Lubricating Charge Port\Handle

[SDRick]

I have noticed that inserting the HPWC handle into the charge port is not as smooth as it was when the car was new a couple months ago. Any recommendations to give it that like new smooth feeling? I thought a little spray silicone on the handle or some dry lube might work but thought I would ask here first.

 

[DerbyDave]

I'd leave it alone. It is OK. Silicone will likely attract dust.

 

[SDRick]

I have seen many threads discussing cleaning or removing oxidation and dirt/dust buildup on the inside of the port contacts. I'm surprised that there are no recommended methods that maintain the like new smooth feeling inserting or removing the charge handle.

 

[Redmiata98]

I was getting erratic notices over the last week that I needed to reinsert the HPWC charge handle because the connection wasn’t correct. Sometimes it would go away without me doing anything and sometimes I had to reinsert the charge handle to get it to charge. I checked both the charge handle and car port and verified that all the prongs were in place and not bent. My wall charger is 5 1/2 years old so I figured the problem was probably with the HPWC. I took some dry cuetips and rotated them around the connections which produced a blackening of the cuetips. It took 7 cuetips to get the black residue cleaned and I ensured there was no cotton remnants in the connectors. The errors stopped so the cause of the error was probably the black detritus (carbon?) that I removed. I was reluctant to use any silicone and the error has not returned to date.

 

[DerbyDave]

I agree with @SDRick. I am amazed that Tesla or someone on YouTube hasn't posted instructions on this maintenance item, as we might all need to know what to do some day with this issue.

 

[Lasttoy]

Clean the inside with soft cloth. Be very careful. If u look very closely u will see scratches in the port. From dust and dirt. Always wipe off plug before u jam it into the port.