Tesla Service Mode: How to Access It and What It Does (2024)

Tesla ships a very detailed and comprehensive diagnostic and repair utility that is available in-vehicle, without requiring external plugs, adapters, or computers. It helps both Tesla and 3^rd party technicians service Tesla vehicles far more efficiently.

Who Can Access It?

Unlike many other vehicle manufacturers, who require OBD-2 ports, service subscriptions, and other external utilities, anyone can access Tesla’s service mode. All owners and 3^rd party technicians can access Service Mode by simply entering a special mode in the vehicle.

What Features Does It Have?

Service Mode is a special hidden app in the vehicle that provides various diagnostics tools that let you test various vehicle subsystems and components. Remember that if you’re exploring service mode on your own, you’ll want to be careful. Many of the features kept inside Service Mode are intended for debugging or repair – and not for the average user, however, Tesla provides a very user-friendly interface.

The options available will vary based on the vehicle and the systems available in that vehicle. For example, the Model S will have a diagnostic tool to troubleshoot its door handles, while the Model X will have one for its falcon-wing doors, but most tools will apply to a wide range of vehicles.

How to Access Service Mode

Tesla’s Service Mode is accessible via the touchscreen with just a few taps. Go to the vehicle controls button (the car icon), and tap the Software tab. After that, locate the vehicle model badge, (e.g. MODEL Y Long Range), directly beneath the vehicle image.

Tap and hold the word “MODEL” for 2 seconds, until you see a small ripple then let go. A menu and on-screen keyboard will pop up, prompting for an access code. Type the access code “service”.

Once you do this, it will bring up the SERVICE menu and a new app in the dock that’s red with a wrench. The entire display will also have a red border around it, indicating the vehicle is in Service Mode. Do NOT drive the vehicle in Service Mode, as many safety features are disabled while Service Mode is active.

How to Exit Service Mode

Once again, you can disable Service Mode from the primary display. If you’ve gone into another app, locate a bright red icon with a wrench in the dock or in the All Apps menu.

Once you bring up the Service Mode app, tap on the last icon in the left column. It’s red and shows a door with an arrow. Simply tap and hold this icon for several seconds to exit Service Mode. You’ll know once Service Mode is exited because the red border around the screen will be removed.

If you can’t find the Service Mode app, start Service Mode again by going to Controls > Software and holding the badge icon to enter Service Mode mode again. Once you’re back in the menu, tap and hold on the red exit icon.

Vehicle Info

Tesla breaks Service Mode into various sections which we’ll go through below. The Vehicle Info section provides most of the same information available in the vehicle’s Software menu, showing you things such as VIN, Autopilot computer, software version and more. At the bottom, you also have access to Service Alerts, Service Settings, Software Reinstall, and a Touch Screen check to confirm your display is working correctly. There is also a button for Additional Resources, which takes you to your vehicle’s Service Guide online.

Driver Assist

This tab has two menus – Cameras and ECU. The Cameras menu provides nominal information on the vehicle cameras, including pitch information – useful for technicians working on the windshield. You can also clear camera calibration from here – but you can also do that within the regular vehicle menus and get a full preview of all cameras.

The ECU tab provides information on the vehicle's electronic control unit and GPS/GNSS.

Infotainment

The Infotainment tab has two menus – Connectivity and Software. The Connectivity menu provides information on Wi-Fi and Cell connectivity and the status of the vehicle’s modems. You can run tests on either modem from here.

The Software tab provides information on the vehicle’s downloaded software and backup banks. Here, you’ll see that both the infotainment and Autopilot systems have 2 side-by-side banks – one keeps the previous update. Map info is also available here. These will be blank or display “—” while updating.

High Voltage

The High Voltage section is one of the most useful menus – it provides you with the ability to conduct Battery Health tests. The UI here provides information on the entire high-voltage system, including the battery, inverter, motors, vehicle charger, as well as the contactor and high-voltage pyro fuse.

The second tab in the high voltage menu displays the temperature of the battery and details on connected charging apparatuses.

Low Voltage

The Low Voltage system is all the other electronics in the car, and it provides information on the various low voltage components, including the 16v Lithium-Ion (or 12v Lead-Acid, for older vehicles).

This UI is drastically different in the Cybertruck – where it does not run on 16v, but rather 48v.

The last piece of the Low Voltage UI is Homelink. If you purchase Homelink – an add-on module – Tesla will install it for you. If you choose to install it yourself, you can commission the Homelink module through this menu. In the menu, you can also see how many devices are programmed and how many codes have been transmitted with HomeLink.

Thermal

The Thermal menu displays the status of the HVAC system, as well as the battery’s portion of the loop. It’s one of the coolest-looking menus since its animated.

It provides options for self-tests, as well as several options for the coolant and thermal pumps. This UI is for vehicles with heat pumps – legacy vehicles will have an A/C compressor and resistive heating.

This is also where you can view the status of your cabin and HEPA filters, and you can see if they need to be replaced.

Chassis

The Chassis menu provides you with steering options – and the ability to view or adjust your steering wheel offsets, look at suspension information on the Model S and X, re-calibrate the steering column, and confirm each of the buttons on the steering wheel and its stalks are working as expected.

It also provides you with some details on the vehicle’s brakes – showing some test and brake bleed options. An option for Brake Burnishing option is also available here.

Closures

The closures menu shows the status of windows, or automatic doors as well as the status of the front and rear defrosters. You can recalibrate each window and confirm it’s working properly. On the Model S it displays information on the automatic door handles, on the Model X it has a test for the gull-wing doors and for the Cybertruck you can test the tonneau cover.

Safety & Restraints

This menu simply displays the status of airbags, seat restraints, occupancy sensors and the pyro fuses in them, letting you confirm that each item is working properly and doesn’t have any faults.

Service Mode+ and Toolbox3

Of course, Tesla does have their own way of getting even more data than what is provided in Service Mode, through Service Mode+ and Toolbox3 – a subscription-access service similar to other vehicle vendors.

Service Mode+ is an additional set of tools that are internal to Tesla and require a Toolbox3 setup and subscription to access. It provides further information to fleet owners, collision centers, and Tesla technicians to diagnose and repair vehicles, as well as providing the capability to easily enable or disable Service Mode on vehicles remotely.

Toolbox3 is a subscription service that Tesla offers 3^rd-party technicians and collision centers for around $3,000 per year or a hefty $500 for 30 days. Toolbox3 is installed on a computer and uses a special vehicle interface cable connected to the vehicle. If you’re a technician looking for details on how to set up or use Toolbox3, Tesla’s Online Service Manuals provide a per-vehicle and per-hardware spec guide on how to set it up.

Today on X, Elon Musk has confirmed that there will not be a Model Y refresh coming in 2024, to match the recent Model 3 refresh.

This news isn’t exactly surprising given the fact that nobody has seen any covered-up test vehicles in either China or the US, but still a disappointment for eager fans and potential buyers waiting to buy the updated vehicle.

Continuous Improvement

Elon did mention in his post that Tesla continuously iterates on its vehicles, even without a full-blown refresh. He noted that even a vehicle that is 6 months newer will be a little bit better.

There has been some continuous improvement seen in China – the updated Model Y in China comes with a new dash, including ambient lighting for the dash area, updated trim from wood to black and grey cloth, and the new black Gemini wheel covers (which recently did come to North America).

There are also some under-the-hood changes, including an update for the Model Y Standard Range’s 0-100 km/h (0-60mph) from 6.9 seconds to 5.9 seconds. The Long Range and Performance variants also received slightly better ranges, with improvements in the battery technology.

Sadly, none of these updates have filtered into North America – not even through Canada, as all Canadian Model Y’s are currently manufactured in Giga Shanghai, right next to Chinese vehicles.

Juniper When?

The Refresh Y, codenamed Juniper – will eventually arrive when Tesla deems the time is right. However, the 3’s Highland refresh and ramp-up is probably Tesla’s main focus at the moment, and with the current version of the Model Y still being one of the world’s best-selling vehicle, there is no rush to bring Project Juniper to customers just yet.

We may see test vehicles sometime later this year in China or the United States. However, China may receive the Juniper update before North America and Europe. China unveiled the new Model 3 in September 2023, with Highland coming globally in 2024.

We also previously reported that China has begun to slow down its Model Y production, which could indicate the preparation for retooling, but it is too early to tell whether this is related to Project Juniper yet.

In a recent post on X, Elon Musk announced that 90% of retail shareholders who have voted so far, have voted in favor of two key resolutions ahead of the upcoming shareholder meeting on June 13^th.

The Resolutions

These resolutions are two major pieces for Tesla – the first being Musk’s compensation package re-approval, and the second being to move the company’s location of incorporation from Delaware to Texas.

Both resolutions stemmed from a recent Delaware ruling that the 2018 shareholder vote that decided Elon Musk’s compensation package was invalid. Musk’s compensation package was a performance-based package that would pay out in share options – not exercisable until at least 2027. These shares total about $56 billion USD in compensation.

These resolutions have been met with some controversy within the Tesla community, with some shareholders arguing that the compensation package is excessive, and that the reincorporation decision was made without proper shareholder consultation or proper corporate research.

Percentage Needed to Win Vote

In terms of the resolutions, the resolution to re-approve the performance-based pay package only requires a majority vote for the number of shareholders that decided to vote. This means that shareholders that did not vote their shares will be treated as if they abstained, and these shares will not count against the vote.

For the move to Texas, an absolute majority of 50% of all shares is required.

Overwhelming Support

Tesla’s retail shareholders – who own approximately 40% of the company – or 47% relatively if you factor out Elon Musk and Kimbal Musk’s ownership (who cannot vote due to conflict of interest), are overwhelming in favor of re-approving the compensation package and move to Texas.

This indicates that outside of major corporate investors, Elon Musk has a favorable impression with Tesla shareholders – having delivered the value that he initially promised in his performance package.

Institutional Voters

It remains to be seen how the rest of the stock owners – both institutional and other large individual shareholders – will vote. Some major institutional voters have voted in support of the package and the move to Texas, while others have already voted against both. The institutional shareholders account for 53% of the relative shares available to vote with.

How to Vote

Tesla has a page dedicated to how to vote your your Tesla shares. The process differs slightly based on your broker. You can read the directions directly from Tesla.

Result Announcement

We’ll find out all the details on the final outcome of the vote – and its implications and impacts on Tesla and Elon Musk, this Thursday, June 13th.