HELP - Leaf Won't accept a charge

Of course being the 4th of July I might as well be on Mars. There is nobody who can help me. I am just looking for things that as an owner I can check to see if it is something simple. I've already tried 3 evse's 2 level 2 and the included 110 cord. The cord is seated properly.

Is there anything else I can try or am I completely boned and without a car?
Thanks

I suppose you have pushed the timer override button on the dash? What is happening? What are the dash lights doing?

Need more information to start to help.

Can you turn on the car?
What is the current charge level of the main battery?
What indicators are on with the car on?

If the car is not turning on, check to see if the 12V battery is working. If you have a voltmeter what is the 12 volt battery voltage?

When you connect the EVSE, do you get any blue lights?

next question are you using or used recently GE Wattstation?

Yes I can turn on the car. In fact the car operates normally.
I have 2 bars or 18 miles left.
All timers are off
The car beeps as if it is going to charge but that happens even if the charger isn't plugged in.
No blue lights. The green plug is illuminated.
Yes one of the level 2 EVSE is a wattstation. And yes I tested the fuses in the wattstation.
The supplied 110 cord displays ready and never illuminates the charge light.

Diode check by GE wattstation may cause your onboard charger to fail, it happened to quit few people here and usually this happens after few GE wattstation session. There are 2 o 3 topic covering this. Remedy from Nissan they will replace your onboard charger and tell you not to use wattstation anymore

Since the car powers on then the 12V battery is okay. The green plug suggests the proximity circuit is working but the absence of the blue lights suggests something in the verification to charge is not working. The GE Wattstations are getting some bad press about issues with a diode in the LEAF charging system. I see you have had problems with the GE Wattstation before and check out http://www.mynissanleaf.com/viewtopic.php?p=159951#p159951 for more information about the diode.

The only thing I can offer so far is a reset of your car's electrical systems by disconnecting the 12V battery ground. Be sure to power off the car and unplug the J1772 before disconnecting the battery negative terminal.

Edit to add : If you have any quick charging stations this may be another way to charge, assuming you have the quick charge port on your LEAF.

About the diode failures - it appears the trickle charge unit that comes with the car doesn't care about the diode check result. But I see you mentioned the 110V did not work either so it maybe something else.

I would definitely do the electronics reset and use the 110V (120V) Nissan trickle charge EVSE unit.

Another check would be to look at the LEAF input port connectors to see if any foreign material is interfering with the J1772 connections.

Wow I wasn't even watching my old thread. Apparently it took on a life of its own. My problem was the wattstation itself failed and was no longer working, not the other way around. Imagine my surprise.

I was really hoping it would be some stupid fuse or disconnect somewhere in the thread I see that it is other chargers are also exhibiting the same symptoms and that only the chargers that do the diode check are having problems. It makes me wonder if there are many failed diodes that people just don't know about simply because none of their equipment checks for it.

Unfortunately for me level 1 doesn't work so I am sol in 18 miles. It sounds like it is going to need warranty repair.

Thanks for your help though it confirms my poor car is broke.

I did the reset as described and no change. I suppose it is off to the dealer as I feared. I really do want to thank everyone for their help.

I hope to get my leaf back sometime next week. They are replacing the charger. They are also replacing the 110 cord as a precaution. I'm not sure I understand that one, but hey whatever.

jms said:

I hope to get my leaf back sometime next week. They are replacing the charger. They are also replacing the 110 cord as a precaution. I'm not sure I understand that one, but hey whatever.

Click to expand...

Thanks for updating the status of your problem and hope you get your LEAF back soon.

I'm interpreting 'charger' as the 3.3KW unit inside the LEAF that's water cooled and charges the Li-Ion battery. But when you mention '110 cord' that sounds like the Level 1 EVSE that plugs into the wall which is indeed an odd reaction. Maybe they saw something about the plug or cable that is not related to the 3.3KW.

While writing this I'm wishing we had clear identifiers for the different parts of the EV system or subsystems.
The L1 and L2 EVSE could be called 'eves' or maybe mangled to Elves?
The main Li-Ion charger could be called 'Lion Charger' or ACDC?
The DC-DC 12V charger could be called 'Aux Charger' or DCDC?
Then we could say Lions, Oxes, and Elves.

Nekota said:

... Then we could say Lions, Oxes, and Elves.

Click to expand...

Oh my!
Seriously, I'd rather not.

Thanks for posting everyone. Now I know to avoid the wattstation like the plague. O never liked ge products anyways.
Sorry to hear about your loss though.

this happen to me and the fix was disconnect the 12 battery under the hood leave disconnected for a min or two. This will reset the computer and the car should perform nomrally. This has only happen one time. You will loose all your personal settings but the car will be back to nornmal.

you can also just disconnect the 12 volt battery for a few min and then reconnect this will reset the computer and all should be well. This exact thing happen to me and that fixed mine.

I've had it back for more than a month, still charging with the GE and everything is fine. I talked to Nissan consumer affairs about the GE and Leaf rumors and they said they are looking into it but in the mean time keep using the GE and if you have a problem it's still under warranty. Which is good enough for me.

A simple resistance check at the J1772 socket on the car,
between CP (Control Pilot) and Ground, should determine
if the chargers diode is shorted, open, or normal.

If shorted, the Nissan L1 EVSE should still work.
EVSEs that do the "diode check" would fail the check.

If open, the J1772 changing port should not work at all.

It is a shame to need a $3000 fix for a 2¢ diode failure.
Presumably Nissan knows what is failing my now.
Maybe Nissan upgraded the diode in the later chargers?

Have a 2012 Leaf and the onboard charger failed to charge yesterday, both L1 and L2 failed. It was charging half way with the Nissan Aerovironment charger last night and suddenly stopped without finishing charging. When I tried it again this morning, by remove/reinsert the plug, I can hear the water pump comes up for few seconds and then stopped. The EVSE then goes to ready for charge mode. Timer is not set in the car. If I push the timer override button, I can hear a click from the engine compartment, but nothing happened. Since I barely have enough juice to get to the dealer, I decided to drop it to the dealer without trying to disconnect the 12V. I have not try the Nissan L1 either, but using a Clippercreek L1. The car is still under 36k warranty, so hopefully they can fix it without charges ...

Also I've been using GE Wattstation at work for past 2 years and Nissan Aerovironment charger at home for past 3 years. Called the Nissan customer service and he denied there's a known issue with GE Wattstation. Earlier we have a onboard charger reprogram recall on Leaf and that has reduced the regen, does that recall also fix the charger diode issue? Nissan customer service refused to contact their engineering department to get confirmation of this issue, does anyone has more information besides the GE said it was Nissan's fault?

Response from Nissan customer service suggests using 3rd party's EVSE will void the warranty.


Eddie
Thank you for contacting Nissan LEAF Aftersales, my name is Eddie. How may I help you today?
12:45:03 PM

Me
Hi, my Nissan leaf onboard charger has failed
12:45:17 PM
I called earlier to the Nissan care about the Leaf onboard charger failure with GE Wattstation
12:45:44 PM
The rep said he is not aware of the issue and have no further info.
12:46:14 PM
However if you Google the internet with keywords as Nissan Leaf charger failure GE Wattstation, there're few articles and discussion that 'll popped up
12:47:06 PM
The GE spokes person said it was Nissan failed to follow the J1772 protocol and that results the damages
12:47:34 PM
Who at the Nissan can provide more clarification on this, since our company uses GE Wattstation as primary EVSE here.
12:48:14 PM
http://insideevs.com/investigation-complete-nissan-software-issue-to-blame-for-ge-wattstation-damaging-leafs-fix-is-coming/
12:49:03 PM
GE’s official statement:
Nissan and GE have completed their investigation into the instances of Nissan LEAFs experiencing on-board charging (OBC) issues when using certain EV chargers. Nissan has traced the root cause of the issue to the LEAFs OBC software that can allow damage to occur to its OBC components while using certain chargers and in certain instances, such as when a brief under voltage or blackout condition occurs. Nissan is working to address this issue as quickly as possible, and in the meantime is advising customers to avoid charging during times when brownouts or momentary power dips may be likely, such as during electrical storms or high power usage on the grid.
12:49:32 PM

Eddie
Thank you so much for contacting us today. I do apologize. Nissan North America does recommends for the Nissan LEAF to be charged using AeroVironment product as that is our partners. Any other charging station used can void the warranty.
12:51:07 PM

Me
This is bullshit, I have Nissan charger at home
12:52:34 PM
What is your full name? and are you sure about void the warranty if other charger are used?
12:53:07 PM

Eddie
Yes, sir. It is possible that warranty for EV Parts can be voided if using a charging station that is not recommended.
12:53:45 PM

Me
I'll hold you liable for providing incorrect warranty inforation
12:53:50 PM
I'll certainly post this info online to entertain people from your response
12:54:23 PM

Eddie
Do you have any further questions that I may assist you with today?
12:54:49 PM

Me
Yes, need your help to follow up my question
12:55:04 PM

Eddie
Nissan North America does comply with SAE J1772 standards.
12:55:41 PM

Me
Obviously one side is lying and if GE is please provide us your official statement
12:56:37 PM
Currently the only response is from GE and none from Nissan
12:56:59 PM

Eddie
Nissan does not comment on accusations made from third party suppliers. Nissan recommends for LEAF owners to use AV Charging Units.
12:58:21 PM
This is is to protect your warranty.
12:58:46 PM

Me
So will you follow up with your technical team to provide support?
12:59:17 PM

Eddie
No
12:59:21 PM

Me
Thanks, but no thanks! I'll post this transcript online