Zapped while charging new Model Y?!

[MC Lee]

Hi -

I just took delivery of my new Model Y LR yesterday - this is my first EV and honestly I have had zero prior experience with Tesla or any other EV. The car was charging using our newly installed home wall mounted charger... and my 7 year old opened the door and said that the car "pinched" her when she opened the rear passenger door. Sure enough, there was a mild electric charge when I touched the door frame. I discontinued the charging, and the current was no longer detectable on contact. My husband checked today while the car was charging, and the same thing happened. Is this common? It strikes me as rather unsafe and I have not seen any warnings or notices about this being an issue.

 

[4EVar]

Something is faulty. Either the car or your charger. Most likely your charger. This should most definitely not happen and is not normal.

 

[MC Lee]

Something is faulty. Either the car or your charger. Most likely your charger. This should most definitely not happen and is not normal.

Thank you very much!

 

[spsheridan]

I strongly recommend you have this checked out by an electrician before using the charger again if possible. You may have a faulty ground and/or an incorrectly installed charger. In the mean time, you could charge slowly using the provided mobile charger plugged into a standard 120V outlet or go to a local SuperCharger if one is available to you. Did the person who installed your charger have experience installing EV chargers?

 

[roblab]

Maybe easier, see if another charger makes your car positive. If it does, it's your car. If you have another Tesla nearby, have them try your charger to see if it still causes the problem.

But most likely it's the charger, in my opinion.

 

[empiredown]

Maybe easier, see if another charger makes your car positive. If it does, it's your car. If you have another Tesla nearby, have them try your charger to see if it still causes the problem.

But most likely it's the charger, in my opinion.

Dangerous equivalent of "Does this milk taste spoiled to you?"
Bad advice...

ẞ

 

[qdeathstar]

yeah, i would not charge the car again until i had this check out by an electrician.... if the electrician says everything is fine i would then contact tesla...

You should not get shocked.

 

[Rice&Curry]

I think it is best to get your home charger installation / wiring checked ...till then it may be best to go to a Tesla Super Charger and get it charged.

 

[Nakk]

DANGER WILL ROBINSON!!! My guess is It's the charger; it's almost certainly wired incorrectly. If it was the car the built in GFI in the wall charger should trip. That said, I would call Tesla service in the morning. Tell them it's a safety issue and you're afraid of getting electrocuted. They should send out a mobile Ranger right away. You want to be certain it's not the car before you even touch it. 400v is nothing to screw with; it can kill damned quick. They can come out and check both the car and I hope the charger too. Like I said, it is almost certainly the wiring on the wall charger. But the consequences of it turning out to be the car are so bad you should get it checked. Likewise the wall charger is dangerous right now. It's wired wrong and the GFI is not functioning. Another thing that could get somebody dead. Trip the circuit breaker and leave it tripped until it's checked out. PLEASE take this seriously as a threat to your family's lives. Get it checked before anyone so much as touches the car or the charger again.

 

[user212_nr]

The frame of the car is connected to ground while charging, and it is impossible to get a shock from a device that is properly grounded. The current would flow to ground. So there is probably nothing wrong with the car.

Maybe the charger has neutral wired to ground. Or neutral is connected to ground somewhere else. That could cause a small current but not the same kind of current like a live wire.

 

[Watts_Up]

Is there any public charger near where you live where you could perform the same test?

This would be a good way to determine if the problem is with your car or your home charger.

 

[drtimhill]

Hi -

I just took delivery of my new Model Y LR yesterday - this is my first EV and honestly I have had zero prior experience with Tesla or any other EV. The car was charging using our newly installed home wall mounted charger... and my 7 year old opened the door and said that the car "pinched" her when she opened the rear passenger door. Sure enough, there was a mild electric charge when I touched the door frame. I discontinued the charging, and the current was no longer detectable on contact. My husband checked today while the car was charging, and the same thing happened. Is this common? It strikes me as rather unsafe and I have not seen any warnings or notices about this being an issue.

Stop using the charger at once and contact an electrician. Something is very wrong, and someone could get hurt, especially with children in the house.

 

[MC Lee]

Thanks for all the information. Of course we turned off the breaker and I will be calling Tesla this morning. I will post the follow up.

 

[Dangerous Fish]

It's static build up from your clothing. You'd get more than a 'pinch' if the car was live. The fact it gave you both a jolt the first time each of you touched it but not the next time is the giveaway.

 

[mongo]

For the sake of clear communication, I need to correct sone terminology:
The charger is built into the car.
The item in the wall is the Wall Connector. It is a higher threshold GFCI, contactor, and electronics to tell the car how much current it can pull and control the contactor, plus check for faults.

The car's charger interfaces to the 400V pack, but the Wall Connector only provides split phase 240V.

The ground connection to the car exists whenever the car is plugged in, it is not switched when charging is started or stopped.

If the ground at the Wall Connector is actually connected to neutral at an intermediate sub panel, then you could get an offset between the car and the floor (note this would be ore apparent if the ground is wet). This can also occur if everything is correctly wired due to voltage gradients in the earth itself (the reason there is a bonding ring around poools and hot tubs).

Why would this potential be more apparent when charging? Hard to say, usually neutral shifts occur with bad connections and 120V loads.
Edit: Not to imply it is a ground issue. Other items could cause a slight AC leakage.

@MC Lee
Do you notice any lights in the house that change brightness when you charge?
Where was the car when this occurred? Was it wet out?

 

[Dangerous Fish]

A potential difference is going to be there all the time and it doesn't feel like a "pinch" it's more of a "tingle".
This is static.

 

[mongo]

A potential difference is going to be there all the time and it doesn't feel like a "pinch" it's more of a "tingle".
This is static.

It's subjective, our house originally had a hot tub in the basement and a ground offset. I could see it described as a pinch (esp by child momentarily touching an object that could pinch) vs tingle. Especially if you don't expect it.

Like you note, a static zap is not persistent whereas an offset is continuous. By the third attempt, it seems like they would be in tune to a normal static zap vs sonething different. @MC Lee , can you expand on what you meant by "mild electrical charge"?

 

[mswlogo]

My guess is you have static charge build up some how and has nothing to do with the 220V AC.

 

[hcdavis3]

Was it humid that day or very dry. I’ve gotten a static electricity zap a few times in the winter. Rarely in the summer.

 

[user212_nr]

It's static build up from your clothing. You'd get more than a 'pinch' if the car was live. The fact it gave you both a jolt the first time each of you touched it but not the next time is the giveaway.

A static discharge is a one-time thing and not repeatable without "recharging" your static. The OP doesn't say that he tried it more than once, but I thought so. The child and the father both having shocks is possible, so a lot hinges on if the shock happened once or twice per-person.

It does not have to be a live wire, as discussed, just a neutral or contaminated ground wire. That would give a consistent shock of a small current. It could well be live as well, assuming they wore proper shoes they a pinch is possible.