Hidden features, tips, and emergency access

Model S tips

Hidden features & Easter eggs

• Rainbow Road

  Open Toybox and turn on Rainbow Road. With Autosteer engaged, the road in the driving visualization turns into a glowing rainbow, a nod to the Mario Kart track. Cars built before 2021 can also trigger it by pulling the cruise control stalk toward you four times quickly with Autosteer on.

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• Mars navigation

  Open Toybox and choose Mars. The navigation map is replaced with a rendering of the Martian surface and the car icon becomes a Mars rover. On older software you could also press and hold the car's name in the Software screen and enter the code mars.

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• Santa Mode

  Open Toybox and turn on Santa Mode, or say "Ho ho ho" as a voice command. The car icon becomes Santa's sleigh and the car plays "Run Rudolph Run" by Chuck Berry. Say "Ho ho ho, not funny" instead and it switches to "Grandma Got Run Over by a Reindeer."

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• Rainbow charge port light

  While the car is plugged in, press the button on the Tesla charge handle about ten times quickly. The charge port light cycles through the colors of the rainbow for a few seconds, then returns to normal. It works with the Mobile Connector, the Wall Connector, and Superchargers. On Model S and Model X the whole charge port ring changes color.

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• Emissions Testing mode (aka fart mode)

  Emissions Testing, in Toybox, is Tesla's whoopee cushion. Pick a sound and the seat it should come from, then set it off from the touchscreen or with a press of the left scroll button at the right moment.

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• Romance Mode

  Also in Toybox, Romance Mode turns the screen into a crackling fireplace, plays soft music, and turns up the cabin heat. It arrived in a December 2018 software update.

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• Boombox

  Boombox plays sounds, from a goat bleat to applause, through the car's external pedestrian warning speaker. A 2022 recall covering about 579,000 cars limited it to Park, so it no longer works in Drive, Neutral, or Reverse. Cars without the external speaker, including many older builds, do not have it.

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• Caraoke

  Open the media player and choose Caraoke to sing along with lyrics shown on the touchscreen. Tap the microphone icon to turn the lead vocals off, leaving the instrumentals and backing vocals for you to sing over.

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• Volume goes to 11

  A small nod to This Is Spinal Tap: the audio volume goes to 11.

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• Ludicrous+ launch animation

  On older Model S Performance cars with Ludicrous mode (such as the P90D and P100D), select Ludicrous and hold the button for about five seconds. The screen goes dark and shows a star field rushing forward, a Spaceballs-style jump to ludicrous speed, and on P100D cars it offers Ludicrous+ with a choice between "No, I want my Mommy" and "Yes, bring it on!"

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• Submarine car in the suspension menu

  Early Model S software (from version 5.9 in 2015) hid a James Bond joke: hold the Tesla logo at the top of the touchscreen, enter 007 as the access code, and the car shown on the air suspension screen turned into the Lotus Esprit submarine from The Spy Who Loved Me. Musk owns the original film car.

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Tips

• Restart a frozen touchscreen

  If the touchscreen freezes or behaves oddly, restart it only while stopped. Shift into Park, then hold down both scroll buttons on the steering wheel until the screen turns black. The Tesla logo appears after a few seconds, and the screen is back in about 30 seconds. Pressing the brake is not needed, and this restarts only the touchscreen, not the rest of the car. On 2021 and newer cars with the yoke or round wheel, the buttons are the two scroll buttons on the yoke or wheel.

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• Customize the scroll wheel long-press

  Go to Controls > Display > Scroll Wheel Function and pick what a long press of the left scroll button does, or choose Ask each time to get a quick menu instead.

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• Set a daily charge limit, not 100%

  Tesla recommends a daily charge limit of 90% or less, the range the charge slider labels Daily, and charging to 100% only when a long trip needs it.

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• Set up a driver profile per person

  Driver profiles save seat, mirror, and steering wheel positions, plus preferences such as temperature, lights, display, navigation, and Autopilot settings. Link a profile to your key and the car picks that profile when the linked key is detected as you approach and open the driver's door. A key can carry only one profile, but one profile can have several keys.

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• Software updates need your home Wi-Fi

  Connect the car to your home Wi-Fi. Tesla says Wi-Fi gives the fastest and most reliable delivery of software updates, and some updates wait for a Wi-Fi connection before they download.

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• Low-voltage battery alerts

  A separate low-voltage battery runs the car's computers, locks, and lights. Cars built from 2021 on use a lithium-ion low-voltage battery designed to last much longer than the lead-acid 12V battery in earlier cars. If the car shows a low-voltage battery alert, have it checked soon: if that battery dies, the car will not unlock or wake normally and needs external power.

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Emergency access

• Manual door release, front doors

  On 2021 and newer cars, pull up the manual release just in front of the window switches to open a front door when the car has no power. On 2012-2020 cars, the interior door handles are mechanically linked and open the door as usual. Use the manual release only when there is no power.

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• Manual door release, rear doors

  Fold back the edge of the carpet below the rear seat to expose the mechanical release cable, then pull the cable toward the center of the car.

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• Jump-starting a dead low-voltage battery

  Open the frunk and pull the maintenance panel straight up to release its clips. Remove the red cover from the positive (+) jump post and connect the red cable first, then connect the black cable to the negative (-) post. Turn on the jump pack and touch the screen; it can take a few minutes to wake. When finished, disconnect the black cable first. The exact post location differs slightly by build date, so check the owner's manual for your car, and if the car is too dead to open the frunk, its section on opening the hood with no power shows how.

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• Tow Mode for a flatbed

  Model S must go on a flatbed, not be towed with its wheels on the ground. To let it roll onto the truck, unplug the charger, keep a key inside, hold the brake pedal, and touch Controls > Service > Towing, then Enter Tow Mode. The car stays free-rolling for winching or moving it out of a parking space, at walking pace and only for a short distance. Cars built 2012-2020 use the same Controls > Service > Towing path.

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