BYD sentry mode: watching a parked car
While your BYD is parked, Yoldaş can notify your phone when a possible person appears on the camera you choose. This feature is in testing and off by default.
Last updated: October 4, 2026 · Version 0.10.1
The sentry works while the head unit is awake. When the car is switched off and the screen sleeps, Yoldaş stops too. There is no way yet to keep the car awake overnight, so do not rely on Yoldaş as a security system today.
How it works
- At most one small image per second is checked from a single camera you choose.
- Motion is checked first; headlight glare and overall light changes are ignored for a moment.
- If there is motion, an on-device model looks only for the "person" class. The same candidate must appear in several frames for at least two seconds.
- Then an event is logged and, if you enabled it, your phone gets a notification. The same person does not trigger another notification for 60 seconds.
Yoldaş does no face recognition and does not identify anyone. Analysed images are never written to disk or sent to the cloud; only the time and type of the event are.
Status today
- In testing Person detection while parked, phone notification, turning sentry on and off from the phone.
- Not yet Automatic recording on detection, running while the car sleeps, direction and distance of the person.
Recording with the car's cameras is covered on the dashcam page. A more detailed page is available in Turkish: Nöbetçi modu.
Frequently asked questions
Does BYD have a sentry mode?
BYD's own software has no Tesla-style sentry mode. Yoldaş and some third-party apps use the car's own cameras to do this. Yoldaş's sentry mode is currently in testing.
Will sentry mode drain the battery?
Yoldaş does not keep the car awake. When the head unit goes to sleep, the sentry stops too, so there is no extra drain. We have not yet measured consumption while the screen is on.
Does it start recording when a person is seen?
Not in the current version. You get a phone notification; if recording is on, check the recording.
Try Yoldaş
Free during the pilot. Current version 0.10.1. Read the install guide first.