under the sun on the weekdays for about 9 hours each day and it's constantly plugged in, so I don't worry much about the range loss. It's the smell that irritates me.
Thanks


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## orekart

aste154 said:


> Do any of you Tesla owners experience foul smell from A/C when you leave the overheat protection to A/C on? My M3 is only 6 months old, only 4k miles on it and I'm noticing this vinegary smell when I enter the car and the A/C kick in. Although it's not all the time, it's intermittent. Before I take it in to SC I want to try about a week with the fan only mode. Oh and not to forget to mention, I park the car outside under the sun on the weekdays for about 9 hours each day and it's constantly plugged in, so I don't worry much about the range loss. It's the smell that irritates me.
> Thanks


That is expected to happen, it is some organic growth in the A/C system. There are some tricks the car uses (firmware update) the car uses to discourage growth but especially on cars older than yours it was even quicker to become a problem. Tesla Service can perform a standard HVAC cleaning service (it is effective - the unpleasant smell is eliminated) but since they added countermeasures in the firmware update it's not a warranty thing just some periodic maintenance.


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## aste154

Tesla recommended replacing the filters, so I did it myself this last weekend. Only cost me about $50 and took me about 40 minutes as it was my first time (it'll be much quicker next time). Also, I discovered something today and i want to share it. Sometimes in June when I started noticing the smell I changed the COP from A/C to fan only mode. Today its about 100 degrees here in Central California and the car is parked outside. I have ceramic tint on all windows accept the windshield but I do put on that windshield sun shade. So I check the temperature through my tesla app and it states 123 degrees inside. I went to my car and turned the COP off, then I checked again about an hour later it shows 127. It's not a huge difference. 
So in conclusion, if you worry to much about you interior (which I doubt it will get damaged) and don't mind replacing cabin air filter every 6 to 8 months, then go with the A/C mode. If not, then don't even bother switching to fan only mode, just turn it off.


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