As the saying goes, “Jealousy looks bad on you, yet you continue to wear it.” One woman intentionally keyed a parked Tesla – twice! – out of spite and probably thought she’d get away with it. She didn’t, because of Tesla’s Sentry Mode.
Sentry Mode works in two ways, one for those cases when someone only touches the car and one for when the vehicle is broken into. The footage that eventually led to the vandal’s arrest was captured in the former, the “alert state” of Sentry Mode.
Video posted online a few days ago by Tesla vlogger Teslatino quickly went viral, for two reasons: first of all, as stated in it, it showed the efficiency of Sentry Mode, and secondly, it showed how horrible some people can be, for no apparent reason. Some time after the first video, Teslatino posted another one, which showed the vandal scratching the car for a second time. You will find both at the bottom of the page.
The Model 3 was parked and the sensors activated the cameras when a woman walking towards her own car, parked next to it, got too close to the Tesla. She was caught using her keys to scratch the Model 3 not once, but twice – the second time as she was getting her kid into the backseat of her own car.
Teslatino says that the Model 3 wasn’t his, but belonged to a friend’s who wanted the footage public. And if you’re thinking what the big deal is, it’s all down to the money needed to repair the damages. Because Teslas aren’t exactly cheap. “A certified shop requested over $3,000 USD,” Teslatino says. “Insurance will cover the repair, but they will also pursue recovering the cost."
The good news is that the friend also sent in the video to the police, who were able to arrest the suspect. Her identity hasn't been made public, but the very fact that she was caught is amazing. "I was just told, that the woman was just put in handcuffs in a police car. They are taking her away for vandalism. Busted!” Teslatino says.
Had it not been for the Sentry Mode, this one instance of vandalism would have probably gone unpunished, like many others before.
Elena has been writing for a living since 2006 and, as a journalist, she has put her double major in English and Spanish to good use. She covers automotive and mobility topics like cars and bicycles, and she always knows the shows worth watching on Netflix and friends. Full profile
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