Tesla Control via Tessie

Control and monitor Tesla vehicles via the Tessie API. Use when you need to check Tesla status (battery, location, charging), control climate (heat/cool), lock/unlock doors, start/stop charging, honk/flash lights, open charge port or trunks, or any other Tesla vehicle command. Requires TESSIE_API_KEY environment variable.

Control Tesla vehicles using the Tessie API through Python scripts.

Prerequisites

Python 3 with requests library:

pip install requests

Set the TESSIE_API_KEY environment variable with your Tessie API key from https://my.tessie.com/settings/api

# Linux/macOS
export TESSIE_API_KEY="your-api-key-here"

# Windows (PowerShell)
$env:TESSIE_API_KEY = "your-api-key-here"

# Windows (cmd)
set TESSIE_API_KEY=your-api-key-here

For persistent storage, add to your shell profile (.bashrc, .zshrc, PowerShell profile, etc.).

Common Commands

All commands use the scripts/tessie.py script. Most commands require a VIN (Vehicle Identification Number).

Get Vehicle List

python scripts/tessie.py vehicles

Returns all vehicles associated with your Tessie account with their VINs.

Check Status

python scripts/tessie.py status --vin <VIN>

Returns comprehensive vehicle status including battery, location, climate, charging state, and more.

Battery Info

python scripts/tessie.py battery --vin <VIN>

Returns battery level, range, and charging information.

Location

python scripts/tessie.py location --vin <VIN>

Returns current vehicle location (latitude, longitude, heading).

Lock & Unlock

python scripts/tessie.py lock --vin <VIN>
python scripts/tessie.py unlock --vin <VIN>

Climate Control

# Start climate
python scripts/tessie.py start_climate --vin <VIN>

# Stop climate
python scripts/tessie.py stop_climate --vin <VIN>

# Set temperature (Celsius)
python scripts/tessie.py set_temperature --vin <VIN> --value 22

Charging

# Start charging
python scripts/tessie.py start_charging --vin <VIN>

# Stop charging
python scripts/tessie.py stop_charging --vin <VIN>

# Set charge limit (0-100)
python scripts/tessie.py set_charge_limit --vin <VIN> --value 80

# Open/close charge port
python scripts/tessie.py open_charge_port --vin <VIN>
python scripts/tessie.py close_charge_port --vin <VIN>

Honk, Flash & Fart

python scripts/tessie.py honk --vin <VIN>
python scripts/tessie.py flash --vin <VIN>
python scripts/tessie.py fart --vin <VIN>

Note: Fart requires firmware 2022.40.25 or newer.

Trunks

python scripts/tessie.py open_frunk --vin <VIN>
python scripts/tessie.py open_trunk --vin <VIN>

Software Updates

# Schedule update immediately
python scripts/tessie.py schedule_update --vin <VIN>

# Schedule update in 2 hours (7200 seconds)
python scripts/tessie.py schedule_update --vin <VIN> --value 7200

# Cancel scheduled update
python scripts/tessie.py cancel_update --vin <VIN>

# Check for available updates
python scripts/check-updates.py --vin <VIN>

The check-updates script returns one of:

• UPDATE_AVAILABLE: Software update X.X.X is ready to install!
• UPDATE_DOWNLOADING: Downloading update X.X.X (XX%)
• UPDATE_INSTALLING: Installing update X.X.X (XX%)
• UPDATE_SCHEDULED: Update X.X.X is scheduled
• NO_UPDATE

Wake Vehicle

If the vehicle is asleep, wake it first:

python scripts/tessie.py wake --vin <VIN>

Automatic Update Notifications

To get notified when software updates are available, set up a cron job:

# Check for updates every 6 hours and notify if available
cron add \
  --schedule "0 */6 * * *" \
  --text "Check my Tesla for software updates and notify me if one is available" \
  --description "Tesla software update check"

When an update is available, you'll get a notification with the version number.

Workflow

1. First time: Get VIN with vehicles action
2. For most commands: Use the VIN to target specific vehicle
3. If vehicle is asleep: Use wake first, then retry command
4. Check status with status, battery, or location as needed

Reference

For complete API documentation, see references/api.md.