8 Easy Solutions to Troubleshoot Your Tesla Phone Key Not Working

Bionous

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posted on 2 days ago — updated on 1 second ago

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Is your Tesla phone key not working normally? When it doesn't work, you'll need to use the card to get into your Tesla, and that can be frustrating to deal with. Follow this guide to get troubleshooting help so you can solve the issue and use your phone as a key again.

Quickly Fix a Phone Key Not Working with Tesla

Reboot your phone.

Sometimes a simple "turn it off, then back on" fixes everything. Generally, this fixes the problem for many people. But if that's not the case for you, there are more troubleshooting steps that you can try! On iPhone X and newer, press and hold the right-side button and either Volume button simultaneously. Slide right on the power-off slider. Press the side button again to turn it back on. On iPhone SE, 8, or earlier, press and hold the side button, then slide left on the power-off slider. Press the side button again to turn it back on. On an Android, press and hold the side button and slide the power slider to turn off your phone. Press the side button again to turn it back on.

Make sure Bluetooth is on.

Your phone key won't work if Bluetooth is off. You can touch the Bluetooth icon in Control Center for iPhones and Quick Settings for Android to enable it. While you're in Control Center (iPhone) or the Quick Settings Panel (Android), you can also look to ensure Airplane Mode is off.

Restart Bluetooth and the Tesla app.

The current Bluetooth session can be bugged, preventing your phone key from working. If Bluetooth is on, turn it off by tapping the icon in Control Center (iPhone) or Quick Settings (Android), then turn it back on. Once you've restarted Bluetooth, close the Tesla app completely (swipe up on iPhone, then swipe up on the app to close it. , then open it again. To completely close an app on iPhone, swipe up (or double tap the Home button if you have an older iPhone), then swipe up on the app to close it. To completely close an app on Android, swipe up (or tap the three-line icon at the bottom of your screen) to open the list of recently used apps, then swipe or tap the x to close an app.

Check your phone charge.

A phone that's too low on battery most likely will not function with Bluetooth. Plug your phone into power to charge it above at least 25%, as many phones will automatically enable low power mode when they reach critically low power levels.

Unpair and re-pair your Bluetooth connection.

Your current pairing can be corrupted or weak and not work properly. You can unpair and re-pair your phone and car in Bluetooth settings. On iPhone, tap Forget Pairing, on Android, tap Unpair. You want to make sure you're inside the car and using the touchscreen to be able to pair your phone and car again once you've unpaired them. To pair your car and phone, sit in your car with Bluetooth enabled on your iPhone or Android and make sure the car's touchscreen is on. Tap the Bluetooth icon on the car's screen and tap Add New Device > Start Search. Tap your phone on the car's screen, and confirm the random numbers on the screen with those on your phone. If prompted, tap Allow on your phone to let the car use your contacts and make calls.

Make sure your phone has internet access.

The mobile app uses an internet connection to work with your Tesla. Make sure you have Wi-Fi or mobile data enabled on your iPhone or Android and that the app can use them if it seems like the app isn't connecting to the car.

Check that Phone Key is on.

If this is off, your phone won't work as a key. Open the app on your phone, tap Security & drivers and make sure "Phone Key" is on. This might reset whenever the app updates.