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2017 Model 3 failed CCS upgrade

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I retrofitted my 2017 LR Model 3 to enable CCS charging using the Gen4 charger ECU (1537264-00-B), bundle of wires (purchased on June 6th), and Tesla CCS adapter acquired via Harumio.

Installation of ECU and bundle of wires was completed without a hitch. The next day, I was able to charge via L2 connector with no problems. A few days later, I was able to fast charge via CCS (Volta station at Stonestown Galleria) with no problems. I was excited that I pulled it all off!

Then, the problems started. A few days after my first CCS charge, I plugged into an L2 charger and got the following error: "Charge port requires service. Charging may not be available." The car still charged without a problem, so I didn't think much of it. I charged a few more times with both L2 and Tesla Supercharger, and got no errors, so I thought I was in the clear. I then attempted to charge via CCS again, which charged for a few minutes, but then stopped and I again got the error "Charge port requires service. Charging may not be available." I immediately plugged into an L2 charger, and got the same error, although the car still charged. While in service mode, I looked up the error, and the service error code was "CP_110_thermalVelocityHigh" (image below).
service alert.jpeg

I kept experimenting with L2 and Supercharger sessions over the next few weeks, and I would occasionally get the same error, but the car would still charge. But then, supercharging finally stopped working, which forced me to try to find a solution.

I purchased another bundle of wires (on July 14th, newer version w/ circuit board) thinking that maybe a resistor was loose (thanks @FalconFour for the suggestion). I still got the same error with the new bundle, so that wasn't the problem. I then reinstalled the Gen3 ECU, reinstalled the software, and now L2 and Supercharging work with no errors. So, here are my options as I see them:
  1. Buy another Gen4 ECU to see if my current board is the problem (maybe a solder point was a little loose and is now fully disconnected, and that's why CCS charging worked once but then never again). Pros: only $140 more dollars to spend. Cons: have to get another ECU from Tesla, and the ECU might not even be the problem
  2. Give up on CCS charging and sell everything. Pros: I get money back, and I don't have to be frustrated by this problem anymore. Cons: no CCS charging at all
The only other thing that I can think of is that there's something wrong with the charge port assembly, but since L2 and Sueprcharging still work with the Gen3 ECU, I don't think this is the case. I would love to hear any advice you have for me!
 
Any idea what the ambient temperatures were when the CCS charging did work, versus when it started having problems? I tried to look at historical data at Wunderground.com but the only thing that I found is from SFO (too far away from Stonestown).

From the service menu messages it appears that the problem could be in the thermistor(s) that I believe are attached to the charge port. The resistors in the "bundle of wires" adapter/interface are supposed to simulate those thermistor(s) from what I know. Hopefully @FalconFour may be able to give you some help.
 
It looks like the car tracks the rate of change as well as the absolute value. Because the resistor value is selected to create a very conservative thermistor curve (i.e. the curve doesn't take advantage of the full linear range of the thermistor) it ramps up too quickly for the car's liking.

My guess is the older vehicles have a response curve that is programmed more conservative so the exponential response near the bottom of the thermistor voltage/temperature curve is too fast. A quick and dirty test is wiring a jumper directly on top of the thermistor pins and testing level 3 charging again. To be safe, use a 20kw charger and only run it for a couple minutes.

Ultimately we need CAN values from the ECU to come up with a better resistor value for you to adjust the curve (unless FalconFour has a dataset already).


It also could be software: what version are you currently running?
 
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I have a car of similar age, and I had some issues that turned out to be something as simple as a bad cable in the bundle of wires, but it behaved weird -- not permanently bad. But that doesn't sound like it's the case here.

I'm in the Bay Area. If you want to try with another ECU we could figure out how to meet up, I suppose.
 
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I have a late 2018 model 3 and the parts and bundle are on the way to me, so not eager to read this.
One question, when you say forced a reinstall of the software, how do you do that? My model 3 has been stuck at a 2 month old software release, so I will need to get an update in place to reflash the gen4 controller
 
I have a late 2018 model 3 and the parts and bundle are on the way to me, so not eager to read this.
One question, when you say forced a reinstall of the software, how do you do that? My model 3 has been stuck at a 2 month old software release, so I will need to get an update in place to reflash the gen4 controller
You have to trigger it via the service mode. Just long press the model 3 branding in the software menu in the car and enter "service". Within there you can trigger the software update.

I have a late 2018 as well, on 2022.20.7, with no issues. Charging at a free CCS charger at a Chevy dealership as I type.
 
It looks like the car tracks the rate of change as well as the absolute value. Because the resistor value is selected to create a very conservative thermistor curve (i.e. the curve doesn't take advantage of the full linear range of the thermistor) it ramps up too quickly for the car's liking.

My guess is the older vehicles have a response curve that is programmed more conservative so the exponential response near the bottom of the thermistor voltage/temperature curve is too fast. A quick and dirty test is wiring a jumper directly on top of the thermistor pins and testing level 3 charging again. To be safe, use a 20kw charger and only run it for a couple minutes.

Ultimately we need CAN values from the ECU to come up with a better resistor value for you to adjust the curve (unless FalconFour has a dataset already).


It also could be software: what version are you currently running?
I'm running on software version 2022.20.7, and usually quick to update when new software is pushed.

This theory makes a lot of sense. I'll see if I can muster up the skills from my MechE days to wire up a jumper to test it!
 
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I have a late 2018 model 3 and just did the ECU swap earlier this week. I'm running the software version 2022.20.8 and haven't had any issues. I borrowed my friends CCS adapter and charged twice so far.

Where did you purchase your bundle of wires and ECU

@motormo if you decide to sell the CCS adapter, I'd be happy to take it off your hands.
 
I have a late 2018 model 3 and just did the ECU swap earlier this week. I'm running the software version 2022.20.8 and haven't had any issues. I borrowed my friends CCS adapter and charged twice so far.

Where did you purchase your bundle of wires and ECU

@motormo if you decide to sell the CCS adapter, I'd be happy to take it off your hands.
I got my bundle of wires from 2muchsun -- where did you get yours?
My CCS adapter claims to have been ordered from Tesla Korea to Harum.io (took harum.io 9 days to place the order, don't know why.) If it is marked as ordered (but with no tracking data) does that mean I'm in the clear or might they still abort sending it. Anybody else order a Korean one when you have a 2018 car that Tesla knows does not have the gen4 controller (yet).
 
I got my bundle of wires from 2muchsun -- where did you get yours?
My CCS adapter claims to have been ordered from Tesla Korea to Harum.io (took harum.io 9 days to place the order, don't know why.) If it is marked as ordered (but with no tracking data) does that mean I'm in the clear or might they still abort sending it. Anybody else order a Korean one when you have a 2018 car that Tesla knows does not have the gen4 controller (yet).
I got mine from 2muchsun as well.
I wanted to order from Harum.io but feel skeptical giving them my Tesla login account.
 
I got mine from 2muchsun as well.
I wanted to order from Harum.io but feel skeptical giving them my Tesla login account.
It is wise to be skeptical. However, many TMC users have done this without problem so I decided to do it. Changing the password on the account before giving it to them, of course, and I will change it back once the item arrives at their facility.
 
You have to trigger it via the service mode. Just long press the model 3 branding in the software menu in the car and enter "service". Within there you can trigger the software update.

I have a late 2018 as well, on 2022.20.7, with no issues. Charging at a free CCS charger at a Chevy dealership as I type.
Replying to this ancient message I now see to enter service mode I have to drive to the Tesla service center. Can people confirm that works easily, and there's little risk of not being able to drive there after installing the new board and bundle?

I just got my first software update in 3 months and don't want to install the board until I get an adapter too, but with updates so slow I don't want to waste it.
 
Replying to this ancient message I now see to enter service mode I have to drive to the Tesla service center. Can people confirm that works easily, and there's little risk of not being able to drive there after installing the new board and bundle?

I just got my first software update in 3 months and don't want to install the board until I get an adapter too, but with updates so slow I don't want to waste it.

Depending on what software version you are on now, service mode no longer requires being geofenced at a tesla location. I dont remember which software version made that change, but I triggered service mode on my car in my garage, just looking into it (service mode).
 
2022.20.6 and above, according to what I found with Google....
I am on 2022.12 (as I said they have not updated me in a while) but I have the new mass update ready to install. If I read this right, once I let that install, when it comes time to install my new controller, I will be able to enter service mode in my driveway with the password "service" and then get the vehicle to reflash the controller, then?
 
My 2019 updated fine with a new ECU and bundle of wires from San Jose ( eBay).. I also have a bundle from Canada for a compare/contrast. I just updated with it newest FSD best update. Interesting note. When I booted the car up after swapping the board, I had an "drive train" error.. contact service center. Went away after the software update. Used EA as my test case for a charge after the install and it worked fine.. 18 at 60Kw transfer rate. Much better efficiency than the Setec I normally use. Car was at 60% so no high speed for me yet
 
I retrofitted my 2017 LR Model 3 to enable CCS charging using the Gen4 charger ECU (1537264-00-B), bundle of wires (purchased on June 6th), and Tesla CCS adapter acquired via Harumio.

Installation of ECU and bundle of wires was completed without a hitch. The next day, I was able to charge via L2 connector with no problems. A few days later, I was able to fast charge via CCS (Volta station at Stonestown Galleria) with no problems. I was excited that I pulled it all off!

Then, the problems started. A few days after my first CCS charge, I plugged into an L2 charger and got the following error: "Charge port requires service. Charging may not be available." The car still charged without a problem, so I didn't think much of it. I charged a few more times with both L2 and Tesla Supercharger, and got no errors, so I thought I was in the clear. I then attempted to charge via CCS again, which charged for a few minutes, but then stopped and I again got the error "Charge port requires service. Charging may not be available." I immediately plugged into an L2 charger, and got the same error, although the car still charged. While in service mode, I looked up the error, and the service error code was "CP_110_thermalVelocityHigh" (image below).
View attachment 835511
I kept experimenting with L2 and Supercharger sessions over the next few weeks, and I would occasionally get the same error, but the car would still charge. But then, supercharging finally stopped working, which forced me to try to find a solution.

I purchased another bundle of wires (on July 14th, newer version w/ circuit board) thinking that maybe a resistor was loose (thanks @FalconFour for the suggestion). I still got the same error with the new bundle, so that wasn't the problem. I then reinstalled the Gen3 ECU, reinstalled the software, and now L2 and Supercharging work with no errors. So, here are my options as I see them:
  1. Buy another Gen4 ECU to see if my current board is the problem (maybe a solder point was a little loose and is now fully disconnected, and that's why CCS charging worked once but then never again). Pros: only $140 more dollars to spend. Cons: have to get another ECU from Tesla, and the ECU might not even be the problem
  2. Give up on CCS charging and sell everything. Pros: I get money back, and I don't have to be frustrated by this problem anymore. Cons: no CCS charging at all
The only other thing that I can think of is that there's something wrong with the charge port assembly, but since L2 and Sueprcharging still work with the Gen3 ECU, I don't think this is the case. I would love to hear any advice you have for me!
Did you figure out what caused the issue?

I’m also curious as to how you reversed the mod. Did you just unplug the gen 4 ECU + bundleofwires, pop in the old ECU. Then reinstall software via service mode?
 
Did you figure out what caused the issue?

I’m also curious as to how you reversed the mod. Did you just unplug the gen 4 ECU + bundleofwires, pop in the old ECU. Then reinstall software via service mode?
Hi all, a late update here due to other life things coming up, but here’s the final update:

I did some troubleshooting directly with 2muchsun and was able to rule out some things. Using a known good bundle of wires, we were still getting the same error. We doubt that the problem is with the charger ECU itself. There is another Model 3 (Olof’s) built weeks before mine that has been successfully upgraded. The only thing we can think of that could still be the problem is that I have a prototype part number for the charge port assy, which means it’s possible that there might be slightly different components in the assembly. Most likely the problem is that the thermistors in my current charge port assembly are different than the standard thermistors, which would change the resistor values in the bundle of wires. The next step to solve this would be to replace the entire charge port assembly, but to do that I would have to pay ~$800 and also convince Tesla that I need the part, even though charging works fine with the Gen3 ECU. I’m just not willing to put in the effort and money to do that (or do the install myself).

So! I am giving up on this project, which I am at peace with. If anyone is interested, I have a Gen4 ECU, 2 bundles of wires, and a CCS adapter (bought from Harumio) that I can sell you. Send me a ping ✌️