How can I connect my Tesla? – Smart Charging

Are you unable to connect your Tesla due to missing permissions? Or maybe you're struggling to set up your Smart Charging Virtual Key... If so, this article is here to help you get started with Smart Charging your Tesla.

How should I connect my Tesla?

As a driver, you can now choose what information a third-party app should have access to. With this change, Tesla gives you more control over what data is shared.

When you first try to connect your car to the Smart Charging app, you will be asked to select which information you allow your Smart Charging app to access. Please ensure you allow sharing the following information during the connection process:

- Vehicle Information
- Vehicle Location
- Vehicle Charging Management

If you do not allow one of these items to be shared, your connection will fail. To change this, you will have to update the consent groups in the Tesla app before retrying your connection. Keep reading to find out how you can do this and exactly what data is being used by your Smart Charging app.

How to update the Smart Charging data-sharing scopes in the Tesla app?

To update the data sharing consents given to your Third-Party Smart Charging App, please follow the steps below:

Open the Tesla App and go to your account;
Click on ‘Account’ and go to ‘Security and Privacy’;
Open the 'Security' section and go to ‘Manage Third-Party Apps’;
Look for the ‘Jedlix Smart Charging’ entry and click the ‘Manage’ button;
Tick the boxes of the data groups you did not yet consent to sharing;
At the bottom of the page, click ‘Update’

After updating this access, you can try to connect your Tesla to your Smart Charging app again!

Why does the Smart Charging app need this data?

Tesla has grouped data access and functionalities. Therefore, when our service requires one type of data, the driver must consent to sharing all data within that group.

Your Smart Charging app currently requires consent for three data groups. Here, we detail the type of data processed for each of the consent groups required.

Vehicle Information

This data group allows us to retrieve basic charging data for the EV, such as the State of Charge, the current battery percentage, and the Charging Status. It also allows us to see if the EV is plugged in and charging, etc. This is essential for managing your charging sessions according to your preferences and calculating charging costs, kWh added, and earnings (if applicable).

Vehicle Location

This allows us to know whether you are charging at a known charging location. We do not store the coordinates of any location retrieved. The coordinates we receive are only mapped if/when they match one of the charge locations you set in the app. This allows us to determine the charge costs, energy market optimization to be applied, and whether rewards apply to your session.

Vehicle Charging Management

This allows us to manage your charging sessions:
Start/stop charging and/or commands to schedule: This is what makes it possible for us to pause and restart your charging sessions according to the charging preferences and energy tariffs provided in the app.

Please keep in mind:

Your Smart Charging app will only use the data necessary to provide you with the best smart charging experience. Even though you may give us access to other items (e.g. nearby superchargers), this does not mean these will be retrieved, stored, or used.

Revoking Smart Charging data access through the Tesla app

At any point in time, you can revoke the data sharing consents given to your Third-Party Smart Charging App. Please note that doing this will disrupt all of the services offered by your Smart Charging service. To do this, please follow the steps below:

Open the Tesla App and go to your account;
Click on ‘Account’ and go to ‘Security and Privacy’;
Open the 'Security' section and go to ‘Manage Third-Party Apps’;
Look for the ‘Jedlix Smart Charging’ entry and click the ‘Manage’ button;
At the bottom of the page, click ‘Remove access’

After removing this access, your Smart Charging app will no longer have access to these data groups.

Sharing your Virtual Key

Most Tesla vehicles (except Models S and X from before 2021) now require drivers to generate a Virtual Key for the Smart Charging service. This Key allows our charging commands (start/stop charging) to work.

It is worth mentioning that only third parties authorized by Tesla are able to have Virtual Keys generated for them. In this case, a Key will be created for "assetsconnection.jedlix.com".

How to Share the Tesla Virtual Key?

To share your Virtual Key, please follow the steps as described in the Virtual Key instruction screen:

Click on "Copy link" and paste it into your browser (if you are using an iOS device, please use your Safari browser)
Follow the Virtual Key access flow within the Tesla app;
Go back to your smart charging app and click on “Validate”;

You can also set up a Virtual Key via this link.

Are you driving a leased car?

It is possible that when you click the link above you will receive an error because you are not the vehicle owner - your leasing company is. You should see an option to use your Key Card by holding it in the middle console (similar to how you normally start the car). After doing this, the Virtual Key connection can be approved on the car screen.

What happens when you share your Third-Party Virtual key?

This is a safety feature by Tesla to confirm that we are authorized to send charging commands to your car. Essentially, this establishes a security protocol between the smart charging service and your car.

Rest assured that, when sharing your Third-Party virtual Key with us, this does not entail that any of your personal data or car security is exposed or compromised. We will also not have access to any other features or commands that are not related to your charging process (not necessary for smart charging).

How to remove the Virtual Key for smart charging?

To remove the Virtual Key given to your smart charging app, please go to your Tesla's Dashboard and follow the steps below:

Click on the car symbol to go to the Main menu;
Go to 'Locks';
Under 'Keys' look for "assetsconnection.jedlix.com" and click on the Remove button.
You may need to scan your Key Card to remove this