a_196 "12 volt battery has been disconnected" error *SOLVED*

[MacGreiner]

My wife just called frantically to say that she had received to following error whilst out driving:

Instructed her to return home without stopping. Once back home we tried:
1. Two scroll wheel reset - no change.
2. Vehicle power down - no change.

I popped the "mini grill" plastic cover in the front that allows access to the battery and wiper refill tank, etc.
Sure enough the negative battery lead was so loose I could remove it from the terminal with 3 fingers. Tightened it up. Error reset and no issues since.

We had an usually cold night last night (teens) which is probably anecdotal and not connected as the terminal really was super loose.
I'm documenting this here in case others have the same issue when searching for the error code.

 

[KenC]

Was your Model 3 ever serviced, where the battery might have been disconnected, or do you think it came from the factory like that 2+ yrs ago?

 

[goldengate]

Mine came from the factory like this and unfortunately it happened on a car trip between SF and Santa Barbara.... the service center in SB said they were having to tighten a lot of the battery cables. June 2018 build.

 

[MacGreiner]

Was your Model 3 ever serviced, where the battery might have been disconnected, or do you think it came from the factory like that 2+ yrs ago?

Ken, The front windscreen was replaced soon after we picked it up in Feb 18. I saw some left over black adhesive that had dripped right near the battery. That is the only time I can think of anyone having to access that compartment. Hard to believe it hasn't errored before this time. It was seriously loose. Like "untightened" loose.

 

[KenC]

So, people should check their battery terminal connections, but in particular if you've got a 2018.