Eliminating Phantom Drain

When your Tesla is idle — that is, not driving or charging — you may experience what's known as  phantom drain, where the battery slowly drains a few percentage points over the course of several hours.

Phantom drain happens when the vehicle stays awake and doesn't sleep to conserve battery.

The list below includes all known causes of phantom drain on Tesla vehicles and how to fix it.

To eliminate phantom drain, simply go down the list.

Disable Sentry Mode

Sentry Mode will keep the vehicle awake to monitor the surroundings.

Disable Cabin Overheat Protection

Cabin Overheat Protection will keep the vehicle awake to monitor and cool the interior.

Disable Schedules

There is a Tesla firmware bug that may keep the vehicle awake when schedules are enabled.

You can disable schedules in the vehicle, Tesla app or Tessie app under Schedule.

Disable Data Sharing

When data sharing is enabled, the vehicle will wake and upload data to Tesla in the background.

You can disable it in the vehicle under Software > Data Sharing.

Install pending software updates

The vehicle may stay wake when an update is pending but hasn't been fully downloaded and installed.

Move devices outside of Bluetooth range

When a Bluetooth connection occurs, the vehicle may wake up automatically.

Update the Tesla app on your devices

Certain Tesla app versions have a bug which will continuously wake the vehicle.

Move key fobs away from the vehicle

When a key fob is detected near the vehicle (including vertically, in a room above or below the vehicle), the vehicle may wake up automatically.

Improve the WiFi signal

Weak WiFi connections can cause the vehicle to stay awake due to constant disconnections and reconnections. You can turn off WiFi in the vehicle or move your WiFi router to improve the signal.

Disable Summon Standby

Summon Standby will keep the vehicle awake. You can disable it in the vehicle under Autopilot.

Restart the vehicle

There is a known computer issue that can prevent the vehicle from sleeping. You can restart the vehicle by pressing both scroll wheel buttons on the steering wheel until the screen turns off.

Power cycle the vehicle

Underlying firmware issues can prevent the vehicle from sleeping. You can perform a power cycle to eliminate them.

Contact Tesla

Tesla can remotely diagnose the issue and determine if there's a hardware or firmware issue.

Replace the 12V battery

Many Tesla owners have had success in reducing excessive wakes by getting the 12V battery serviced or replaced.