Error Messages and Warning Lights in Tesla Cars

If you own a Tesla car, you perfectly know that these vehicles have a ton of different errors and faults. Sometimes, the messages and codes are so misleading and hard to understand that you just need to pay several hundred dollars to a dealership to inspect the problem. It's often not that obvious how to deal with this problem even after inspection.

In this article, I will cover all the errors and warnings in Tesla vehicles that I've already reviewed in this blog. The information is based on my personal experience and also on the data I managed to get from Tesla official sources and dealers. Hope this helps you solve the problems you have easily and with no costs!

"Unable to Obtain IP Address" message in Tesla

A lot of Tesla vehicles have this problem. Whenever you try to connect to a certain Wi-Fi spot, you get the "Unable to Obtain IP Address" problem and it won't connect to the internet.

If you see this happening, the only proper solution is to reboot the car in the range of the router you are trying to connect to. The rebooted Tesla will quickly connect to the spot and won't throw this message again.

Dealers are usually helpless and just tell you that they couldn't find the issue - the car connects to their Wi-Fi well. But there are updates to the software that solve this problem. Unfortunately, no one could explain to me which exactly updates you need to install.

Unable to obtain IP address message highlights:

• Common reasons:software glitch
• How to fix:reboot your Tesla
• Possible consequences:no internet connection, no updates
• Priority level:Medium
• Can you drive?Yes
• DIY repair:Impossible
• Repair price range:$200-$300

"Automatic Emergency Braking Is Unavailable" message in Tesla

If you see your Tesla saying "Automatic Emergency Braking Is Unavailable" and also throwing the APP_W009 code, there are issues with either a 12V battery, or with one of the control modules.

Unfortunately, several model years of Tesla vehicles have issues with water intrusion and connections corrosion. Finding this problem is a big challenge even for dealers, so it's almost impossible to solve the issue quickly and with zero costs if the water damage is the problem.

But you should start with checking for any new updates for your software and also with checking the 12V battery. If it's low, your electronics may glitch and seeing this error message is not a big surprise, in this case.

Automatic emergency braking is unavailable message highlights:

• Common reasons:12V battery issues, water intrusion, software glitch
• How to fix:install updates, check the 12V battery voltage, have the car inspected
• Possible consequences:several smart functions will stop working
• Priority level:Medium
• Can you drive?Yes
• DIY repair:Possible
• Repair price range:$0-$450

"Daily Data Limit Reached" message in Tesla

If you own Tesla, there is a high chance you've seen the "Daily Data Limit Reached" error message. It may appear on the infotainment screen and it usually doesn't affect the way your car drives or functions.

This is because you reached the daily limit of live camera time. This is the limit for everyone to limit the loads on the Tesla servers. Also, several Tesla owners claimed they saw this error message when there was a problem with the connection, but in this case, it's pretty weird that the limit message came on the screen at all.

Actually, there is nothing you can do to enlarge the limit. There is even no paid option for this.

Daily data limit reached message highlights:

• Common reasons:the live video limit is reached
• How to fix:no way to fix this
• Possible consequences:live camera won't be working anymore today
• Priority level:Low
• Can you drive?Yes
• DIY repair:No repairs needed
• Repair price range:$0

"Cruise Control Unavailable" message in Tesla

Whenever you see the "Cruise Control Unavailable" message in your Tesla vehicle, several smart functions will stop working.

Usually, this may happen when the radar sensor or the camera is blocked. Sometimes, Tesla owners experience this problem when the weather is extremely bad - fog, heavy rain, snowfall, etc. Your sensor or camera may also be broken or disconnected if there was any impact.

Also, it's not that uncommon for the vehicle to throw this message when the battery is low (the 12V or the main EV battery) or there is a software glitch. Rebooting may help but, in some cases, you may need to go to the dealership.

Cruise control unavailable message highlights:

• Common reasons:camera or radar is blocked, battery low, software glitch
• How to fix:clean camera and radar areas, reboot the car, check the 12V battery
• Possible consequences:smart safety functions won't be working
• Priority level:Low
• Can you drive?Yes
• DIY repair:Yes
• Repair price range:$0-$250

"Blind Spot Detection Not Working" message in Tesla

The blind spot detection system in your Tesla is one of the important safety features and if your car shows the "Blind Spot Detection Not Working" message, you need to deal with this somehow.

How can you solve this problem? Well, first of all I would recommend you go to the driver's manual and see how the blind spot detection works in your car. Tesla has a really weird system of blind spot monitoring and you may not just be using it correctly.

If the system doesn't work and you are getting annoying messages, check the radar areas. They may be just covered with something like snow or mud. Alternatively, there can be a software problem that the dealership will help you solve.

Blind spot detection not working message highlights:

• Common reasons:radars are blocked, software problem
• How to fix:clean the radar areas, take it in for inspection
• Possible consequences:several smart functions won't be working
• Priority level:Low
• Can you drive?Yes
• DIY repair:Yes
• Repair price range:$0-$550

"Charging Stopped Unexpectedly" message in Tesla

Whenever your Tesla says "Charging Stopped Unexpectedly", it means that there occurred a problem with the charging process and the car or the charger stopped charging the battery.

While, in most cases, the problem is exactly with the charger, sometimes, it may be the issue with the battery cooling system or some software. Of course, the charger should be changed, first of all.

If the charger is OK, or if your car keeps doing this even with other chargers, you should have the vehicle inspected as soon as possible. There may be some problems with the battery management system or cooling which is not that safe.

I should tell you that the battery overheating may only occur very seldom and is not considered the common issue with Tesla cars. But still, it's always better to be on the safe side.

Charging stopped unexpectedly message highlights:

• Common reasons:charger problems, battery management issues
• How to fix:try another charger, have the vehicle inspected
• Possible consequences:battery overheating, no charging
• Priority level:High
• Can you drive?Carefully
• DIY repair:No
• Repair price range:$200-$1,000

"Choose Media Source" message in Tesla

In some software versions of Tesla vehicle, there is a bug that quickly "forgets" the media source you've been using in your vehicle the last time you were driving. This is not a serious bug but it may annoy you a lot.

There are several fixes you may use. First of all, you may choose to pick the source manually each time you get into the car. Secondly, you may decide to wait for a minute or two and it will choose your favorite source for playing music.

Alternatively, you may consider uploading the last update and there is a chance that the "Choose Media Source" problem will be solved.

Choose media source message highlights:

• Common reasons:media source isn't stored, software issue
• How to fix:manually choose the source, wait for 1 minute, upload the latest update
• Possible consequences:no music for about 1-2 minutes
• Priority level:Low
• Can you drive?Yes
• DIY repair:Yes
• Repair price range:$0-$150

"Phone Key Disconnected" message in Tesla

The "Phone Key Disconnected" message you are likely to see in the mobile app, not in the Tesla car itself. This means your phone key will not be working properly and you may have problems getting into your Tesla or starting it using your phone.

Sometimes, restarting the app helps, but in most cases, this will not solve the problem. Also, repairing the phone to the car won't help, in this case.

What may help is rebooting the UI in your Tesla. Just read in the driver's manual how you can do this.

Alternatively, you may go to the dealer and ask for solutions. Sometimes, just a software update will help you solve the problem.

Phone key disconnected message highlights:

• Common reasons:phone key software issues, UI problems
• How to fix:restart the app, reboot the UI in your car
• Possible consequences:possible issues with access to the vehicle
• Priority level:Medium
• Can you drive?Yes
• DIY repair:Yes
• Repair price range:$0-$250