NissanConnect EV / Telematics Hardware Update, for the post-2G world

Hi.

Speaking for myself: there's no fix from Nissan. I had to disable all forms of telematics connections in the car to stop my 12V battery from draining dead. I've had about 6 of these dead 12v battery incidents since the "upgrade" in Feb.

Apart from the aggravation of a dead battery just as you need to head out, I'm out $200 that Nissan charged me for a new TCU, $100 for a new 12V battery and $50 for a portable battery jumper unit that I now need to carry around.

With the new Nissan Leaf model coming up shortly, I'm not sure how many would consider it or carry any brand loyalty after this fiasco. I'm frankly losing my patience and wouldn't mind it if we all banded together here, hired a lawyer and served Nissan a notice to this crap fixed already.

JR

MalcolmReynolds said:

Have we seen any progress yet on these TCU upgrades? Have they issued any fixes? Upgraded any hardware? Or should I continue to wait on doing the upgrade? I been holding off based on the input here. The dealer tells me "oh, we have done a lot of TCU upgrades and have not heard of a single problem". So for some reason they are pushing hard for me to get this upgrade done.

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I've been hoping for something since http://www.mynissanleaf.com/viewtopic.php?f=30&t=12448&p=497352&hilit=singapore+engineers#p497352.

AFAIK, there have been no fixes in terms of firmware, software nor hardware. Since Nissan hasn't been known to do OTA updates of firmware before, not sure they'd start with the 3G TCU. I've been checking http://x.nissanhelp.com/forums/Knowledgebase/links/783/?catid=783 and http://x.nissanhelp.com/forums/Knowledgebase/links/783/?catid=783 for updated TSBs or service campaigns but seen nothing new. Then again, NissanHelp is sometimes behind.

That said, I eliminated by ! yellow car and DTC P3131 prob via http://www.mynissanleaf.com/viewtopic.php?p=499192#p499192. I've had none of that anymore to this day. I posted http://www.mynissanleaf.com/viewtopic.php?p=501812#p501812 and maybe a week ago, I turned on data transmission to Nissan, auto-saving charging station locations, send unplugged messages and pretty much everything I could find re: auto-saving charging locations. So far, no yellow ! and P3131, yet.

Perhaps there's a bug with locations saved w/the old 2G TCU installed causing probs w/the 3G TCU? I cleared all the old ones out before re-enabling... Let's see if this holds. I was hoping to have the DTC trigger so that I can have the dealer make a note of it when I take it in for the overdue annual "required" battery check cough cough... useless to the customer printout.

I haven't had any dead 12 volt conditions but then again, if there are big drain, it may be masked by my preventative (hoping to make my 12 volt last longer) about weekly charges I make using my Tecmate Optimate 4 12 volt charger.

JRoque: If you don't have a 12 volt charger already, I suggest you charge it up say once every week or two, just to help maintain the 12 volt due to the crappy charging algorithm and help prevent dead 12 volt cases. I have an older version of https://tecmate.com/products/optimate4dp/.

cwerdna said:

AFAIK, there have been no fixes in terms of firmware, software nor hardware. Since Nissan hasn't been known to do OTA updates of firmware before, not sure they'd start with the 3G TCU.

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Nissan's supplier of the 3G TCU may not have designed that ECU to be re-flashed whether in-house or in the field.

Furthermore, the TCU could be keeping a CAN bus 'alive' causing other system ECUs from entering their sleep mode,
resulting in additional current drain besides the TCU's.

dsh said:

For the past two weeks Can't use Nissan EV_zero emission app, shows 0 miles range And gives error message 'no communications with vehicle could be established..." Owner Portal website not getting communications either. Opened Case with EV_Customer Service. Had TCU replaced in December, had to go back to dealer 2x but all was working fine 2 weeks ago, but all of a sudden everything stopped connecting. Tech Department at EV_Customer Service has no clue, which is hard to believe because these problems have been occurring for many many many other owners over the last 6 months to a year. Incredible Customer Service, Nissan. NOT!!!

* ****Update pulled fuse number 34, 20 amp by the battery waited two minutes reinserted it, checked my app and everything works fine. This is so ridiculous.

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Same is happening with my car. 2011 replaced TCU in December (12/19/16) and all worked well until recently. Nissan CS worked on the issue for weeks and letting me know it was bumped up to the next level for a few weeks in a row. Finally said I needed to take it to the dealer for diagnosis. Took it to the dealer and they just re-signed into Nissan Telematics and said it was repaired. Still didn't work! Dealer has no idea what else to do! Have now re-contacted Nissan CS and they are re-opening my case as it was closed when I was told to take it to the dealer! Say what!?

Leafboy said:

Same is happening with my car. 2011 replaced TCU in December (12/19/16) and all worked well until recently. Nissan CS worked on the issue for weeks and letting me know it was bumped up to the next level for a few weeks in a row. Finally said I needed to take it to the dealer for diagnosis. Took it to the dealer and they just re-signed into Nissan Telematics and said it was repaired. Still didn't work! Dealer has no idea what else to do! Have now re-contacted Nissan CS and they are re-opening my case as it was closed when I was told to take it to the dealer! Say what!?

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Which part of @dsh comment "****Update pulled fuse number 34, 20 amp by the battery waited two minutes reinserted it, checked my app and everything works fine." do you not understand?

I had to do a fuse pull just last week. Until Nissan comes up with a permanent "fix" for what is obviously a flawed design, this is the best we have; at least it doesn't require any special tools and it doesn't happen every week.

Should the car be off or on when this is done?

Leafboy said:

Should the car be off or on when this is done?

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OFF.
You only need to wait a few seconds before replacing the fuse (not a couple of minutes)...and you may hear a relay "click" (which is a good sign). You should be able to talk to the car via web/app almost immediately thereafter.

Tried it. Didn't work!

Leafboy said:

Tried it. Didn't work!

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This of course assumes the service tech didn't "disconnect" your service on your last trip to the dealer.
I would give the fuse pull another try, but I just pinged my Leaf so I know the network is working (at least today).

Stanton said:

Leafboy said:

Tried it. Didn't work!

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This of course assumes the service tech didn't "disconnect" your service on your last trip to the dealer.
I would give the fuse pull another try, but I just pinged my Leaf so I know the network is working (at least today).

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I didn't pull the fuse again, but I tried it the next day and it communicated for the first time since May! I did drive it after I pulled the fuse and it sat overnight. Maybe it needed a reboot before the fuse pull trick works. We will see if it continues to work.
Curious.........how was this procedure figured out???

Leafboy said:

Curious.........how was this procedure figured out???

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Cursing was used, tears were shed, blood was spilled, nightmares ensued, heads went bald, marriages were broken... then someone pulled up the schematics and followed the lines to the 3G radio.

For me it came when I figured something was up with the radio because my 12V battery would die the days after the Carwings website/app was down. My radio would get stuck, I thought. Rather than pulling fuses, declining data being sent to Nissan and removing any other option that would cause it to up/download data worked around the problem. If I just reset the modem it would work for a few days and my 12V battery would die again.

I wouldn't have to be pushed too hard to be a willing participant in a class-action suit against Nissan to get them to fix this fiasco once and for all.

JR

I was considering upgrading my TCU, but wanted to find out how many are actually experiencing this issue and how many are not. Wat are my chances of a successful installation?

Update to my post at http://www.mynissanleaf.com/viewtopic.php?p=502854#p502854.

Of course after I pick up my car from the dealer to have them do the lame "required" annual battery check, after charging at work, I get the yellow ! car light and DTC P3131. And, it didn't send the email for charging complete either. I was hoping the problems would repro BEFORE I brought it to them.

So, it doesn't look like a compat problem w/charging locations saved w/the old TCU. I've deleted the only unplugged warning location and cleared the DTC. Let's see if it returns.

At least I think I know how to eliminate the problems completely, but then that means I lose some of the benefits of the upgraded TCU.

Supersleeper said:

I was considering upgrading my TCU, but wanted to find out how many are actually experiencing this issue and how many are not. Wat are my chances of a successful installation?

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Depends on how much the experience the dealer has. You probably will be able to get it to work eventually, but it could take more than 1 dealer visit and several phone calls to EV support w/a bunch of waiting for days or weeks in bteween. That doesn't mean you won't have the other probs (e.g. yellow ! car light + DTC P3131). And, there's the possibility of 12 volt drain that others are encountering.

Supersleeper said:

I was considering upgrading my TCU, but wanted to find out how many are actually experiencing this issue and how many are not. Wat are my chances of a successful installation?

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My upgrade works, and has since install. No failures, no DTC's, no dead batteries, only 1 dealer visit, no calls to Nissan. I can only assume correct planet alignment on installation day.

Leafboy said:

I didn't pull the fuse again, but I tried it the next day and it communicated for the first time since May! I did drive it after I pulled the fuse and it sat overnight. Maybe it needed a reboot before the fuse pull trick works. We will see if it continues to work.
Curious.........how was this procedure figured out???

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I think using the word "procedure" might be a bit generous.
I'm not the one who figured it out, but the reasoning is logical: if the TCU is in fact "timing out", then a "reboot" of the module would probably correct that. Luckily, there's a simple way (fuse #34) to power cycle that module without too much difficulty...and it obviously works.
I simply put a sticky label on the fuse holder/cover so I don't have to "hunt it down" every time my car stops communicating.

I realized I hadn't seen a charge completed notification in 2 weeks. Couldn't update the car state from the app or website. So I pulled fuse 34 and it's working again.

Interestingly enough, the TCU was still working when it polls ("update stations" and the like); it just didn't work to send out updates.

jlv said:

I realized I hadn't seen a charge completed notification in 2 weeks. Couldn't update the car state from the app or website. So I pulled fuse 34 and it's working again.

Interestingly enough, the TCU was still working when it polls ("update stations" and the like); it just didn't work to send out updates.

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That is the way mine works. The TCU can handle station updates and some data to Nissan even when it fails to respond to remote requests and fails to send charge notifications. I had a dead 12-volt battery in January (exactly one month after TCU replacement) and have only needed to pull the fuse twice since then to keep everything working. The 12-volt battery was OK even after being parked for over two weeks at the airport with the Bluetooth unit plugged in to the OBDII port (forgot to unplug it when I parked).

I apologise if that has already been addressed. Does pulling fuse 34 solve the yellow light/P3131 problem? We have '13 SV with the new TCU installed a couple of months ago. We previously had the problem where the app stopped updating, and pulling the fuse fixed that. However, today the app stopped updating again, and the next time we turned on the car the yellow light turned on, with LeafSpy reporting DTC P3131. I read the posts where someone reportedly cleared the error light by stopping data transmission, but does that still allow you to use NissanConnect to query charging status?

notnami said:

I apologise if that has already been addressed. Does pulling fuse 34 solve the yellow light/P3131 problem? We have '13 SV with the new TCU installed a couple of months ago. We previously had the problem where the app stopped updating, and pulling the fuse fixed that. However, today the app stopped updating again, and the next time we turned on the car the yellow light turned on, with LeafSpy reporting DTC P3131. I read the posts where someone reportedly cleared the error light by stopping data transmission, but does that still allow you to use NissanConnect to query charging status?

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Lack of TCU communication and the "yellow light" are related.
Pulling the fuse should fix both after re-start.
I've had to pull the fuse a couple of times in the last week (which is unusual); it's not like you can "break" it (in a way it's already "broken").

Well, the warning light went away and the app started working again without any action on my part. I hope it stays this way.