Three flashing blue lights, 3 beeps.

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ebeighe

Well-known member
Joined
Jul 5, 2017
Messages
96
Location
Phoenix, AZ
Recently my 2017 Leaf have been doing a triple-beep along with a triple flash (all three lights flash at once) whenever i unplug my OpenEVSE.
It didn't used to do this. It doesn't do it when I use the level 1 nissan evse.
It occurs after i press the trigger on the j1772 handle; when it's phsically being yanked out of the socket; sometimes it does it more than once (like two or three sets of triple beeps/flashes).

I made a video in case i'm not explaining this correctly:
https://photos.google.com/photo/AF1QipPDJHPsEROOgJZUe9Y5o9XatZtfy6ddftWv4Mnl
The first 40 seconds is the oem evse working as expected, so you can skip over that.

I checked for trouble codes with leafspy; there were 13 different "OK None", plus this one that i don't know if it means anything:
U1000 0008 BCM CAN comm circuit

The car's charge timer is inactive.

I read through this thread:
http://www.mynissanleaf.com/viewtopic.php?f=30&t=15573
I supposed it's similar but i was sortof confused about the solutions.

the j1772 handle on my OpenEVSE is marked "quickchargepower.com" and "j-plug 40A" in case that tells anything
https://store.openevse.com/collections/frontpage/products/40a-charging-station-powered-by-openevse

It otherwise and still charges just fine -- is this causing any problems I might not be aware of? is it bad for the Leaf?
 
LeftieBiker said:
Does it do it even if the car isn't charging at the time?
"Isn't charging", as in because it's done charging? -- not sure because i almost never charge it to 100%
or did you mean something else?

By the way, I just realized if i press and hold the release button on the handle and wiggle it around (like from left to right, instead of pulling it straight out), it does the triple beep/blink over and over.
 
ebeighe said:
By the way, I just realized if i press and hold the release button on the handle and wiggle it around (like from left to right, instead of pulling it straight out), it does the triple beep/blink over and over.
I've found that on properly working EVSEs (like Chargepoint CT4000 at work), if I press and hold the trigger for several seconds while the car is charging, that will trigger the beep-beep-beep...pause... beep-beep-beep... pause sequence w/the 3 blue lights flashing in unison and synchronized w/the beeping.

The same thing will happen if the gasket is melted/deformed in a J1772 handle and blocks the handle from going all the way onto the inlet. I've had this happen at free public L2 charging. Some folks have had to just pry the gasket out of there, as a workaround.
 
I meant 'as in finished charging.' It looks though as if you have a marginal connection at the J-1772 plug/socket. Is it hard to plug and unplug the charging cable into/from the car?
 
LeftieBiker said:
... Is it hard to plug and unplug the charging cable into/from the car?
It is. It's always felt stiffer than the others i've used (the oem one, and a handful of public chargers). But the more-or-less consistent beeping just started within the past 2 weeks.
sounds like i should request a replacement handle; the evse is only about 6 months old.
 
LeftieBiker said:
First try plugging it in very firmly. If that doesn't work, check the rubber O-ring in the plug. It may be folded or otherwise unseated.
will do once the car returns.

Hey, something just made me wonder...
The mains relay makes a distinct clunk noise when it engages or disengages.
So i hear the clunk very shortly after plugging in the j1772 handle (as expected).
When it comes time to un-plug -- i press the handle button, the car stops charging (as expected) more-or-less immediately; the blue indicators go out...
but the relay doesn't disengage until I physically pull the handle out.

Is that right / expected ?
 
LeftieBiker said:
I don't recall hearing a clunking noise when I unplug, unless I'm interrupting charging.

right; so to be clear, when you say interrupt, you mean the car is actively charging and you press the handle release button, right?

my question is when you do so, does the relay disengage upon pressing the handle's button, or only when the handle is physically pulled out?
on mine, it's definitely the latter; but i'm wondering if that's correct behavior(?).
i'm not clear on exactly what the function of the button is; it obviously has two distinct facets -- one is to mechanically latch the handle to the car; but electronically the connected micro-switch does something... it clearly communicates with the car's internal charger (thus the charging stops and the blue lights indicate this), but is it supposed to also cause something to happen at the evse?

Looked more closely at the 0-ring. That all seems to be in order

I'm getting ready to rma it (the handle/cord) but that's going to be a pain between disassembling it, shipping it, and waiting :-(
but i guess that's what's got to be done.
 
IIRC, the clunk occurs when I pull the handle out, not when I press the release catch. Pressing the catch doesn't break the connection: that happens when the pilot signal contact is broken by the plug being physically removed.
 
cwerdna said:
ebeighe said:
... I've found that on properly working EVSEs (like Chargepoint CT4000 at work), if I press and hold the trigger for several seconds while the car is charging, that will trigger the beep-beep-beep...pause... beep-beep-beep... pause sequence w/the 3 blue lights flashing in unison and synchronized w/the beeping...
ah, i just realized this; and realized it was already mentioned on this thread, but i somehow missed it or just forgot; thanks cwerdna.

After ~ 3 seconds after the handle button is depressed, the car starts this triple beeping / triple blinking repeatedly as long as the handle remains inserted. (I don't see this in the Nissan documentation, or did I miss it?)
So in normal un-plugging operation, you'd push the button and pull out the handle all in one smooth motion. My trouble is my handle is "sticky" and possibly getting worse, so I'd press the button, start pulling, and need to reset my grip and plant my feet firmly in order to get some more leverage to pull out the handle... apparently it is now taking me 3 seconds to do so, triggering the beeping/flashing.
 
ebeighe said:
cwerdna said:
ebeighe said:
... I've found that on properly working EVSEs (like Chargepoint CT4000 at work), if I press and hold the trigger for several seconds while the car is charging, that will trigger the beep-beep-beep...pause... beep-beep-beep... pause sequence w/the 3 blue lights flashing in unison and synchronized w/the beeping...
ah, i just realized this; and realized it was already mentioned on this thread, but i somehow missed it or just forgot; thanks cwerdna.

After ~ 3 seconds after the handle button is depressed, the car starts this triple beeping / triple blinking repeatedly as long as the handle remains inserted. (I don't see this in the Nissan documentation, or did I miss it?)
So in normal un-plugging operation, you'd push the button and pull out the handle all in one smooth motion. My trouble is my handle is "sticky" and possibly getting worse, so I'd press the button, start pulling, and need to reset my grip and plant my feet firmly in order to get some more leverage to pull out the handle... apparently it is now taking me 3 seconds to do so, triggering the beeping/flashing.

If you have not already replaced the handle, put a little silicone grease (safe for plastic) on all of the surfaces that slip into the car's connector. Also apply to the power and control connections. You can also apply to the car's connector, if desired. The connector on my AeroVironment unit was getting progressively harder to plug/unplug after several years of daily use so I purchased a tube of food grade (safe for food preparation equipment) silicone grease and lubricated the connectors. It then felt like new. One grease treatment lasts a long time. I also use the same grease to lubricate the latch on the charge port door. The grease was too thick to lubricate the pivot points on the charge port door so I purchased some silicone oil at a hobby shop along with a plastic syringe to lubricate all of those pivot points. The charge port door on the 2015 was always difficult to close until I lubricated the pivot points--it now operates easily like the one on the 2011 did.
 
GerryAZ said:
If you have not already replaced the handle, put a little silicone grease (safe for plastic) on all of the surfaces that slip into the car's connector. Also apply to the power and control connections....

Thanks GerryAZ, that was going to be my next step, but quickchargepower had me RMA the handle assembly back to them for service and now works well -- i guess they replaced the metal prongs, because it's the same handle(?)
 
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