A change in Tesla’s official owner’s manual suggests a long-included standard feature may soon become an optional accessory.
Specific text that guarantees the inclusion of two key cards with every new vehicle has been removed from the manuals for both the Model 3 and Model Y following a recent update.
Tesla provides the same owner’s manual for all editions of the Model 3 and Model Y, so it’s not clear exactly which models this will affect, but it seems that it’ll at least affect the new Standard, more affordable models.
Key Cards
The owner’s manual has removed various phrases that hint at key cards no longer being standard issue. In the Key Card section of the manual, Tesla has removed this phrase: “Tesla provides you with two Model 3/Y key cards, designed to fit in your wallet.”
The deletion of this note, timed just ahead of the launch of the de-contented Standard trims, strongly implies that new buyers of these lower-cost models will no longer receive the physical key cards in the vehicle pickup package on delivery day.
Since the introduction of Model 3 in 2017, Tesla has provided credit-card-sized key cards as part of the delivery package. While the Phone Key is the primary, seamless method of entry for most owners, the key card serves as an essential backup for situations where the phone is dead, lost, or when you need to let someone else access the vehicle.
Phone Key Only
With this change, any affected vehicles must be accessed using the Tesla app and a smartphone.
While Tesla’s newest vehicles feature ultra-wideband hardware to make Phone Keys even more reliable, an owner can still be left locked out if their phone battery dies or they misplace their phone.
For owners of Android phones with NFC capabilities, your phone can double as an NFC key, enabling you to unlock your vehicle just like you would with a key card. That’s a fantastic little backup feature that isn’t too well-known.
If this change is confirmed, the key card would move from a standard-issue item to an optional accessory that must be purchased separately from the Tesla store, where a pair of key cards costs $40 USD. We’re not entirely sure what to make of this change. These key cards are a minimal cost to Tesla, yet they could leave an owner completely locked out and frustrated. However, Tesla needs to cut costs somewhere for these lower-priced vehicles.
While key cards are a minor cost in the grand scheme of a new car purchase, it’s another calculated decision by Tesla to reduce the base cost and included components of its new entry-level vehicles.
