By: Otaiba Ahsan
If you’ve been inside any Tesla vehicle, then you know how bare the interior of their cars are. There are little to no physical buttons, and most actions can be accomplished using the touchscreen. With that being said, one thing these vehicles don’t lack is a wireless charger for your mobile phone. There may be times when your device won’t charge as planned. Here’s what to do if your Tesla wireless phone charger is not working.
Wireless Phone Charger
A wireless phone charger can help keep any car’s interior free of cables. This provides a clean look and creates a neat environment for both the driver and passengers. If your Tesla is equipped with one, it will be located on the front console and can provide up to 15W of power to charge any Qi-enabled phone.
Simply place your phone on the charger and it’ll begin charging about 2 to 3 seconds later. Your phone will only charge when the vehicle is powered on, meaning the touchscreen is on and you’re inside the car. Therefore, your phone won’t charge after exiting your Tesla, unless a feature such as Sentry Mode is enabled and is providing power to the USB ports.
NOTE: Your phone may get warm while charging. However, Tesla states that this is a normal effect of inductive charging. It’s important to still monitor the temperature, and if it gets more hot than you’re comfortable, then remove it temporarily.
When the Charger Doesn’t Work
There are a few reasons why your phone may not charge when using the wireless charger in the car:
- Phone Case: When certain phone cases are used, such as those that are too large or made out of metal, then the charging apparatus is unable to provide power to the phone. In this situation, you’ll have to place the phone there without its case and charging should work. However, in my experience, the charging should work with most thin cases.
- Battery is Discharged: If your vehicle’s battery is dead, then the wireless charger won’t work. Of course, the simple solution is to get your car refueled and the charging should work again.
- Phone is Not in Direct Contact: Tesla stresses the importance of ensuring your phone is in direct contact with the wireless charger. This means that no objects should be between the phone and the charger, such as a key card, coins, credit cards, and more.
- Faulty Wireless Charger: While unlikely, it’s not impossible that the wireless charger may be faulty. In this scenario, you’ll have to schedule a Tesla service appointment to solve the problem.
The Bottom Line
That completes the guide on what to do if your Tesla wireless phone charger is not working. There are several reasons why this may occur, but we’ve provided a solution for each scenario discussed above.