Tesla Model Y complète Shutdown due to 3rd Party EV charger

[Pianewman]

nohjames: TeslaMotorsClub is an amazing source of empathetic advice for new EV owners. I rely heavily on advice given by those members that have a large number of "thumbs up" posts (you can see the number in the box to the left of the posts)

If I were you, I'd revisit the service center, in person, and ask to speak with most senior manager. You should definitely be going past the "front line" of techs. Ask for written confirmation that there is nothing in your car that would have caused the fuse to blow, and that the fuse in fact protected your car from additional damage from the defective 3rd party charger.

I would gently insist on this be in writing, as the 3rd party charging company will require a statement to that effect, since they will be paying for the cost of the replacement of the fuse.

 

[davewill]

It seems to me that OP will have to go ahead and let Tesla repair. Who else can do it? If it turns out to be a $400 bill (plus towing) and done, then it's a much different scenario than a multi thousand dollar repair. Either way, they have a working car and know how much effort to put into persuing a claim against either the charger vendor or Tesla.

Also, they stop the bleeding on storage and car rental fees.

 

[Pianewman]

It seems to me that OP will have to go ahead and let Tesla repair. Who else can do it? If it turns out to be a $400 bill (plus towing) and done, then it's a much different scenario than a multi thousand dollar repair. Either way, they have a working car and know how much effort to put into persuing a claim against either the charger vendor or Tesla.

Also, they stop the bleeding on storage and car rental fees.

OP already paid $1000 for towing.

How much does it cost to replace the blown fuse, and reset all the appropriate computers?

Agree with davewill: get it done, get the car back, and then relentlessly pursue the 3rd-party charging company.

 

[nohjames]

Thanks all for your input and suggestions. I'll definitely avoid 3rd party chargers going forward, Tesla Superchargers only going forward!

 

[holmgang]

OP already paid $1000 for towing.

How much does it cost to replace the blown fuse, and reset all the appropriate computers?

Agree with davewill: get it done, get the car back, and then relentlessly pursue the 3rd-party charging company.

and FYI, Tesla has roadside assistance that includes towing. The terms says for warrantable issues.... but in this of blown fuse, perhaps the cost will be waived by them.

I've used them twice for blown tires and nothing was charged (its explicit in terms that towing for tire/wheel damage is covered).

Roadside Assistance | Tesla Support

Tesla Roadside Assistance is committed to providing you with immediate roadside services, 24/7 365 days a year.

www.tesla.com

 

[rogbmw]

I have just read all the thread. Having owned Tesla's for over 11 1/2 years, it looks like the car did what it was supposed to do. If one has not seen the main fuse, they are very large items. I too had a main fuse go bad, but it was due to the original design on our Model S.

Good luck with the outcome. Sounds like the charger company would be responsible. Although Tesla's response may not have been what you wanted, they do state that there was communications, and that resulted in the fuse "disconnecting". Tesla's do not send electricity back into the charger, they receive it from the charger. Your situation sounds like there was an issue and problem in that electricity reception from the charger.

 

[Mrbrock]

The Tesla service centre (only english speaker apparently) via the app, attached a screenshot of the most recent explanation. I 100% stand by what I observed.. the EV station made a very loud bang, then smoke came out, just smoke, no fire. No invoice, just estimates to replace fuse (Euro400!!) in the app, pushing me to accept and move on. My car insurance company has told me to seek legal assistance from their own company saying that my rights under French law regarding this matter has been violated (especially given the car is less than 2 years old)View attachment 1058080, appears to be free of charge, but could be wrong! they strongly advised not to repair it until an inspection is done from 3rd party... i need this damn car, been 6 days now, so am really stuck on whether to pursue or just eat up the repair and towing cost... the French EV charging company has gone MIA, literally...

This makes no sense. If the charger doesn’t send electricity when it says it will, shouldn’t the car just disconnect the contacts? Why would it blow its own fuse when no electricity is present? This makes it seems like a cyanide capsule. Fuses blow when too much current/voltage flows, not too little.

Also, 44kw?

 

[nohjames]

This makes no sense. If the charger doesn’t send electricity when it says it will, shouldn’t the car just disconnect the contacts? Why would it blow its own fuse when no electricity is present? This makes it seems like a cyanide capsule. Fuses blow when too much current/voltage flows, not too little.

Also, 44kw?
View attachment 1058677

I completely agree with you, and used the same logic, but I was in a position of either getting my car in a reasonable timeframe which i desperately needed due to upcoming commitments or wait another month as anything that needs to be done in France takes FOREVER.. worst is that Tesla called me to say they will start charging me grounding fees of Euro40/day.. my hands were tied. I will be seeking reimbursement from the responsible party afterwards.. I'm dreading the effort involved.

 

[nohjames]

I'm very surprised an improper handshake with a third party EV charging station will cause the battery fuse to blow.. I understand the rationale behind the fuse blowing to "protect" the battery/vehicle, but no electricity was delivered to the car. I just find this odd given the engineering ingenuity of the Tesla vehicle/products. I confirm that only 1Wh of power was delivered from the Chargemap's invoicing. I'm no engineer, but there must be a very technical explanation to all this..

 

[Dangerous Fish]

I'm very surprised an improper handshake with a third party EV charging station will cause the battery fuse to blow.. I understand the rationale behind the fuse blowing to "protect" the battery/vehicle, but no electricity was delivered to the car. I just find this odd given the engineering ingenuity of the Tesla vehicle/products. I confirm that only 1Wh of power was delivered from the Chargemap's invoicing. I'm no engineer, but there must be a very technical explanation to all this..View attachment 1058698

Why do you keep saying the handshake caused the fuse to blow? Who told you that? I think the message you got in the app from Tesla lost some of it's meaning in translation.
During the handshake, no DC is flowing.
The contactors in the car may not even have closed when the charger developed a fault which caused the fuse to blow.
The fuse can blow before any DC is delivered to the car, especially if a short circuit caused it.
I don't know how to explain it in more simple terms than that.

 

[evrepair]

The Tesla reply was written by someone who doesn’t know what they are talking about. Probably someone at the front desk trying to communicate what a technician told them.


What likely happened is that once the handshake was established and charge contactors closed, the surge was delivered by the charger right away. (If you think about it it is more likely to happen right away then during stable charging).

The surge caused the purofuse to blow.

The smoke on the charger side proves that the problem was on the charger. I can’t think of any scenario where this issue could possibly be caused by a defect in the car.

So Tesla is not under any obligation to cover the damages.

 

[tga]

And that's no doubt why Tesla aren't providing any information about it. They don't have any to provide.

Or (devil's advocate again), they have information that shows they may have some blame, and are in full CYA mode.

 

[tga]

One point I'm not sure is clear in this thread - battery fuses are not old fashioned strips of metal that melt when too much current flows.

They are pyrotechnic fuses - there's a small explosive charge that blows open the fuse upon command from the car's computer. No one here is party to the details of why the computer would blow the fuse (beyond overcurrent).

 

[Dangerous Fish]

One point I'm not sure is clear in this thread - battery fuses are not old fashioned strips of metal that melt when too much current flows.

They are pyrotechnic fuses - there's a small explosive charge that blows open the fuse upon command from the car's computer. No one here is party to the details of why the computer would blow the fuse (beyond overcurrent).

There is dedicated circuitry/logic which manages the pyro fuses. There wouldn't be a 'computer bug' or command coming from the main computer which could accidentally fire them, if that's what you're getting at.

 

[evrepair]

And even if it was a “computer bug” then the charger would not be affected and wouldn’t be in smoke.

 

[tga]

There is dedicated circuitry/logic which manages the pyro fuses. There wouldn't be a 'computer bug' or command coming from the main computer which could accidentally fire them, if that's what you're getting at.

I'm not "getting at" anything, beyond my initial point (while playing devil's advocate) that Tesla refusing to give out exculpatory diagnostic data is not somehow evidence of their innocence and automatic proof that the third party charger is 100% at fault.

If a company says "that's not our fault" but refuses to explain or provide any evidence to back it up, maybe treat that with a healthy dose of skepticism?

 

[tls]

Am I reading this correctly? The Tesla fuse operated exactly as designed, right? Why would this be Tesla's fault? The fuse blew before any power got past it, so I don't see how any diagnostic would show anything (just paraphrasing what others have said)

If I grenade an ICE engine because of bad fuel, it isn't the car's fault. (That's why every drop of fuel going into my ICE cars gets a paid receipt!)

Indeed. I had a 2020 Ford shut down due to a bad tank of gas, and the bill for pumping out the bad gas, replacing it, and diagnosing the fuel pump and motor to ensure there were no long-term problems was estimated at $1200 by two different Ford dealers. I was very lucky - the dealership tech found that there was an open TSB for one of the knock sensors and managed to talk his service manager and Ford into covering the work under warranty. But he told me privately they could have taken the line that the knock sensor was not the problem since the tank had obviously bad gas in it and there was water in the fuel filter - and that they would probably have been right.

Being damaged by fueling equipment or fuel is simply not an EV-specific problem, and towing and repair bills in the $1000s for such problems are unfortunately not unique to EVs either these days.

 

[Dangerous Fish]

I'm not "getting at" anything, beyond my initial point (while playing devil's advocate) that Tesla refusing to give out exculpatory diagnostic data is not somehow evidence of their innocence and automatic proof that the third party charger is 100% at fault.

If a company says "that's not our fault" but refuses to explain or provide any evidence to back it up, maybe treat that with a healthy dose of skepticism?

As a few of us keep explaining, the automatic proof exists in that the charger went pop and smoke came out of it. That could only be due to a fault in the charger. Tesla doesn't have to show anyone any data because the cause is blindingly obvious for all to see.

If you or anyone else doesn't agree with that, feel free to offer your explanation as to how you think the series of events reported could have happened.

 

[nohjames]

Now my battery appears to drain faster than before.. I drove only 100kms since recharge after picking up my vehicle from the lot, and it burned 37%! between that overnight it dropped 4% parked, sentry was off, this should not be happening.. This is never ending..

 

[Ed243]

Have you tried making a claim with your insurance company? Let the insurance company pay and deal with recovering the cost.