Tesla Model 3/Y Heated Steering Wheel Retrofit Installation

Before the beginning of 2021, the Tesla Model 3/Y did not have a heated steering wheel. This video covers the installation process for a heated steering wheel retrofit in all 3/Y's that didn't originally come with one.
I'd like to start with a massive thank you to JWardell and PyjamaSam on the discord for all of their work on the CANserver and Heated Steering Retrofit Control Board!
These are the items you'll need to purchase. The total cost will be around $700 USD:
CANserver (Dual Bus OBDII): bit.ly/CANserver
Model 3/Y OBDII Adapter (Can be found on Amazon, but note there are different connectors depending on your model year)
Heated Steering Retrofit Control Board: bit.ly/HeatedS...
Aux Power Relay Board (Optional but Recommended): bit.ly/PowerRe...
Tesla OEM Heated Wheel Part #1490214-00-B: bit.ly/Sourcin...
These are the tools that I used:
Terminal (Pin) Removal Tool Kit
Automotive Trim Removal Kit
External Torx (E-Torx) E10 Socket
10mm Hex Bit Socket
Torque Wrench
Normal 10mm Socket
Socket Wrench Set W/ Adapters for the Aforementioned Different Sized Bits
Torx T30,T25,T20,T9 Screwdriver Bits
Thin Metal Tool / Screwdriver for Releasing Wheel Airbag
Wire Stripper / Crimper
Heat Shrink
Electrical Tape
Butt Splice Connectors
1/4" Ring Terminals
14 gauge Stranded Wire
Soldering Supplies
Nice to Have on Hand:
Headlamp
Sharpie
Magnetic Screw Tray
I'd encourage you to use Tesla's free service manual for reference when performing the standard procedures (12v shutoff, airbag removal, steering wheel torque, etc.) in this video. The free documentation is available at bit.ly/TeslaSe.... There are lots of videos on KZbin for some of this stuff, too.
When removing the original wheel, @SK360 on Discord pointed out that you should leave the center bolt still slightly screwed in while you are trying to wiggle the wheel off. Some wheels are harder to pull off than others and you might destroy your clock spring if you pull on the wheel too hard.
For more information specific to the retrofit itself, there is documentation on the Carnetics Shopify here: bit.ly/Carneti.... You'll also find the link to the support server on Discord there.
Finally, I have a few notes on the control board configuration. Once you add the UI_frontLeftSeatHeat analysis item to the CANserver you'll likely need to click the restart button on the retrofit control board homepage before it picks up the new analysis item.
For the UI_frontLeftSeatHeat analysis item, I changed the starting bit to 48 instead of 42 so that the rear middle seat heater triggers the wheel instead of the driver's seat heater. The name of the analysis item needs to stay set to UI_frontLeftSeatHeat, though. Again, check out the Discord linked in the Carnetics Docs if you have any questions about configuration.
Here are the values I changed in the control board's heater settings page:
Level 1: 35C
Level 2: 45C
Level 3: 55C
ErrMin: 420
ErrMax: 1024
Heater Check Settings: Disabled

[@thunderbuddy93]

Amazing video. Used this on how to unlock the connector we need to de-pin by the driver footwell.

[@gentlebear21713]

Excellent, comprehensive video BTW

[@chloeadams1191]

Excellent video

[@CoopersofHampshire]

Did you fit this to a car that already had the heated steering wheel but not the loom or module? Or did you fit it to a car that had nothing? I have a 2020 M3P without and would like to retrofit it.

[@carsonharvey3674]

This retrofit can be done for any Model 3 that didn't come with a heated wheel. The car in this video is from 2018, but I have also retrofitted a 2020 model and there were no differences in the process.

[@CoopersofHampshire]

@carsonharvey3674 ok thank you. Does the existing wheel have the heating element in already then, just Tesla never hooked it up ir do you have to buy a steering wheel from a later model? Do you have a link to the retrofit module kit that needs to be bought?

[@carsonharvey3674]

@@CoopersofHampshire Your existing wheel probably doesn't have a heating element, but you can reference this guide to be sure: bit.ly/SourcingHeatedWheel. The module and other necessary parts are linked in the description.

[@Serge0329]

Does the heating icon appears on Tesla screen now or it’s always on? If so, how do you turn it off when you want it off?

[@carsonharvey3674]

@ ​​⁠No, it is not possible to show the icon on the screen at this time. I setup my heated wheel to mirror the rear middle seat heater in this video. For example, when that seater heater is on level 2, then the heated wheel will also be at level 2. This approach allows you to pre-heat the wheel through the Tesla app as well. Another popular trigger people use is the driver’s seat heater. However, the CAN Server allows you to tie the heated wheel to just about any part of the car you want.

[@liveandletlive2894]

Hey, thanks for the video! If the wire gauge has always been enough to support the heating element, can i just swap the Vcleft and reconfigure with tbx? I read in a tbx article that revosion 00-B is the minimum Vcleft necessary to supginctioe heated wheel.

[@carsonharvey3674]

Unfortunately I don’t think that would work. As far as I know there are other changes to new Vcleft revisions that make it incompatible with older vehicles. I’ve also never heard of anyone successfully updating the car’s software config to have a functional heated wheel button in the climate settings. There are some people in the discord who are way more technical and can probably give you a better answer as to why your idea wouldn’t work.

[@Durzel]

The VCLeft controller that natively supports the heated steering wheel is completely different to the older one. Completely different physical connections. Even if you could fabricate a harness to convert the connectors, the firmware would be different and there's no way the car will accept a body controller running different (later) firmware than the other ones.

[@reinaldomoll]

Is this still working good today without any issues?

[@carsonharvey3674]

Yup! It’s been set and forget for both of the cars I’ve retrofit.

[@gentlebear21713]

Why couldn't you just replace your original steering wheel control module without heating (mounted in the steering wheel) with a module that IS equipped with heating into your newly purchased heated steering wheel? Why go through the process of installing the new CAM server and power supply. A guy I knew plugged his heated model Y's steering wheel into his non-heated model 3, turned the heating on and it worked

[@carsonharvey3674]

None of the Model 3s built through at least the end of 2020 meet the power delivery requirements for the heated wheel. In February 2021, Tesla started shipping a refreshed Model 3 that included a heated steering wheel for the first time. It was discovered that Tesla upgraded MOSFETs in VCLEFT to support the new wheel’s power requirements. The power wire for the wheel in the new cars is the same gauge, though, which is why it's possible to add the power relay board without any other wiring modifications. I’m not certain, but there may have been a brief period where Tesla produced Model 3’s with a beefier VCLEFT and no heated wheel. Community members have reported success without a power relay board, but they eventually experience one of the car’s e-fuses tripping during long drives or if the temperature settings are too high. Even if you skip the power relay board, the car still doesn’t natively support the heating functionality for the new wheel. As far as I know, nothing will happen, and no new controls will appear in the car’s software if all you do is swap wheels. Many people have tried, to no avail, getting Tesla Service to change their vehicle’s gateway configuration to enable heated wheel controls in the software. Some have gotten as far as getting the heated wheel icon to appear in the climate control menu, but it doesn’t actually do anything. That’s likely because Tesla knows the early Model 3’s can’t safely deliver enough power to the wheel. Therefore, you need a CAN Server to interface between the wheel and the car’s network. Since the CAN Server has no way to communicate with the wheel by itself, the wheel control board needs to be added too. You should ask your friend for more details about when his car was built (a sticker inside the driver’s door shows the month/year) and if it was really just plug-and-play. I could’ve saved myself a Saturday and a few hundred bucks if it was that easy!

[@gentlebear21713]

My friend's M3 was a 2021. You've just explained why it was so easy for him. Thanks for getting back to me. I've got a 2018 M3. I'm glad I saw your video when I did. It'll save me some headaches. Thanks again, Carl

[@Durzel]

@@carsonharvey3674 I was one of those people that managed to get Tesla to "run a script" on my 2020 car to tell it that it had a heated steering wheel that was enabled. The techs told me that the UI element appeared in the car, but pressing it did nothing, likely because my VCLeft was incompatible, and wasn't running the right firmware that actually expected & responded to the LIN signals for turning on/off the heated wheel. They undid their changes as they wouldn't let me drive the car away in an unsupported configuration.

[@darrenorange2982]

Does the CAN Server have to stay connected or just to configure?

[@carsonharvey3674]

It needs to stay connected in order to let the wheel know that you turned on the back seat heater or whatever trigger you set. I believe there are physical buttons being developed to control the wheel heater, but I’m not sure if those will still require a CAN server or not.

[@davidalindsey]

I have access to reconfig the vehicle. Reconfigured my 2018 M3P for a PWS, Matrix headlights, and 2.0 center console. Would I not be able to reconfig the vehicle for heated steering wheel and it populate in the UI to enable or is VC left different (bigger mosfets) to handle power draw?

[@carsonharvey3674]

Correct, VC Left has smaller fets on the older models. The wire running from VC Left to the wheel is the same gauge as the new models, though, which is makes the auxiliary power board a perfect solution. There are a number of folks in the discord who have enabled the UI button but haven’t been able to get it to actually control anything as far as I know.

[@davidalindsey]

@@carsonharvey3674 Any possibility of doing the CANBUS server and the rest of the hardware and having the CANBUS monitor for the heated steering wheel in the UI? Seems like it would be possible if it's going by a heated seat trigger.... Why not trigger it with an actual heated steering wheel if the car is reconfiged for it.

[@carsonharvey3674]

@@davidalindseyIt seems like it would be possible, but I don’t think anyone’s been able to make that work yet. There are more insightful people on Discord that have explored this, though, and can probably give you a better answer.

[@alwin230]

@@carsonharvey3674Do you know when and how those guys got the UI button? I have an early 2021 Model 3 with the (at that time) new VCLeft, but initially no heated steering wheel. After swapping it for a heated one I should have all the hardware needed, but as far as I know enabling it on the software side requires to change secured gateway configs (114 and 115) which not even a tesla mechanic was able to activate on my car.

[@xavi1574]

How did you get the 2.0 center console in a 2018, I’ve heard that the harness is different, really curious, also were the matrix headlights plug and play? Thanks!

[@bricevidal7240]

Hello Where do you find this board kit????thnks

[@carsonharvey3674]

Links and additional info in the description. carnetics.myshopify.com/en-us/products/heated-steering-retrofit-control-board

[@petteriarte2436]

Ship to finland?

[@carsonharvey3674]

I'm not the seller for any of the electronics. It seems like the control board only ships to US/Canada, but you might be able to arrange something with the seller if you email or message on Discord.

[@apolloxgod]

You are smart to say that because mine nearly broke my brand new cad

[@carsonharvey3674]

Sorry I’m not sure I understand. Can you give a little more context?

[@PeterSmith-pg7oi]

😋 Promo>SM

[@JifferRiffic]

Amazing video but way to much work, all you need to do is direct the blower to the steering wheel for 2 min and it will be 100 degrees