Series 1 HPWC issues with 2018 model S

[bob_p]

Tesla will have a large problem if recent (MCU2) vehicles are incompatible with Gen 1 chargers (HPWC, UMC, 14-50) - swapping out home Gen 1 HPWCs will solve the home overnight charging problem - but doesn't address the larger problem of Gen 1 HPWCs used as destination chargers.

When I talked to the charging team, they believed the problem will be solved by a software update, but because it will likely take a while (month or two) to get the update developed, tested and distributed, they recommended upgrading our Gen 1 HPWC with a Gen 2.

For real-time software, running the software on different processors (different architectures - nVidia/Intel, different speeds) always has the risk of breaking some features that relied on the speed of the processor to control timing, vs. implementing synchronization code that guarantees operations happen in the proper sequence.

If that is the cause of the Gen1 charger incompatibility, then hopefully the software developers will not only fix the Gen 1 charging communication software - but also review the Gen 2 software and ensure they aren't making the same mistakes - because it's inevitable there will be a MCU3 with an even faster processor at some point down the road...

 

[sner]

Not to rain on the MCU2 issue but I have the problem with the old MCU. 2014 P85 and March 2018 Model X100d with old MCU . I can use the HPWC on either car with no problem but the original UMC sometimes will cause the error on the new Model X. The two workarounds I have used are:

1-Unplug and then plug back in the UMC (seems to reset the connection)
2-Open the charge port from the screen instead of the button on the UMC.

If all else fails I will just use the newer UMC that came with the X, but I liked being able to charge at 40 vs. 32 amps. I can still use the HPWC to charge at 72 amps if necessary.

 

[mknox]

It seems the older Wall Charger has a less sophisticated control system and the newer Tesla did not get the right signals back to keep the charge continuing. Instead, there was both an error message on the Tesla and the Wall Charger went to "red" indicator - showing it was not working.

I get the same (red ring and red light on the HPWC) but very rarely. Like 3 times in the last 3 months when charging. It will happen more often if I use remote HVAC while plugged in. I will come out to find the red lights on and the car's HVAC drawing down the battery pack.

 

[AmpedRealtor]

Yeah, I spoke too soon. It had been working okay, but this morning I came out to a red ring on the car and a red light on the HPWC. Others have reported it as being temperature related, but that has not been the case for me. Heat wave here with temps in the high 90's and working fine. It was actually a bit cooler this morning when I had the problem again.

I started having trouble with my Gen 1 HPWC about a year ago. I would get a red charge ring, but the HPWC would be green. Logs showed multiple voltage spikes of +30-40 volts every time the charging faulted. Power company tested the lines and said they were fine. Nothing else has changed on my side. Tesla said that it was the HPWC. I don't know how the HPWC can trigger voltage spikes, but ok.

A few days ago my Gen 1 HPWC started faulting. I had a red light (single blink) on the HPWC indicating a "ground fault". Hmmm... never had that before! Re-plugged and it charged fine for about an hour and then hit another ground fault. Tesla gave me a Gen 2 HPWC last year when I started having problems, which I installed this last weekend. Everything has been working smoothly ever since (knock wood).

I should have taken a video of me installing this thing, it was hilarious...

 

[mknox]

A few days ago my Gen 1 HPWC started faulting. I had a red light (single blink) on the HPWC indicating a "ground fault".

When mine faults, I get a steady (non-blinking) red light on the HPWC. A power cycle will refresh it.

I just checked my Gen 1 HPWC manual and oddly, there is no explanation for a steady red light in the Troubleshooting section. They only talk about 1, 2, 3, 4 or 5 or more flashes of the red light.

 

[bob_p]

With our 2012 S P85, we had two times when we had charging issues.

One was caused after a major storm, damaging the grid hardware, causing charging problems for all Tesla vehicles in our area - which also damaged our secondary 40A onboard charger (requiring replacement).

It was about a year later we started having charging problems again, and this time it was the primary charger that had failed (possibly a delayed reaction to the first charging problem).

If you don't have a recently built vehicle, and you're having charging problems, call Tesla, have them look at the logs, and if they recommend taking the vehicle in for service, also bring your charging connector (if it isn't an HPWC) and have them test both the vehicle and your charging connector.

 

[boaterva]

When mine faults, I get a steady (non-blinking) red light on the HPWC. A power cycle will refresh it.

I just checked my Gen 1 HPWC manual and oddly, there is no explanation for a steady red light in the Troubleshooting section. They only talk about 1, 2, 3, 4 or 5 or more flashes of the red light.

That’s interesting. I wonder if the MCU2 (unknown hardware to the Gen 1 HPWC) has created some sort of undocumented error (general comms error?). You would still think all possibilities would be documented.... perhaps it’s wedged with the light on?

 

[mknox]

That’s interesting. I wonder if the MCU2 (unknown hardware to the Gen 1 HPWC) has created some sort of undocumented error (general comms error?). You would still think all possibilities would be documented.... perhaps it’s wedged with the light on?

Dunno. Every time it happens I get a steady non-blinking red light on the HPWC. It happens rarely... like maybe once a month. Also red ring on the car's charge port. I happen to have a disconnect switch mounted next to my HPWC and simply powering it off, then on again gets the thing back to normal.

 

[BioTech]

Well I have a Jan 2018 S 100D (think its MCU1) and I get the problem all the time on Gen 1 HPWC. Have had the same thing happen at Destination chargers. Lucky they usually have another one or a j1772 plug. Right now I am fighting this issue at a
Marriott in Dallas now. I am working for a month near the llocation and drive back and forth to another location without a charger at all. It will charge for about an hour then error out once I do get it to work. Tesla could not find a problems with my car but will be replacing the charging port and such this week. I never get the error on a HPWC Gen 2 or a standard j1772 plug. This is driving me nuts and loosing confidence in the car.

 

[X Fan]

Well I have a Jan 2018 S 100D (think its MCU1) and I get the problem all the time on Gen 1 HPWC. Have had the same thing happen at Destination chargers. Lucky they usually have another one or a j1772 plug. Right now I am fighting this issue at a
Marriott in Dallas now. I am working for a month near the llocation and drive back and forth to another location without a charger at all. It will charge for about an hour then error out once I do get it to work. Tesla could not find a problems with my car but will be replacing the charging port and such this week. I never get the error on a HPWC Gen 2 or a standard j1772 plug. This is driving me nuts and loosing confidence in the car.

try setting your amps low to start and then when it connects for a bit, ramp up your Amps. That's worked for me at home.

 

[BioTech]

try setting your amps low to start and then when it connects for a bit, ramp up your Amps. That's worked for me at home.

YA right now it set for 32 amps and does the same thing errors our after a bit or will not start at all. The charger is rated at 42 amps when I first connect.

 

[X Fan]

^^^^
try even lower, about 10A; if will typically fail in first 5 minutes; after that you can ramp.

I did that today and after 10 minutes ramped it up to 72A.

 

[chas100d]

Well I have a Jan 2018 S 100D (think its MCU1) and I get the problem all the time on Gen 1 HPWC. Have had the same thing happen at Destination chargers. Lucky they usually have another one or a j1772 plug. Right now I am fighting this issue at a
Marriott in Dallas now. I am working for a month near the llocation and drive back and forth to another location without a charger at all. It will charge for about an hour then error out once I do get it to work. Tesla could not find a problems with my car but will be replacing the charging port and such this week. I never get the error on a HPWC Gen 2 or a standard j1772 plug. This is driving me nuts and loosing confidence in the car.

I am one of those unfortunate souls who has owned an older Model S 70 (Dec 2015) and Gen 1 HPWC for 2 years prior to buying a newer Model S 100D (Dec 2017). The red light charging faults began on my S 100D within the first month, first intermittently, but now with every charge attempt. I had never had the red light charging fault with my S 70 and HPWC.

I have been advised by Tesla service support the fix for my charging problem was to replace the cable, replace the adapter port, replace the HPWC, and replace the onboard charger.
I wish I had the knowledge provided in the latest posts to this forum since it would have saved me the time and frustration of multiple visits to the Tesla service centers to replace the charging adapter and onboard charger. On one visit they installed the wrong onboard charger (48A instead of 72A).

We have been experiencing these red light charging faults on our 100D for over six months now, which is also the same length of time we have been waiting for our Elon Musk Signature charger referral award.
It is pretty clear to me that Tesla has a compatibility problem with the newer Teslas and Gen 1 HPWC. Unfortunately for us early buyers, the warranties expired on our Gen 1 HPWC units before we would discover they would not support the newer Teslas. Evidently, Tesla did not test or know this incompatibility either.
The ultimate fix for this is for Tesla to find an engineering software/hardware resolution for this Gen 1 HPWC issue or assume the costs of replacing the existing Gen 1 HPWC units in the field.

 

[bob_p]

If you're experiencing these issues, recommend you request talking with the "charging team", so they can add your car to the list of vehicles with issues, and they may be able to provide more help, since they are focusing on solving this problem (than the standard phone support or the local service centers).

It appears information on this issue is not being distributed to phone support, the local service centers, or the delivery teams. When I first called the phone support group, their response was to schedule a service center appointment. Which was cancelled after the charging team called me back to confirm this is a general problem, that would be fixed by swapping our Gen 1 HPWC with a Gen 2 HPWC.

This week, I exchanged e-mails with our local delivery person - and mentioned the Gen 1 charger issue, and recommended they warn repeat Tesla customers about this when they accepted delivery on a new vehicle. They were unaware of the issue, she then made an appointment for their mobile service to come out and test our car - which I quickly cancelled.

With Tesla producing 7000 new vehicles a week, this is going to affect an increasingly larger number of vehicles, and while using Gen 2 charging at home can help, it doesn't address the Gen 1 HPWC destination chargers - which can cause owners to get stranded at a destination charger, unable to charge, and possibly without enough charge to make it to the nearest supercharger.

We need the fix - and Tesla also needs to brief their phone support, service centers and delivery teams on this issue - so they can avoid unnecessary service appointments and inform new owners on what to expect, until a fix can be distributed.

 

[X Fan]

^^^^^
Bob-
Great post.

Hopefully, Tesla realizes that this impacts home and road trip.scenarios and is not a "minor" issue worth ignoring ie USB use.

Re: charging team. They must be swamped since I called and left a Vm and then emailed 2 days ago and haven't received a response.

BTW: they were going to dispatch a ranger and I also suggested not needed.

 

[BioTech]

I wonder if its just a new part or firmware in the onboard charge that they introduces sometime near the end of 2017. Hope the parts they are replacing this week will work. If that does fix it maybe its just a bad set of parts or a new version in the cars besides the MCU. I have finally given up on the local Gen 1 destination charger. I now drive out of my way to hit a supercharger for an hour everyday. I am getting new parts this Saturday installed. Will try the same Gen 1 Charger again next week. Hope this fixes the issue. I do not think it will work but fingers crossed.

 

[BioTech]

Also may try my wife 3 if she will let me . Anyone here of the issue with them?

 

[chas100d]

Maybe I am looking at this in a simplistic way, but . . .
If there are newer Model S cars (specifically S 100D in my case) out there that can charge without errors on Gen 1 HPWC while other S 100D cars fail . . . then Tesla should diagnose and identify the difference in the tests . . . and fix it! At this point, I don't care if the fix is in the 100D or the Gen 1 HPWC. It's not Rocket Science for these components!!

 

[bob_p]

For home charging, this only affects those customers who have previously purchased a Tesla, which is likely a small percentage of new customers.

Destination charging issues are only discovered when someone takes a recently built Tesla out for a road trip (which would also be a small percentage) and then stays at a location with a Gen 1 HPWC (which is only for those locations who were early participants in the destination charger program).

This is why the forums are not swamped with complaints about this issue - because only a relatively small number of customers purchasing recently built vehicles have been affected.

Though for those owners who aren't aware of this issue - and discover it on a road trip at a Gen 1 destination charger, it could be a challenging experience, especially if they aren't close to a supercharger...

 

[BioTech]

Maybe I am looking at this in a simplistic way, but . . .
If there are newer Model S cars (specifically S 100D in my case) out there that can charge without errors on Gen 1 HPWC while other S 100D cars fail . . . then Tesla should diagnose and identify the difference in the tests . . . and fix it! At this point, I don't care if the fix is in the 100D or the Gen 1 HPWC. It's not Rocket Science for these components!!

The strange thing is, I can use some Destination Gen 1 Chargers without any issues. I used one all week in Key West. They had two one would not work but the other worked without an issues. Also tried a few in Texas without issues.