Can't remove charging cable

[scooterrr]

So I'm Day One into my Model S. Reports of goodness to come, but one distinctly non-trivial problem: I can't seem to get the charging cable to disconnect reliably - or, as of 12:55am PT, at all. I go to the cable and hold down the button, and it clicks and blinks green at me. (I have been able to open the charge port by holding the button down before being connected - though not reliably.) The car is currently fully charged. I've had the key fob with me the whole time.

I've tried

• unlocking the doors via the key fob
• opening the trunk and closing it, plus trying the small touch before the car was unlocked
• opening various doors (that seemed to work once)
• holding the UMC button down for a long period of time

And still, no luck. I'm hoping I can get something to work so I can, y'know, leave my house tomorrow. At this point I'm looking for something obvious that I'm doing wrong, and/or any other suggestions to get me unlocked enough that I can drive to Seattle tomorrow and say put-me-first-please. Don't know if I'm dealing with a cable issue, a car issue... etc.

Thoughts welcome. Might be driving a for-sale car tomorrow otherwise...

 

[andrewket]

Did you try the unlock button from inside the car or the mobile app?

A

 

[Liz G]

I did experience an issue once when trying to remove the UMC . I didnt unlock the car before trying to remove it. Of course it didnt come out and I then remebered I needed to unlock the car first. However, after unlocking the car I still was unable to remove it. On a whim I pushed the UMC into the charger into the charge port further. I then heard a click and was able to remove it. I'm guessing my initial pull on the UMC put pressure on the pins preventing them from retracting and pushing the UMC back in released them.

 

[kendallpb]

I go to the cable and hold down the button, and it clicks and blinks green at me. (I have been able to open the charge port by holding the button down before being connected - though not reliably.)

I don't hold down the button for either thing. Just press and release. Maybe that's the issue? I press the button (like you'd press a doorbell or whatever) when near the charge port and the doors opens. Am I misinterpreting you, or if not, have you tried just pressing, not holding?

For removing the cable, again, I just press/release, I don't press and hold. I have noticed that occasionally...I'm not sure if I don't press it hard enough or if I wait too long before trying to remove, but a few times I have had to press a second time in order to remove the cable. Also, I pull it firmly--just tugging lightly won't do it, it seems. If it doesn't come, I just press the button again. I hear some kind of clickety-click, then remove. The car definitely has to be unlocked for this (I walk to the door so the handles extend, then back to the charge port--I'm usually putting something into the car anyway).

 

[dtich]

I did experience an issue once when trying to remove the UMC . I didnt unlock the car before trying to remove it. Of course it didnt come out and I then remebered I needed to unlock the car first. However, after unlocking the car I still was unable to remove it. On a whim I pushed the UMC into the charger into the charge port further. I then heard a click and was able to remove it. I'm guessing my initial pull on the UMC put pressure on the pins preventing them from retracting and pushing the UMC back in released them.

this.

a: make sure the car is unlocked.

b: make sure to do a little push in, then pull out, each time you remove, to let pressure off the locking pin and allow it to retract.

should work every time.

 

[scooterrr]

this.

a: make sure the car is unlocked.

b: make sure to do a little push in, then pull out, each time you remove, to let pressure off the locking pin and allow it to retract.

should work every time.

Thanks, all. I had forgotten to mention that I couldn't get the color to change to white last night as well. This morning I re-unlocked, touched the button, and then pushed in and pulled back out - and it worked (the second time). I decided not to experiment this morning but will try more tonight.

 

[kendallpb]

Thanks, all. I had forgotten to mention that I couldn't get the color to change to white last night as well. This morning I re-unlocked, touched the button, and then pushed in and pulled back out - and it worked (the second time). I decided not to experiment this morning but will try more tonight.

BTW mine just goes blue; I don't think I've ever seen it white.

 

[FlasherZ]

BTW mine just goes blue; I don't think I've ever seen it white.

It goes blue as you pull it out, then turns white.

 

[jerry33]

BTW mine just goes blue; I don't think I've ever seen it white.

Dark blue means it's connected but not charging (charging stopped). White means it's not connected. It should be white when the door opens but before the connector is plugged in.

 

[NJS1207]

So I'm Day One into my Model S. Reports of goodness to come, but one distinctly non-trivial problem: I can't seem to get the charging cable to disconnect reliably - or, as of 12:55am PT, at all. I go to the cable and hold down the button, and it clicks and blinks green at me. (I have been able to open the charge port by holding the button down before being connected - though not reliably.) The car is currently fully charged. I've had the key fob with me the whole time.

I've tried

• unlocking the doors via the key fob
• opening the trunk and closing it, plus trying the small touch before the car was unlocked
• opening various doors (that seemed to work once)
• holding the UMC button down for a long period of time

And still, no luck. I'm hoping I can get something to work so I can, y'know, leave my house tomorrow. At this point I'm looking for something obvious that I'm doing wrong, and/or any other suggestions to get me unlocked enough that I can drive to Seattle tomorrow and say put-me-first-please. Don't know if I'm dealing with a cable issue, a car issue... etc.

Thoughts welcome. Might be driving a for-sale car tomorrow otherwise...

I have a similar problem with my car. After a panic the first morning when I had to get to work but the cable would not release, I discovered a work-around. It turns out that my car will not properly unlock the charging cable (see below) if the battery is fully charged, but it will unlock it if the car is charging. If I am fully charged in standard mode, I change to extended mode (so the car begins charging again), then press "stop charging" on the touchscreen. At this point the cable will release when you press the button on the charging cable. Obviously, this is a bit of an inconvenience.

Alternatively, I have found that even when fully charged, the cable briefly unlocks when I depress the charge-cable button. When I say briefly, I mean the charge port turns white (sometimes amber) and the pins unlock for less than a second. With practice, my timing has gotten better so I can usually remove the cable before it relocks. Sometimes the charge port does not change color at all after depressing the cable button, though, in which case I have to revert to option #1, which always works.

Obviously there is something wrong with the charge port, and I plan to get it fixed at the annual service. I hope one of these workarounds helps you.

 

[kendallpb]

Dark blue means it's connected but not charging (charging stopped). White means it's not connected. It should be white when the door opens but before the connector is plugged in.

Oh okay, guess I never noticed. Pulling it out, it goes blue...plugging in, I guess I'm not paying attention 'cuz it's late and I'm tired. That's my story and I'm sticking to it. ;-) Thanks, jerry33 & FlasherZ.

 

[jerry33]

Oh okay, guess I never noticed. Pulling it out, it goes blue...plugging in, I guess I'm not paying attention 'cuz it's late and I'm tired. That's my story and I'm sticking to it. ;-)

White actually has a blue tint. It's white in comparison to the dark blue. I suspect it looks blue if you have a white or pearl Model S.

 

[SMCModelSFan]

Just had this problem at the Harris Ranch supercharger, and so did the people charging right before us. Pushing the charger in slightly before pulling worked.

 

[kendallpb]

White actually has a blue tint. It's white in comparison to the dark blue. I suspect it looks blue if you have a white or pearl Model S.

(unplugging and plugging in) Uh..........it's white, I'm just on crack, Sorry, I remembered it as a very light blue-tinted color but apparently I'm not observant, sorry. (blush)

 

[scooterrr]

At this point pressing the button, waiting for some clicks, pushing in and pulling back seems to be working, though it's really fussy. I don't know if I'm having a unique experience here or if it's the common one!