The incident took place on a scorching hot day
A woman who was trapped inside her Tesla on a scorching hot day has revealed something surprising about the car.
Brianna Janel had attempted to update her car’s system whilst sat in the parking lot of a Chick-fil-A.
She’d expected the update to take 24 minutes, but she ended up being trapped for 40 minutes.
And to make matters worse, this was in Costa Mesa, California. The temperature that day was 103 degrees Fahrenheit – 39 degrees celsius.
Brianna Janel was trapped for 40 minutes in her Tesla. (TikTok/@briana__janel)
It was an unenviable experience by any metric.
Janel began to panic when she couldn’t roll the windows down and felt like she was running out of air.
She documented the experience on TikTok, where it has gone to receive nearly 30 million views.
Tesla offers manual door releases in situations where the car has depleted power. So why didn’t Janel take advantage of this, given she was in such discomfort?
She explained a surprising fact to her followers in a video: “Inside my car, it’s 103 degrees, so I’m slightly freaking out. I hope I don’t run out of air.
“I can’t open up the doors or the windows otherwise I could potentially damage my car, so I’m just stuck in here roasting like a frickin chicken dripping sweat.
“My Chick-fil-A order has been done for 30 minutes. I’m literally sitting outside.”
Brianna Janel documented her experience being trapped in a Tesla and went viral on TikTok. (TikTok/@brianna__janel)
At this point, she was likely at a higher temperature than her burger.
In a video shortly after, she updated her followers on her escape, revealing that the car had reached an astonishing high of 115 degrees.
Janel, drenched in sweat, told viewers: “I literally made it out of my car. The AC has never felt so good, and I’ve never felt better. I feel like I just took a bath.”
Having owned the car for six years, Janel said this was her first time updating the vehicle.
She also claimed that she’d tried activating the car’s air conditioning via the app, but had no luck.
And her advice for fellow Tesla owners?
“Do not update it when you’re sitting in the car. Stick to updating it at 2am like I used to do it.”
According to Consumer Reports, Tesla isn’t the only company offering electronic interior door releases.
Other vehicles with this feature include the Ford Mustang Mach-E, Chevrolet Corvette, Audi E-Tron and the Lucid Air.
Consumer Reports highlighted a case in 2006 in which a driver was trapped for 14 hours due to their car’s flat battery.
The driver was unaware of the manual release and was unable to free himself.
STAR SECRETS has contacted Tesla for comment.