Charging Error Notification, But It Still Charged? Error: CP_a054

[ACRei]

I had a question RE: an odd occurrence that recently happened. I figured I'd ask here before I let my overthinking spiral out of control:

I plugged my Tesla into its wall connector in last night at 23:54. It started charging. I lowered it to 27A. Later into the evening, I lowered it further to 25A since I wouldn't be leaving until later.

I woke up and my iPhone told me there was an error: the handle should be reinserted. However, the Tesla did charge to 80%.

The error code was: CP_a054 (pic of the error attached below)

My worries:

1. The error states the handle wasn’t fully inserted. If there was a gap, is there a risk of electrical arc'ing, or something dangerous?
2. Essentially, I’m afraid either the Tesla or its Wall Connector were damaged charging overnight with that error.

Trying to be rational. Do you guys think the error message was a mistake? The Tesla did charge. And if an incomplete connection was being made, wouldn't either the Wall Connector or the Model 3 cease charging to protect themselves?

Also, error CP_a054 states that it could possibly charge at 16A at this state. However, it was charging at 27A, and I was able to lower it later in the evening to 25A. Would that imply the error message was an initial error, or it resolved itself to allow that level of charging?

Is it safe to conclude Teslas are robust enough in their self-protective mechanisms that if there was a potentially dangerous occurrence in charging, they would just not charge?

Thank you guys for any help

 

[EVRider-FL]

I got a similar alert when charging at home recently (wall connector), but the car completed charging without my having to do anything. It only happened once, so we'll see what happens. I wouldn't worry about it. Note that I didn't make any adjustments to the amperage, I just plugged in and walked away as usual.

 

[MJB-CO]

I had this error back when the weather started to turn colder. In one of the software updates the charge port won't latch if the temperature is too low (it looks like below 40 F). This presumably was to prevent freezing in place. The car will charge normally al long as the handle is actually inserted completely.
If it's cold when you plug in the indicator light will actually remain light blue.

 

[father_of_6]

I had a few instances of "charger not fully latched" type errors, and it tended to result in just charging slower. I don't believe it was actually frozen, just a software update that must be checking external temps. That problem stopped happening, but ultimately wasn't much of a bother since the car still charged.

Recently I've been also getting "charging stopped unexpectedly" notifications, but checking the app immediately afterwards shows the car is still charging. I believe this is also a software bug.

 

[ACRei]

Thank you all for your responses. They were helpful.

I spoke with a Service Advisor and they said it was probably a transient error message. I haven't had any errors since.

I was able to charge over the 16A limit of the CP_a054 error, so it was probably fine.

 

[ACRei]

I recently received error CP_a054. But it seems to have resolved itself.

But now I'm curious...

..say the latch doesn't attach to the charging handle, someone trips over the cable, and the handle flies out of the car while it's charging at it's allowed speed. Under CP_a054, I think it down regulates to 16A maximum.

Does the Tesla Wall Connector and the Tesla just stop charging? Is the wall connector and tesla sophisticated enough to allow such an occurrence without damage to either? Or would I see electrical arc'ing?

Just curious. Thank you in advance for any input.

 

[medphys3]

Nothing (in theory). The car and charger are communicating with each other while connected. If you yanked the charging cable out while charging, the communication pins would disconnect first and the charging would stop- before the charging pins would disconnect so no arcs & sparks.

Look inside your charging port and you'll see the tiny thin pins on the bottom- see how far in they are? Those are for communication. The ones on top are for charging.

 

[ACRei]

Nothing (in theory). The car and charger are communicating with each other while connected. If you yanked the charging cable out while charging, the communication pins would disconnect first and the charging would stop- before the charging pins would disconnect so no arcs & sparks.

Look inside your charging port and you'll see the tiny thin pins on the bottom- see how far in they are? Those are for communication. The ones on top are for charging.

That is definitely a smart design. Thank you for the information!

 

[dIsRuPtEr]

I see the same message whenever it's cold outside, and it only started appearing sometime after the December update. The car will charge normally on its own. Pins are fine, as is the Tesla mobile EVSE. I have the charge amps set pretty low, so have no experience on whether or not they're being throttled. Seems like a software bug to me and hopefully will be fixed with an update.