If you have a Tesla EV or are thinking about buying one, you may want to learn about how they operate. Tesla does not do a good job of explaining Tesla features to their owners. We decided to create a series of Tesla #shorts, all less than one minute and in portrait so they will look good on your cell phone.
Tesla Screen Icons Explained
See the bottom of this page for a full description of all of the Tesla screen icons:
Netflix, YouTube & Twitch Without Tesla Premium Connectivity
Tesla Driver Profile Priority
Here is a list of all common Tesla warning lights and what you should do to fix the problem:
| Tesla Brakes Warning Icon / Light | |
 | The red exclamation mark represents the brake fault icon. If this warning Icon / Light stays or comes on while driving, it means there’s either a: |
| • Fault with the brake system | |
| • Brake fluid levels are low | |
| If you’re not confident on topping up the brake fluid yourself, book your vehicle in for Tesla Service. | |
| Tesla Parking Brake Warning Light | |
 | This warning Icon / Light comes on when the parking brake has been applied. If there is an electrical fault with the parking brake, the yellow warning Icon / Light comes on along with a fault message. |
| Tesla Parking Brake Fault Warning Icon Parking brake fault Icon | |
| Loss of 12v Power | |
| If your vehicle loses 12v electrical power, you will not be able to release the parking brake. In that case, the vehicle must be jump started. The battery can be located under the front hood and in the maintenance compartment near the windshield. If there is no 12v power, you will need to release the hood by opening the tow eye cover at the front and connecting a portable 12v jump starter. | |
| Tesla Tire Pressure Warning Icon | |
 | The tire pressure warning Icon / Light serves two purposes: |
| ▷ The warning Icon / Light comes on if one or more tires is under- or over-inflated. | |
| ▷ The warning Icon / Light flashes for 60 seconds then remains on when a fault has been detected with the tire pressure monitoring system (TPMS). | |
| Checking tire pressures | |
| Check your tire pressure when the tires are cold. (i.e. parked for 3 or more hours). | |
| Warning Icon / Light | |
| After adjusting pressures, the tire pressure warning icon / light will go out when you have been driving for 10 minutes or more and at a speed of 15 mph (25 km/h) for more. | |
| Flashing warning Icon / Light | |
| If after changing wheels, rotating wheels or changing tires the tire pressure warning Icon / Light continues to flash even after driving for 10 minutes or more and at a speed of 15 mph (25 km/h), the TPMS may require manually resetting. To do this, locate the ‘Service’ section in your vehicle options and then ‘Reset TPMS Sensors’. | |
| Tesla Airbag Warning Icon / Light | |
 | To ensure correct operation of the airbag system, the airbag warning Icon / Light should come on briefly when the vehicle is powering up, then go off. If the warning Icon / Light does not come on during this stage, or the Icon / Light comes on while driving, contact Tesla service. If the airbag warning Icon / Light remains on, check the following: |
| • Remove any objects under the seat. | |
| • Remove any heavy objects placed on the seat. | |
| • Remove any objects wedged between the seat back and seat cushion. | |
| • Remove any add-ons like seat covers, mats etc. | |
| Tesla Seat Belt Warning Icon / Light | |
 | This warning Icon / Light illuminates when a seat belt for an occupied seat is not fastened. If all people have their seatbelts fastened and the warning Icon / Light stays on, un-buckle then re-buckle seat belts to ensure they are correctly latched. |
| Tesla ABS Warning Icon / Light | |
 | The ABS (anti-lock braking system) allows the driver to apply maximum brake pressure without locking the wheels. This helps to increase steering control and in some cases, braking distances are reduced. If the ABS warning Icon / Light comes on while driving or stays on continuously, it means ABS is not functioning. |
| An ABS failure does NOT impact the vehicles normal brakes and they will continue to operate. However, there is an increased risk of locking up wheels during emergency braking. ABS failure is usually associated with sensors or wiring damage on the wheels. | |
| Tesla Traction Control Icon / Light | |
 | The Traction Control System (TCS) is responsible for helping to reduce wheel slip. TCS is on each time the vehicle is powered up and should only be disabled on specific circumstances like: |
| • When driving on a loose surface such as gravel or snow. | |
| • Driving in deep snow, sand or mud. Switching off TCS can prove beneficial when trying to free the vehicle from snow. | |
| Tesla Front Fog Warning Icon | |
 | This warning Icon / Light comes on when the front fog lights are switched on. |
| Tesla Parking Lights Warning Icon | |
 | This icon illuminates when the parking Icon / Lights (side marker luights, tail lights, and license plate lights) are on. |
| Tesla High Beam Warning Icon | |
 | This blue icon means the high beam headlights are on and Auto High Beam is disabled or currently unavailable. |
| Tesla Low Beam Warning Icon | |
 | Icon illuminates when low beam head lights are on. |
| Tesla Auto High Beam Warning | Light |
 | This warning Icon / Light illuminates when automatic high beam headlights are enabled. The icon is grayed out when Icon / Light is detected and high beams are automatically switched to low. |
| Tesla Hold Warning Icon / Light | |
 | The Tesla “(H)” icon appears the vehicle Hold system is actively applying the brakes. Vehicle hold will continue to apply the brakes when you have removed your foot from the brake pedal. If you want to enable HOLD by default, press the brake pedal again until you see the vehicle hold ‘H’ icon in the instrument panel. This also acts as a hill assist. To deactivate vehicle hold, either press the accelerator or brake pedal. |
| Tesla ESC Warning Icon / Light | |
 | The Electronic Stability Control (ESC) system helps to maintain vehicle stability by either reducing motor power or by applying brake pressure. This is beneficial to preventing wheel slip and in reducing understeer / oversteer. When ESC is actively stabilizing the vehicle the warning icon will flash. If the warning icon remains on constantly there is a fault with the system. |
| Tesla Snowflake Warning Icon | |
 | The Tesla snowflake icon appears in blue when some of the stored energy in the battery may not be available due to cold temperatures. The blue snowflake icon will go off when the battery is sufficiently warm. This can also be achieved by turning on climate control via the phone app when the battery is charging. |
| Tesla Turtle Warning Icon / Light | |
 | The Tesla tortoise icon appears when the vehicle speed is reduced because the energy remaining in the battery is low or because the vehicle’s systems are being aggressively heated or cooled by the battery management control systems. |
1 Comment
Dara · November 17, 2021 at 7:51 pm
Thanks this helped me buy a Tesla