During extreme cold weather conditions, Tesla owners may face the issue of their charging cable freezing and getting stuck to the vehicle, especially while Supercharging. This inconvenience can lead to idle fees or simply be a hassle to deal with. To address this issue, Tesla has introduced a new feature that allows users to manually activate the charge port heater.
Previously, Tesla owners could use the “Rear Defrost” button in the Climate Controls to defrost the charge port, but many were unaware that this also activated the charge port heater. Additionally, using features like preconditioning the vehicle or the “Defrost Car” button in the app would also turn on the charge port heater, although these methods would also heat the cabin unnecessarily.
Now, Tesla owners can manually control the charge port heater by accessing the option in the Controls > Service menu. This feature is currently only available on select vehicles with the latest Tesla software update, such as the 2024 Model X and some 2023 Model Ys.
Which Vehicles are Equipped with Charge Port Heaters?
Since late 2020, all Tesla vehicles have been equipped with a charge port heater, with some older models potentially lacking this feature. Owners can check if their vehicle has the charge port heater option by navigating to Controls > Service or checking the release notes for the mention of the new feature.
This new addition is particularly beneficial for those living in colder climates, as it helps prevent the charge port and cable from freezing together, a common issue in snowy conditions. Moving forward, Tesla may consider automatically activating the charge port heater as vehicles approach their scheduled departure state of charge to facilitate easy unplugging.