Fans of furry friends, take heed! If you travel by Tesla with a paw pal, you might not want to leave them in the car, even if for a moment. Following a software update, the fan-favorite Dog Mode feature might fail.
InsideEVs reports that Tesla’s recent 2024.20.1 firmware update, which includes “hot weather improvements,” has done the opposite for some owners. In a Reddit post, a Model Y owner set dog mode to 66 degrees Fahrenheit. The outside temperature that day was 86 degrees. However, after 10 minutes, a “Problem with Dog Mode” notification popped up.
The vehicle interior had reached 84 degrees and was rising when the dog was retrieved. The Model Y owner added that on the drive to the office, the overall HVAC system wasn’t functioning properly either. A support ticket was submitted, and Tesla responded that the Dog Mode and other HVAC issues were a “known characteristic of [the] current firmware.”
Released in 2019, Dog Mode is a climate control feature that will maintain a safe vehicle interior temperature for pets left in the vehicle. To prevent passersby from playing hero, a message on the vehicle’s large center screen will display a notification that the animal is safe. Hopefully, that saved more than a few broken windows. Dog Mode isn’t intended to be an all-day babysitter, though; if the vehicle’s battery drops to less than 20 percent while the feature is activated, owners will receive an alert.
The faulty firmware doesn’t appear to be a widespread issue, however, which makes it even more unnerving in some ways. Still, there are more than enough owners experiencing the same issue either with Dog Mode, Camp Mode, or Keep Climate On. The similarity between these HVAC features is they maintain a set cabin temperature while the vehicle is parked. So, it’s the climate-control-while-idle functions that seem to be buggy. Summer is officially here so until Tesla pushes out yet another update for the update, be extra vigilant when traveling with your pets.