To precondition a Tesla battery, which means warming it up to an optimal temperature for better performance and faster charging, you can follow these methods:
What is Battery Preconditioning?
Preconditioning warms the battery before driving or charging, which improves range, charging speed, and battery longevity, especially in cold weather
How to Precondition a Tesla Battery
- Using Scheduled Departure:
- Open the Tesla app or car touchscreen.
- Go to the Charging menu.
- Select Scheduled Departure and set the time you plan to leave.
- The car will automatically precondition the battery based on outside temperature to be ready by departure time
- Using Navigation to a Supercharger:
- Enter a Supercharger as your destination in the Tesla navigation system.
- The car will automatically start preconditioning the battery when you are near the charger to ensure optimal charging temperature on arrival
- Manual Preconditioning via Climate Control:
- Open the Tesla app.
- Tap the Climate Control button.
- Turn on heating to warm both the cabin and the battery.
- Wait a few minutes before driving or charging to allow the battery to warm up
Note: Tesla does not currently allow direct manual preconditioning of the battery alone; it is mostly automatic with navigation or indirectly via climate control
Additional Tips
- Precondition while plugged in to use grid power instead of battery power, preserving range
- Precondition for 30-45 minutes before charging, longer in colder conditions
- Avoid excessive preconditioning on short trips to save energy
In summary, the easiest way to precondition your Tesla battery is to use the scheduled departure feature or navigate to a Supercharger, which triggers automatic preconditioning. Alternatively, manually turning on climate control via the app warms the battery indirectly
