Many believe that leaving pets inside a Tesla vehicle is one of the safest options of leaving your beloved animals while owners go out and run errands. This is because Tesla vehicles have what's known as "Dog Mode," which keeps the temperature inside the EV car cool for pets.
However, one Tesla owner discovered that there's a flaw in the design and that it only works if the app is on auto mode. If the feature is set manually, there's actually a very big chance that the feature could turn off and endanger animals.
"@elonmusk @Tesla warning about dog mode... It's hot as all hell in Seattle. Today I used dog mode and luckily I kept the app open, to my horror the car was 85 degrees and climbing! Dog mode only works if in auto, if you manually set the fan and leave the AC turns off," Tesla owner Rahul Sood said in a Tweet.
According to The Verge, Sood turned on Dog Mode before adjusting the fan settings. He then left his 7-month-old Boxer pup inside his Tesla Model X. When he later checked on the Tesla app, he discovered that the temperature has gone up to 85 degrees because the Dog Mode automatically turned off. He then returned to his car to check on his pup. Fortunately, it was safe.
The pet feature is part of Tesla's "Cabin Overheat Protection" which rolled out early this year and was conceptualized to make sure that the car remains cool when it reaches certain temperatures to ensure that (human) babies and pets left in the car remain safe.
Aside from adjusting temperatures, it also leaves a note on the car's touchscreen to inform passersby that the occupants inside the car are safe and that the owner will be back soon.
In response to Sood's tweet, Tesla CEO Elon Musk replied, "Fixing..."
The Tesla owner was elated that Musk noticed his warning. "The fact that the CEO responded as quickly as he did is pretty awesome," he said.
Musk's EV company is known for introducing various updates to its vehicles via over-the-air software updates, so the Dog Mode function could be corrected through this as well. Aside from Dog Mode, Tesla has several other unique car features including driver assistance and even video games mode.
This article was first published in IBTimes US. Permission required for reproduction.
