S will not charge when outside temp is below zero

[nowtleft]

...is this normal? If so it makes the car pretty useless in Winter:-(

I was not lead to believe the car would only charge when there are positive temperatures - I expected reduced range but my car refuses to charge and heating it up is using the cars battery alarmingly fast. If it doesnt start to charge in about an hour it will then have a dead battery until Spring - refund territory!!

 

[YYZ QQ]

I charge when the outside temperature is well below zero C. The issue likely is the temp of the battery itself.

Do you leave range mode ON? or OFF? Range mode ON reduces battery heater use and can leave you with 0 kWh of regen available if you start driving.

I highly recommend watching ..... oh damn I can't link to the video right now since I am at work and "YouTube" is a blocked website on our company computers.... Search youtube for Tesla Bjorn Bjørn Nyland there is the link to his channel, he actually just put a video up explaining heating the battery. He had a cold soaked battery and when he plugged into the super charger it gave 0 kWh for the first 5-6 minutes while it warmed up the battery.

I found a link to the video (i think) it's off his twitter feed How to quickly heat up freezing cold Tesla battery

 

[nowtleft]

Thanks mate. I saw the video this morning but he went for a drive "like it was stolen" I can't do that as rear wheel drive and roads very iced up. It is now in camper mode, range mode off so warming up - see what happens!!!
Thanks

 

[shelbri]

That is not normal. I charge at below 0F without issue. Are you plugged in to a 50A circuit or supercharging? Call Tesla and they can remotely log into your car and see what is going on. Don’t wait until the battery is dead.

 

[nowtleft]

That is not normal. I charge at below 0F without issue. Are you plugged in to a 50A circuit or supercharging? Call Tesla and they can remotely log into your car and see what is going on. Don’t wait until the battery is dead.

THanks...it is on my 32A home charge point - shows all zeros and charging stopped before it got to set limit.

 

[jbcarioca]

THanks...it is on my 32A home charge point - shows all zeros and charging stopped before it got to set limit.

In your situation it should get to a full charge, wherever you set it. The below 0F, as others state is battery temperature, not ambient, and will only delay charging until the battery warms. Bjprn explains that well and many people who live in normally very cold climates have experienced the cold soak delay. FWIW, turning on the climate control to warm the cabin will also speed the battery warmup time. A trifle counterintuitive, perhaps, but taht will accelerate battery warming.

BTW, a related issue: When driving off in very cold weather the range indicated will rise as battery temperature warms.

For all things cold weather related the authoritative TMC sources are the Norway and Canada sub-forums. Few of the rest of us really know much about it. I found both of those sources very useful when I set off into the Frigid North with no prior BEV experience in those areas. Master rule- expect serious range degradation in cold, snow and rain. of course that was true of ICE as well, although I rarely thought about it with ICE.

 

[gavine]

I know you can't watch YouTube at work, but when you get home, this video is exactly what you need to watch:

 

[nowtleft]

Thanks to everyone for replies. Sorted now - left in camper mode for an hour, unplugged and when reconnected it started charging - we live and learn eh!

Thanks.

 

[jbcarioca]

Thanks to everyone for replies. Sorted now - left in camper mode for an hour, unplugged and when reconnected it started charging - we live and learn eh!

Thanks.

Sorry about your weather st the moment. You probably would have preferred to avoid knowing these facts. I certainly would prefer to have never needed to know.

 

[JSergeant]

I note that the OP is in the UK so he is probably talking 0C, ie 32F, unless he lives in the mountains of Wales or Scotland.

Definitely should be no problem.

 

[Doug_G]

It should charge when you simply plug in without anything extra. It has a pack heater. It may take a little while to warm up the pack, but once it does the car will start to charge.

Exception: in extreme cold you may not get any charging at 110V. Not enough power to heat the pack sufficiently to charge...

 

[nowtleft]

I note that the OP is in the UK so he is probably talking 0C, ie 32F, unless he lives in the mountains of Wales or Scotland.

Definitely should be no problem.

It is currently -3 but was -12 overnight. Got it going but was worried!!

 

[JSergeant]

It is currently -3 but was -12 overnight. Got it going but was worried!!

What part of the UK are you in. With a handle like nowtleft you should be from Cumbria (which is where I grew up) or somewhere up North.
Are you sure it's not a problem with the charger or the connector?

 

[nowtleft]

Originally Lancashire Issue sorted itself but Tesla are looking at voltage drops etc to rule any hardwear issues out. Tesla were very helpful as ever.

Just wish the referral prize sorting team was as good:-(

 

[Burnt Toast]

I note that the OP is in the UK so he is probably talking 0C, ie 32F, unless he lives in the mountains of Wales or Scotland.

Definitely should be no problem.

Mountains in UK LOL. Molehills at best.

 

[whitex]

Originally Lancashire Issue sorted itself but Tesla are looking at voltage drops etc to rule any hardwear issues out. Tesla were very helpful as ever.

Just wish the referral prize sorting team was as good:-(

Is it possible that it was a charger malfunction which has little or nothing to do with temperature? On occasion, grid power issues can cause charging to stop, possibly some other factor. Was there any error, or did the car just stop charging, or did it say it's going at 0KW?

 

[nowtleft]

It stopped at 168 miles before charged to 90%. Screen said 32 amps, 0 volts, o mph added. Just started working again after a few hours

 

[nowtleft]

Mountains in UK LOL. Molehills at best.

LOL, we are at 13300 feet above sea level and it reached -12C last night so not bad for beginners. You see UK has been about and in charge for so long the rocks have worn down

 

[GSP]

It stopped at 168 miles before charged to 90%. Screen said 32 amps, 0 volts, o mph added. Just started working again after a few hours

That zero Volt reading does not seem normal. It also should not have been necessary to unplug and replug. After the pack heats up, charging should start automatically.

I would double check electrical connections to be sure.

GSP

 

[Burnt Toast]

LOL, we are at 13300 feet above sea level and it reached -12C last night so not bad for beginners. You see UK has been about and in charge for so long the rocks have worn down

The only way you are going to get 13,000ft above sea level in the uk is in an Aeroplane.