Yes, the chargers are definitely working. When I first connect, my charge rate sails up past 100 kw and it maintains that rate for 60+ sec before rapidly declining.
Yes, the chargers are definitely working. When I first connect, my charge rate sails up past 100 kw and it maintains that rate for 60+ sec before rapidly declining.
abasile
Conscientious investor
Ditto here on a recent trip up/down US-395 in eastern CA and northern NV. At the Topaz Lake (NV), Lone Pine (CA), and Inyokern (CA) SCs, the ambient temperatures were fairly high and the overall SC usage was low to moderate; we never saw more than one other Tesla charging. While our car's cooling system did run full bore, I never thought to check the louvers.
Based on everyone's experience I'm sure the issue has multiple causes. The thing is though, in the first year I had my car, I never had any issues whatsoever at any Supercharger. Always got top charge speed, never any issues. I also don't remember anyone here reporting issues. Just in the last year or so the reports of issues showed up more frequently. Since it's with old and new cars and with old and new Superchargers I highly doubt it's an aging or 'wear and tear' issue.
OK, good to know. Do you know your battery temperature when starting and when the charge rate drops? Have you charged on a cold morning and seen the same? This morning, was much colder and it maintained 100KW+ for about 7 minutes before dropping like a rock which it did when the battery hit 115F.
Plug it in
Member
I've had the slow charging problem at the Mt. Gilead OH SC, I started at about 13% SOC it ramps up to around 110kwh then rapidly drops to in the 60's with only 33 % SOC, the temp was in the low 70's. The handles at this SC get hot. So I unplugged at headed for Lima OH.
When I got to the Lima SC it was in the mid 70's and my SOC was 12%, it charged at over 100kwh until about 55% SOC then tapered down.The handle was only warm. I think they are using a lower quality handle. The Lima OH SC was opened in 2014 and the Mt. Gilead was opened in Dec. 2016. Changing stalls at Mt. Gilead didn't help, they all act the same.
When I got to the Lima SC it was in the mid 70's and my SOC was 12%, it charged at over 100kwh until about 55% SOC then tapered down.The handle was only warm. I think they are using a lower quality handle. The Lima OH SC was opened in 2014 and the Mt. Gilead was opened in Dec. 2016. Changing stalls at Mt. Gilead didn't help, they all act the same.
Hmm, what model S do you have? The charge taper on the 85 and 90 have you around 70KW at 55% so 100KW seems unlikely at 55%. Do you have the 100D perhaps? Does it have a fatter taper?
Yes I have monitored pack temp. It did not exceed 45 C, but more importantly, with the same pack temperature I was able to restore a normal charge rate by cooling the handle with a wet towel.
Plug it in
Member
Has anybody tried to cool the supercharger handle during charging to see if that is indeed what's throttling the charge rate? I was SCing yesterday in vacaville, ~106F ambient temperature and the SC plug was very hot from the previous car. I arrived with ~30% and was charging at around 65kW. I also charged at Folsom, not paired charger in a parking structure where the handle got quite hot at the end of my charging session, I saw around 67kW from 20-80%.
Yes, I have tried this on a recent road trip during which the temperature was well over 100 to as high as 120 degrees while charging. I was seeing very quick drop from 110kW in charge rate to the 45 kW to 65kW range and in these cases the handles were so hot that you could barely touch them. With no shade and the sun beating on the handle at 120 degrees ambient the handles get extremely hot!
Unfortunately, it was not until rather far along in my trip that the thought occurred to me that I had all I needed with me to try an experiment so I didn't get to prove my findings to the level that I would have liked, but I am convinced that it made a real difference. I had a cooler for drinks in which I had about 10 of the disposable frozen cool packs that are used to ship perishable items and I had a white towel in the car and it finally occurred to me to try cooling the handle after I found that I could get about 5 minutes of 100+ kW charge each time I would switch to another stall after the handle got hot.
When I tied a frozen cool pack to top of the handle with the white towel I was able to maintain the 100 kW charge rate for a much longer period of time with a normal gradual taper through the 90s.
I have about 4000 miles of road trip ahead in the next week and a half and plan to do more testing if temperatures are high during this time.
I can just see it now, in a year we'll all be driving around with a small ice chest full of dry ice. Somebody will have made a custom charging handle wrap that holds the frozen co2. Passerby's will see the fog rolling off the handle dropping to the ground literally looking like a scene from the late 70's Buck Rogers when they're fueling a fighter in New Chicago 
Well, I was going to keep my findings under wrap until I have molded handle cover containers made but I guess it is too late now. Who needs dry ice, almost every supercharger stop has an ice machine somewhere close by.
So according to this diagnostic screen, it seems like both louvered inputs must be used for battery cooling:
The interesting thing here is I've only ever had one louver opened while cooling(back when it was working right).
Read this thread this morning, so it was on my mind when I stopped after a 10 mile drive in 100 degree temp. Sat in the car a bit working, it definitely got louder. Went out and both louvers were opened and fan and compressor going like crazy. Wasn't charging or anything.
Any reason you chose the top of the handle? In my experience it is the ground facing side of the handle that is the hottest (and where the temp sensor is located, I believe)?
