Siemens versicharge not charging model 3

[allEv]

New to the Tesla family. We have a Siemens US2:VC30GRYU VersiCharge Universal (VC30GRYU). That is charging our BMW I3 for years no issue, received my Tesla M3 yesterday and it is not working, the SIEMENS charger has the solid green light on, indicating ready to charge. The Tesla car also states ready to charge, but no juice is flowing. Has anybody seen this issue too?
Tried a Chargepoint level 2 charger, works with the same adapter.
Tried 110v at the house that is working.
I am lost...

 

[black-m3]

I bumped into the same problem. I purchased the Siemens VersiCharge (VC30GRYU) for my Volt and Leaf. It works on both cars and still does but when I put the Tesla adapter on and try to charge the M3, it shows "Ready to Charge" but doesn't actually charge.

As a workaround I purchased the following adapter.

Model S/X/3 Gen 2 NEMA Adapters (select 6-50 adapter)

Adapter information:
Home Charging Installation

When you get the adapter, just put it on the UMC and plug it into the outlet that the Siemens charger uses.

 

[allEv]

Thanks, this was very helpful, just sad that we have to live with a workaround.

 

[cwerdna]

I'd first start by reporting the problem to Tesla. They could probably resolve it more quickly than Siemens.

Secondly, the units you've plugged into are EVSEs (Siemens Versicharge and Chargepoint level 2 "charger"), not chargers. See these for background info:
Range issues - Page 2 - My Nissan Leaf Forum
Wayback Machine
Basics of SAE J1772 : OpenEVSE Support

For level 1 and 2 AC charging over J1772 (and what Tesla uses in North America with their mobile connector and wall connector, which is J1772 behind the scenes), the charger is on-board the car. The external unit is just a smart safety switch.

For DC charging (e.g. CHAdeMO, CCS, Tesla Supercharger), the external unit IS a charger.

 

[robert774]

I’ve been using the
Siemens VC30BLKR Versicharge 30-Amp Rear Fed Electric Vehicle Charger
successfully for years, first with a Volt, then an S, and now with my 3 with no problems. I would guess your Model 3 cannot reliably detect the amp charge load. You might try setting it to a lower max load in your car’s console to see if that helps.

 

[black-m3]

Thanks for your input, Robert! I tried setting the amp charge load to 30s and then 20s but still no go. What's weird is that even though I set the amp load to something besides 43, when I plugged in charger, it would change back to 43 on the console screen. I wonder if our model (VC30GRYU) is just too old.

 

[cwerdna]

I would guess your Model 3 cannot reliably detect the amp charge load. You might try setting it to a lower max load in your car’s console to see if that helps.

See Basics of SAE J1772 : OpenEVSE Support. An EVSE (the Siemens unit in this case) emits a pilot signal that tells the connected vehicle what its max draw can be. The car's OBC (on-board charger) is supposed to comply and draw no more than that.

 

[mk6tes]

I had the exact same charge to charge my I3 for the past 2 years. And I have no problem to charge my new Model 3 using the same charger. I don't need to change amps load on my Model 3. It detects 30 amps automatically. I got my Model 3 on April 26 with VIN at 15xxx. Do you have earlier Model 3?

 

[davewill]

If I had to guess, the Siemens EVSE may have the same problem some of the early LEAF 120v EVSEs had, where the negative swing of the pilot signal was missing, it went from 0/12v instead of -12/12v.. Most cars didn't care, but Teslas did. It could be a design flaw, or it could be a malfunction of that unit.

 

[CTreast]

Same problem here. At first I thought I got a faulty adapter but no, then I re-wired the Siemens to use a 14-50 plug to go directly into the wall but no. At least this way I can swap between the Tesla cord it came with and the Siemens. The EVSE has charged my leaf for over 2 years and this sucks but I think the only other thing to do is sell it used and buy a compatible EVSE that can charge the Leaf and the 3.

I'll be following this thread.

Edit: When I'm using the Siemens the T logo on my 3 lights up and stays blue. Screen says ready to charge and the phone app says check the charger.

 

[Pinkey]

I have exactly the same problem. Calling Tesla today.

 

[CTreast]

I bit the bullet and bought the juicevox 40a charger. I get a few more Amps now but I only hope I can sell my Siemens now to recover some cost

 

[gjunky]

Don't have one of the Siemens EVSEs but thought perhaps there was a firmware upgrade for it. Did a quick search but it doesn't look there is any available / any way to apply one. You said your unit was old so I thought perhaps there is some update.

 

[FlyArmy]

Another report of the same problem. I have a Siemens VersiCharge (a newer grey model) which charges my Chevy Volt and Model S just fine. Wont charge a Model 3. The Model 3 has a blue charge light and says ready to charge and I never hear the really in the Versicharge close to connect power.

 

[azentropy]

There are a couple of free chargers in the public parking garage in our “downtown” City Hall area. I was excited to give them a try as I figured I could park there while I played tennis at the adjacent facility and get a couple hours of free juice in my Model 3. However I’m having the same issue . Lights up, but no juice flowing.

City of Surprise - City Hall http://api.plugshare.com/view/location/6381

 

[cwerdna]

Hopefully everyone who's experiencing this compatibility problem has reported it to both Tesla and Siemens.

 

[eprosenx]

I bit the bullet and bought the juicevox 40a charger. I get a few more Amps now but I only hope I can sell my Siemens now to recover some cost

Has anyone tried calling Siemens? Seems like even if it is out of warranty they may have heard of the issue and could give you a hint... Firmware update?

 

[scsc168]

I am experiencing the same thing. My office has 4 Siemen's charging stations and none of them works with my Model 3. ChargePoint and also Juicebox are working just fine though. I wonder what's missing in Siemen's charger. Is it missing a wire or something? I reported the same to Tesla and hoping they would come back with some answer.

 

[eprosenx]

I am experiencing the same thing. My office has 4 Siemen's charging stations and none of them works with my Model 3. ChargePoint and also Juicebox are working just fine though. I wonder what's missing in Siemen's charger. Is it missing a wire or something? I reported the same to Tesla and hoping they would come back with some answer.

I would report this to Siemens also. This sounds like a legit issue that Tesla and Siemens should put their heads together on.

 

[cwerdna]

I wonder what's missing in Siemen's charger. Is it missing a wire or something?

It doubt it's a missing wire. J1772 connector only has 5 pins.

Perhaps there's something that's out of spec or something that's in an grey area in terms of the spec/protocol that the Siemens EVSE or the attached Tesla vehicle doesn't "like"?

https://openev.freshdesk.com/support/solutions/articles/6000052074-basics-of-sae-j1772 and https://openev.freshdesk.com/helpdesk/attachments/6004101697 have more info.

There have been some L2 EVSE compat with Leafs as well (e.g. some older Eaton stations and http://www.mynissanleaf.com/viewtopic.php?t=15656). I've personally run stations from Eaton that are problematic with my Leaf (see checkins from 2014 and 2015 at https://www.plugshare.com/location/15000). I have to press the reset button several times on their EVSE to get charging going.