2011 LEAF stopped charging, 21 DTC's logged

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JPWhite

Well-known member
Joined
Jul 31, 2011
Messages
1,790
Location
Hendersonville TN
Got an EV System warning light this morning. Got to work and it refused to charge at work, so that eliminates the EVSE at home I suppose.

The EV System warning goes out after restarting the car, but it still refuses to charge. LEAFSpy shows 21 DTC's logged. Taking it to the dealer this afternoon to see what they can find.

https://goo.gl/photos/TiEbephMEn5JDxhc6
 
I showed the DTC codes to the service advisor. He immediately asked me if I have had the 12v battery replaced. I said no it's original. He has seen several LEAF's with these symptoms and a slew of DTC codes, and all it is is the 12v battery.

Fingers crossed that is all that it is.
 
Seems as though the solution for every "multiple DTC" event is a new 12v battery.
Not being flippant, just making an observation that I have seen myself. No wonder the 12v battery gets so much air-time on this forum!
 
mwalsh said:
Good to know (still on my original 12v).

The good news is that my 12v battery is fine.

The bad news is that the On Board Charger has failed. Just 7,000 miles past the end of my extended warranty.

They are quoting $2,581 for the part.
 
JPWhite said:
The bad news is that the On Board Charger has failed. Just 7,000 miles past the end of my extended warranty.

They are quoting $2,581 for the part.
F! Very, very sorry to hear that. What do you plan on doing?

Hope this isn't the canary in the coal mine...
 
Is this the 2011 Leaf with over 100,000 miles?

Does it have the quick charge port and if so does it work? Can you clear the codes with Leaf Spy as an example, or disconnect/reconnect the 12 volt battery. There is a DC quick charger (CHAdeMO and/or CCS) that could charge up to 7000 watts from 240 VAC split phase - I'd certainly spend the money on that rather than a replacement on-board charger.

I'm actually considering this charger to "double" my charge rate at home. It also can adapt any commercial level II (AC) charger to bypass the on-board charger and again "double" the charger rate to my 2012 Leaf.
 
jhm614 said:
JPWhite said:
The bad news is that the On Board Charger has failed. Just 7,000 miles past the end of my extended warranty.

They are quoting $2,581 for the part.
F! Very, very sorry to hear that. What do you plan on doing?

Hope this isn't the canary in the coal mine...

I'll get it fixed. Charging the vehicle is important :)

There is the possibility I could limp along on rapid charge sessions only, I didn't try that before taking it in. Not sure I want to put myself through that, especially since CHAdeMo units can either be busy, ICE'd or out of order. WIth no other way to get a charge I could be up a creek very quickly.

I've reached out to clipper creek to see if there is a way I or they can test my EVSE to make sure it's not the source of trouble. The error occured after I unplugged at home, so either the car just failed all on its own, or it was spiked by the EVSE. I can't afford to experiment with the new OBC. I havn't got a root cause from Nissan and the dealer said corporate would need to part back to determine that, I won't get root cause as I drive away. I'll probably use my portable EVSE at home until I can be sure.
 
Marktm said:
Is this the 2011 Leaf with over 100,000 miles?

Does it have the quick charge port and if so does it work? Can you clear the codes with Leaf Spy as an example, or disconnect/reconnect the 12 volt battery. There is a DC quick charger (CHAdeMO and/or CCS) that could charge up to 7000 watts from 240 VAC split phase - I'd certainly spend the money on that rather than a replacement on-board charger.

I'm actually considering this charger to "double" my charge rate at home. It also can adapt any commercial level II (AC) charger to bypass the on-board charger and again "double" the charger rate to my 2012 Leaf.

It is one of the 2011 LEAF's with over 100,000 miles yes :) I was not first past that milestone.

I depend on the LEAF to get to work and back so I can't fiddle around with home brew solutions this go around. As a project car that might be the best approach. I just need reliable wheels.

It's unfortunate it went wrong so soon after the extended warranty expired and before I can get my hands on a model 3.
 
Your experience just convinced me not to put any money into my 2011 Leaf (like a new battery). I have a little over 60,000 miles, but no extended warranty. Sorry to hear of your problem.
 
Stoaty said:
Your experience just convinced me not to put any money into my 2011 Leaf (like a new battery). I have a little over 60,000 miles, but no extended warranty. Sorry to hear of your problem.

I rolled the dice when I got the new battery knowing full well something like this might happen, reasoning that I'd have a new car early 2018 anyway. Shame it failed with such speed. Of course armed with this hindsight I clearly should have bought a second hand LEAF with low miles, for $10,000, added an extended warranty and waited for the model 3.

I remember several years ago while the original battery replacement program had yet to be finalised I made the suggestion to Brian Brockman on these pages that new batteries should come not only with a warranty for the battery but the warranty should also be extended to the EV drivetrain. Those words are kinda haunting me now. I walked into this with my eyes open, so I can't claim I didn't have a clue. Sometimes do do happens.

At least "all" that's left to go wrong now is the inverter, ECM and motor.

When I get the car back I'll reach out to nissan customer service regarding the high cost of repair and see if there is any assistance they can offer. Customer service didn't help me last time, so I'm not holding my breath, but I owe it to myself to at least ask.
 
To the OP, not sure if you are aware but a few people have swapped the 3.6kw onboard charger for a 6.6kw one:

http://www.mynissanleaf.com/viewtopic.php?f=37&t=21106

Don't know if this would work on a 2011, but it's an interesting option. Perhaps the OP on that thread can advise as to whether it would work on a 2011
 
Found another thread on MNF for 2011 charger - the wiring harness is only 12GA so an upgrade would be challenging. Also, I forgot that the 2011/2012 had the charger in the trunk so a totally different animal...

You can get the replacement OEM part for not too bad a price here:

https://www.factorynissanparts.com/parts/2011/Nissan/Leaf/SL/index.cfm?action=partDetail&section=ELECTRICAL&group=ELECTRICAL&subgroup=ELECTRICAL%20COMPONENTS&component=Battery%20charger&partnumber=296A03NA8A&vehicleid=315726&siteid=214081

If you don't want to do the labor yourself, I would think any competent mechanic could do the swap in a couple of hours tops.
 
alozzy said:
Don't know if this would work on a 2011, but it's an interesting option. Perhaps the OP on that thread can advise as to whether it would work on a 2011

I don't think there is much chance - under the hood is completely different on the 2011/2012.

Sorry, JP White. I'm about the same out of extended warranty myself and dreading a big repair.
 
alozzy said:
... If you don't want to do the labor yourself, I would think any competent mechanic could do the swap in a couple of hours tops.
The only caution is that the charger connects to the high voltage bus, therefore I wouldn't use a mechanic unless they had experience and training on electric vehicles.
 
You can test the pilot signal line for continuity to see if the diode is bad. If that is the case, a new diode can be inserted into the line which will allow charging and maintain the safety protocol.
 
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