Out of state Tesla firmware upgrade

[mikegerard]

I'm out of state (NY) and was wondering about getting a Tesla firmware upgrade...

The local Toyota is fine connecting to the Toyota half of the car but seems puzzled by the Tesla half. Does anyone know the technical details of doing a firmware upgrade for the Tesla computer? Do I need a proprietary cable? Do you need to connect in with a computer and then apply the firmware upgrade or is the upgrade done directly via thumb drive?

Thanks
Mike

 

[jspearman]

Not sure which thread it's in, but one of the members had the regional roving tech do it, as they were able to temporarily secure the tesla cable. Be prepared to argue, and best of luck. I'm 15k miles in with no firmware upgrade, and I'm functioning by the "if it ain't broke don't fix it" model. I'm hoping for an ECU recall and have everything done at once, but not really counting on that, either.

 

[jimbo69ny]

I wonder how much this cable is. Maybe we could all come together and buy it if its expensive. We could share the cable with each other as needed.

 

[Dsinned]

The service equipment required is called a "TechStream"; probably expensive and only "authorized" RAV4 EV Toyota dealers will have one and a serviced technician "trained" to use it. The Gateway ECU provided by Tesla contains the firmware that seems to frequently require "upgrading". Many of us (mostly in CA) have even had the ECU completed replaced under warranty. Sadly, there is NEVER any feedback from Toyota as to "why", or what Tesla's firmware updates actually do to fix anything. Any related TSBs are quite vague and lacking in detailed information as well.

Bottom line, I am glad I live less than 5 miles from an "authorized" dealer and all these "issues" are fully covered under warranty.