Why You Still Can’t Close Tesla Model X Doors From the App—Even Though It’s Totally Capable

You’re at the baseball field. You just dropped your kid off. Midway through a peaceful walk to the bleachers, your phone buzzes: “A door on your Tesla Model X is open.” No problem, you think. Open the app, tap a button, done, right?

Wrong. Because despite all its cutting-edge tech, your $100,000 electric spaceship still makes you hike back 300 yards just to push a door closed by hand.

So what gives?

The Model X Can Close Its Doors Automatically, But Not Remotely

Let’s be crystal clear: the Tesla Model X is physically capable of opening and closing its Falcon Wing doors, front doors, and trunk lid all on its own. You don’t need to touch anything. The car has motors, sensors, obstacle detection, and auto-close features.

You can:

Open or close doors using the touchscreen inside the car
Tap a button on the key fob to open or close any door
Trigger door operations with the outside handle if you’re standing next to it
Walk up and have the front door open automatically via the “Auto-Present” feature

But from the Tesla app on your phone? You can:

Open any door
Lock the vehicle
Open or close the trunk and frunk

You cannot remotely close the side doors or the front driver door. There’s no “Close All Doors” button in the app. This isn’t a technical issue. It’s a regulatory one.

Why Tesla Won’t Let You Close Doors Remotely

The reason comes down to U.S. safety regulations, specifically those enforced by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA).

Here’s what’s likely happening behind the scenes:

Risk of injury: Falcon Wing doors and motorized front doors have pinch points that could trap a person, pet, or even object (like a stroller or bike handle).
No line-of-sight control: If Tesla let you close doors from your phone while away from the car, you wouldn’t have visual confirmation that it’s safe. That violates the intent of federal safety regulations.
Obstacle detection isn’t perfect: Yes, Tesla’s doors have sensors and soft-close features. But if those sensors ever failed and someone got hurt? Tesla and regulators would be liable.

Basically, it’s not that Tesla can’t let you close doors remotely, it’s that they legally won’t in the U.S.

But You Can Close the Trunk. Why?

The powered rear liftgate is treated differently under NHTSA rules. It’s allowed to operate remotely from the app because:

It closes relatively slowly
It uses different torque/force sensors
It typically has fewer potential injury points
Users are already accustomed to remotely closing trunks (garage door analogy)

That’s why your Tesla app includes a remote “Close Trunk” button, but nothing for the front doors or Falcon Wings.

Workarounds People Try (With Mixed Results)

Some Tesla owners use third-party apps like Tessie, Stats, or Remote for Tesla to gain more granular control over their vehicle. These apps tap into Tesla’s APIs to expose more features, including:

Remotely rolling up windows
Unlocking/locking specific doors
Starting HVAC with more control

But even these apps cannot close side doors or Falcon Wings remotely. That limitation is baked into the Tesla API itself.

In other words: no app, not even one that uses your Tesla login, can override that specific safety restriction.

What About Summon Mode?

Here’s where it gets interesting: Smart Summon and Basic Summon can move your Tesla Model X forward or backward using the app. You’re allowed to command your 5,000-pound SUV to roll through a parking lot, but not close its own door.

Why the double standard?

Smart Summon requires the user to press and hold the button the entire time (like a dead man switch)
You’re expected to maintain line of sight
Summon is opt-in and still labeled as a “beta” feature with big liability disclaimers

Tesla can get away with Summon under a more permissive regulatory carve-out. Closing doors? That’s considered a “final contact” feature with tighter rules.

Tesla Could Fix This (But Only If the Law Changes)

If Tesla really wanted to solve this, they’d need to:

Add more advanced sensors around all door edges (like LIDAR or full 360-degree pressure sensors)
Certify the system as compliant with updated U.S. safety standards
Add a hold-to-close fail-safe in the app (like Smart Summon)

But so far, it appears Tesla has decided it’s not worth the cost, legal risk, or effort to push this change through regulators. Especially when most owners just grumble and walk back to the car.

Some Users Say They Can Close the Doors, What’s Up With That?

You’ll occasionally hear someone claim they can close their Model X doors from the app. Here’s what’s usually happening:

They’re standing near the car, within Bluetooth range, and using the fob or a paired phone as a key
They’re misunderstanding what the app can do
They’re using non-U.S. models where regulations are more relaxed

Canadian or EU Model X owners often have slightly different software behavior, as international regulators are sometimes more flexible about remote operations.

Final Verdict: It’s Not Tesla’s Fault (Mostly)

So if you’re staring at your phone, wishing you could just tap “Close All Doors” and avoid the long walk, don’t blame Elon. Blame the U.S. regulatory framework, which prioritizes safety over convenience in this case.

Until there’s a change in NHTSA’s stance, your Tesla Model X will continue to be a marvel of engineering, except when it comes to that one open door.