Tesla has drastically improved the connectivity portion of their app in the last year or two. Prior to these updates, if you want to start the vehicle’s climate system, you needed to open the Tesla app, wait for the vehicle to wake up, then press the HVAC icon.
Tesla then introduced “delayed” commands, which allows you to press the HVAC icon upon opening the app, and Tesla would then automatically send the command to the vehicle once it’s awake.
More recently, Tesla made it so the vehicle sends its most recent data to Tesla before falling sleeping, meaning that when someone opens the Tesla app, they’re looking at the most recent vehicle data, even if the vehicle is sleeping.
Now Tesla is introducing offline commands for newer models, letting users send a command to their vehicle over Bluetooth instead of relying on an Internet connection. The process is transparent to users, if the user is in close proximity to their vehicle, the app will send the command over Bluetooth, otherwise it will send it over WiFi or cellular.
Offline commands are faster and more reliable. When you press the button to open the frunk, it’ll now do this instantly, instead of waking up the vehicle first. However, it looks like not every model will be supported.
Legacy Model S / Model X
Legacy Model S and Model X vehicles - so any S/X produced before the 2021 refresh, won’t be able to use offline commands, at least at this time. A user reached out to Tesla Service to find out why their offline commands weren’t working, and a tier two Tesla service rep confirmed that this feature isn’t supported on legacy vehicles.
Legacy vehicles will continue to require internet connectivity for commands, except for unlocking the vehicle.
Legacy Model S and X unfortunately don’t receive the majority of features in recent updates due to various reasons. One of them is likely due to the smaller userbase and another is likely due to the vertical screen orientation that differs from the newer models.
However, Tesla has continued to support them with some features. It was confirmed that the legacy Models S and X will get Actually Smart Summon and potentially get access to Live Sentry Mode Cameras - a limitation that was previously related to the vehicles being unable to upload data live to Tesla’s servers.
This limitation for offline commands is likely due to a technical limitation preventing Tesla from implementing it on these vehicles, rather than any lack of trying.
Requirements
To use offline commands with the Tesla app, you’ll need to run version 4.38 or higher of the Tesla app. The most recent version is 4.38.5, which is available for Android and iPhones. Your vehicle will also need to be running update 2024.38 or higher, which is currently only available to about a third of the Tesla fleet.
Update 2024.38.6
Percent of Fleet
Installs on Jan 28
You’ll also need to have one of the supported models, which appear to be the Model 3/Y, 2021+ Model S/X and the Cybertruck.
Future Support?
Tesla has committed to supporting legacy vehicles where possible, with other improvements for safety like improved Forward Collision Warning and Automatic Emergency Braking for MCU1 vehicles and FSD 12.3.6. It is possible that eventually, these vehicles may receive support for offline commands, but it won’t be likely, given Tesla’s priorities to get features working on the newer vehicles.
