Charge Speed Reduced, unplug and try again

[Yanquetino]

June 2018 RWD-LR started throwing the PCS_a019 this past week.

Unfortunately I'm out of warranty on milage (59k now, 60k by the time I get to the service center)

About $1100 for parts and about $560 labor (USD) is the current estimate.

BUT! After reading Yanquetino's blog post, I've contacted support again as my build date falls into the June/July 2018 window.

Let's hope they revise the estimate and comp the replacement that was never done.

Keeping my fingers crossed for you!

It sure seems like most of these PCS start to fail not long after crossing 50K miles. I would guess that's why Tesla has decided to claim that HV Battery Service Panel is not part of the "battery," and thus is only covered under the expired General Warranty. That way, owners have to pay for the expensive repair —rather than Tesla. Welp… sorry, Tesla, but even if the mediation decides against me, I will always maintain that such battery components should last as long as the battery. If you've been installing faulty PCS that break down after 50K miles, step up to the plate and cover them under the battery warranty! Do the right thing!

 

[mightaswell]

Has anyone ever seen this code actually be a problem with the wall/mobile connector, or the “grid”?

We just got the PCS_a019 code in my friend’s brand new X Plaid last night. It recognized the wall connector as capable of 48 amps, and never seemed to drop below 239 volts, but it just slowly ramped up to 18 amps and then settled on 16/48.

This thread seems to be the most recent on the topic.

Still need to do more experimenting, as this was particularly unique in that it was not only the first time charging the car on a wall connector, but also the first time ever using my wall connector (I just had it installed a couple weeks ago in anticipation of my MYP arriving next week).

So it is either the new car, or the new wall connector! Hate to say it, but I’m kinda hoping it’s his car and not my house

 

[Tronguy]

Has anyone ever seen this code actually be a problem with the wall/mobile connector, or the “grid”?

We just got the PCS_a019 code in my friend’s brand new X Plaid last night. It recognized the wall connector as capable of 48 amps, and never seemed to drop below 239 volts, but it just slowly ramped up to 18 amps and then settled on 16/48.

This thread seems to be the most recent on the topic.

Still need to do more experimenting, as this was particularly unique in that it was not only the first time charging the car on a wall connector, but also the first time ever using my wall connector (I just had it installed a couple weeks ago in anticipation of my MYP arriving next week).

So it is either the new car, or the new wall connector! Hate to say it, but I’m kinda hoping it’s his car and not my house

So, if your car can do 48A @ 240, but his is stuck at 16A, then high probability it’s the new car.

Dunno about Model S’s, but M3 and MY come with either three 16A rectifiers and can do 48A, or two 16A rectifiers and can do 32A. Your friend’s car seems to be stuck at 16A; that seems to indicate a rectifier fault. Unless he had the current limit set low by some mistake.

 

[Yanquetino]

Has anyone ever seen this code actually be a problem with the wall/mobile connector, or the “grid”?

We just got the PCS_a019 code in my friend’s brand new X Plaid last night. It recognized the wall connector as capable of 48 amps, and never seemed to drop below 239 volts, but it just slowly ramped up to 18 amps and then settled on 16/48.

This thread seems to be the most recent on the topic.

Still need to do more experimenting, as this was particularly unique in that it was not only the first time charging the car on a wall connector, but also the first time ever using my wall connector (I just had it installed a couple weeks ago in anticipation of my MYP arriving next week).

So it is either the new car, or the new wall connector! Hate to say it, but I’m kinda hoping it’s his car and not my house

It's the car. See the dispute I've filed.

 

[mightaswell]

So, if your car can do 48A @ 240, but his is stuck at 16A, then high probability it’s the new car.

Dunno about Model S’s, but M3 and MY come with either three 16A rectifiers and can do 48A, or two 16A rectifiers and can do 32A. Your friend’s car seems to be stuck at 16A; that seems to indicate a rectifier fault. Unless he had the current limit set low by some mistake.

Well, to be clear, I don’t have a car yet. This is the first time any car has been plugged into my wall connector. And this is the first time his car has ever been plugged into a wall connector. So we have a little more testing to do.

It's the car. See the dispute I've filed.

Yes, based on all I am reading, it does seem likely to be the car. What a shame for a brand new $170k car.

 

[Tronguy]

Well, to be clear, I don’t have a car yet. This is the first time any car has been plugged into my wall connector. And this is the first time his car has ever been plugged into a wall connector. So we have a little more testing to do.

Yes, based on all I am reading, it does seem likely to be the car. What a shame for a brand new $170k car.

Ah. Then the question is still open. The Gen 3 wall connectors have to go through a commissioning process which sets the maximum current available. Set that incorrectly and 16A is possible.

Further, if there’s a loose wire somewhere or seriously wrong gauge wire, the Tesla will detect the voltage drop as the current goes up and, for safety’s sake, will limit the charging current. People see this all the time when Level 1 charging (120VAC) when using extension cords whose current capacity/wire gauge isn’t sufficient for the draw one wants. Or, once again, a loose socket wire.

For your friend, suggest taking his car to a Service Center; they usually have some Wall Connectors in the parking lot. He can check the car against one of those and be surer about what’s going on.

 

[stonelance]

Like others have mentioned, there are three AC charging circuits in the car, each capable of 16A. Any number of the 3 circuits could be bad, limiting the AC charging speed to any of 0A, 16A, or 32A, depending on how many are bad. Tesla service should be able to determine from the logs if it is the car, but they will still need to ask you a bunch of info. In particular they are going to want a date and time of exactly when the error occurred because the logs are very verbose and they can effectively look at only a couple minutes of logs.

The best way for you to confirm independently is to find another wall connector and plug it in there. I recommend going to the Tesla charging map, setting the filters to look for destination chargers, and then hopefully there is one near you that can be used. It is important to note this only impacts AC charging. You will not hit the same limit with a super charger or any other DC fast chargers.

 

[mightaswell]

Got my MYP today, plugged it in to my wall connector, and it is humming along at 48 amps. So pretty sure the problem is his car. Bummer for him.

 

[ranova]

It's the car. See the dispute I've filed.

any update on your dispute?

Finally got my 200amp panel connected today and got my Gen 3 wall connector up and running. I then saw the dreaded PCS_a019 error and its limiting my charging to 32amps. The wall connector is on a 50amp breaker. Im at about 66k miles so my general warranty is over

 

[Yanquetino]

any update on your dispute?

I can report that the arbitrator has set up a schedule for a "documentary" hearing. The deadline for me to submit my brief was 2 days ago, and I uploaded it long before that. It is now Tesla's turn to upload their brief, after which we can file responses to each other's brief. After that… well, the arbitrator is supposed to issue a decision by December 15. Sheesh! Such a long, drawn-out process!

 

[Dp7-81]

Maybe this will motivate Tesla to do right by people who have this issue. I'm surprised this isn't some type recall.

 

[ranova]

I can report that the arbitrator has set up a schedule for a "documentary" hearing. The deadline for me to submit my brief was 2 days ago, and I uploaded it long before that. It is now Tesla's turn to upload their brief, after which we can file responses to each other's brief. After that… well, the arbitrator is supposed to issue a decision by December 15. Sheesh! Such a long, drawn-out process!

good luck, hope it goes well for you. Im curious, what was their quoted charge to fix it?

 

[Yanquetino]

good luck, hope it goes well for you. Im curious, what was their quoted charge to fix it?

Way back last February, the Las Vegas Service Center quoted me $1,738.18. Not sure what the quote would be now. It's not as if I can't afford to pay such a hefty repair bill, but I deem it a matter of principle: components in the HV Battery Service Panel should be covered under the HV Battery and Drive Unit Warranty.

 

[ranova]

Way back last February, the Las Vegas Service Center quoted me $1,738.18. Not sure what the quote would be now. It's not as if I can't afford to pay such a hefty repair bill, but I deem it a matter of principle: components in the HV Battery Service Panel should be covered under the HV Battery and Drive Unit Warranty.

yeah, nope, thats ridiculous. I will fight this even if the cost was $200. I agree, this is 100% related to the battery, so should be covered under the battery warranty

 

[ranova]

Way back last February, the Las Vegas Service Center quoted me $1,738.18. Not sure what the quote would be now. It's not as if I can't afford to pay such a hefty repair bill, but I deem it a matter of principle: components in the HV Battery Service Panel should be covered under the HV Battery and Drive Unit Warranty.

got the initial quote back: $1649 + $114 in taxes. I want to confirm that is my car and not my wall charger since I just got my 200amp connected yesterday. Should this error show up on all L2 chargers or only if it can go higher than 32A?

 

[Rocky_H]

I want to confirm that is my car and not my wall charger since I just got my 200amp connected yesterday. Should this error show up on all L2 chargers or only if it can go higher than 32A?

It's not a visible error that will show up. That's one of the reasons people are sometimes not even finding out that this is broken until too late. It might happily run at 32A with no indication that anything is wrong at all. It's only if you try to run from a source that is higher than 32A and then find that the car just won't go higher than 32A that people discover part of the internal charger is broken, but there is still no error message.

That's both a good and bad thing. It's good in "failing gracefully", where it continues to operate some, at a reduced level, rather than just dying completely. But it's bad that it isn't giving an indication that it's not doing what it is fully supposed to.

 

[MP3Mike]

Yeah, they really should cycle to a different 16A module with each charge. (When you are charging at/below 16A.) So that they all get used "evenly", and you are likely to get notified of a failed module fairly quickly.

 

[ranova]

It's not a visible error that will show up. That's one of the reasons people are sometimes not even finding out that this is broken until too late. It might happily run at 32A with no indication that anything is wrong at all. It's only if you try to run from a source that is higher than 32A and then find that the car just won't go higher than 32A that people discover part of the internal charger is broken, but there is still no error message.

That's both a good and bad thing. It's good in "failing gracefully", where it continues to operate some, at a reduced level, rather than just dying completely. But it's bad that it isn't giving an indication that it's not doing what it is fully supposed to.

I think its bad all around (I guess its good IF a module dies after your warranty so you can continue to charge, albiet slower speeds). At my previous residence, I just had a normal l2 charger running at 32A for 2 years no issues. If it would've self-diagnosed itself or cycle through different modules (as MP3Mike suggested), it would've likely found the defect well before my 50,000 mile warranty expired earlier this year. I will try to pushback, if not, wait until another module dies before replacing it. I don't *need* the extra 8A of charging (for my 50A breaker install), especially for nearly $2,000.

 

[BigNick]

I charge 48A at home all the time so all three modules should experience roughly the same usage.

 

[ranova]

first response from Tesla: this is not covered under the battery warranty