Tesla Lets Sleeping Dogs Lie: Inside Climate-Controlled Model 3

(Bloomberg) -- Elon Musk loves releasing new whimsical features for Tesla Inc.’s vehicles: Romance Mode, Sentry Mode, even Fart Mode.

Now there’s a special one for man’s best friend.

Dog Mode, released late Wednesday, enables Model 3 owners to set the cabin temperature and display a message on the sedan’s screen signaling that the canine’s owner will be back soon. Musk’s customers have been lobbying for the feature on Twitter.

Dog Mode strikes at a key demographic for Tesla. In San Francisco, a major market for the company, public broadcaster KQED investigated last year whether there are more dogs than children in the city.

KQED found a 2016 U.S. Census Bureau survey that said there were about 115,000 children under 18 living in the city. San Francisco Animal Care & Control estimated there were about 120,000 to 150,000 dogs at the time, according to the report.

“Dogs are very near and dear to people,” said Bob Vetere, president of the American Pet Products Association. “People will respond to the connection. Besides liking the car, they’ll see that the Tesla will help them take care of their dog. That’s a wining combination.”

Pooch-loving Tesla owners are an active bunch. The @dogsoftesla account has almost 1,800 followers on Twitter and more than 600 on Instagram. Its legions of fans are organizing a charitable drive this weekend from Los Angeles to several animal shelters in the Central Valley to donate blankets, beds, treats and toys.

Tesla releases over-the-air updates to deploy new features like Dog Mode. It’ll be available first on the Model 3, then on the Model S and Model X.

The feature is likely to be put to use by Musk himself. In an email, the chief executive officer said he has two dogs: one from an animal rescue that looks like an Akita, and a Havanese given to him by a friend.

--With assistance from Carmen Reinicke.

To contact the reporter on this story: Dana Hull in San Francisco at dhull12@bloomberg.net

To contact the editor responsible for this story: Craig Trudell at ctrudell1@bloomberg.net

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