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Comment by raven105x | Hacker News Reader

This is basically a slam piece. Yes, our Teslas and our friends were not accessible via the app for a while, and it raised some eyebrows - but unlocking via Bluetooth during this outage was not an issue for anyone I know. "Tesla drivers left unable to start their cars after outage" as a title is beyond misleading. Remote unlock / remote climate were down, but nobody was "unable to start their car", you just had to walk into bluetooth range for it to unlock instead of being able to do so remotely from anywhere with an internet connection. Interestingly enough, no author info/credentials on this article.

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> Interestingly enough, no author info/credentials on this article.

This is typical for BBC articles. E.g., https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-59358070 or https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-derbyshire-59359263. I have no idea why this is their policy, but it isn't a special feature of this article.

Same with the Economist and a few other publications.

Not all Tesla's have Bluetooth unlock. The pre-refresh X and S require a server based unlock.

All 3, Y and 2021+ S and X will work with just Bluetooth.

Why is this even an issue? Don't all Teslas also come with a key fob that doesn't require any bluetooth?

All Tesla's come with either a fob or an NFC keycard. Owners are recommended by the car/manual to always keep them available.

But the convenience of just walking up to your car and it unlocking with your phone is enough for many people to take it for granted, and forget those other entry methods at home.

Most of us are more and more dependent on our phones for more and more things.

I know I'm often pretty sloppy about having backup printed information when I'm traveling for example. And, while I do still carry a (small) wallet (really just a business card holder), even that is becoming increasingly anachronistic. Also maps while hiking, etc.

That would mean if you park your car in a garage that blocks mobile coverage you’ll never be able to start it again. Sounds unlikely.

Only if you rely on only the app for unlocking. Whether you think it sounds unlikely or not, it's documented and people have run into this before with the S/X when data was unavailable.

You should always keep the fob or keycard around for safety.

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