2018 Leaf - Charger throws fault on 240V

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There is noting to do to make 208 work, the Panasonic 2018 unit already can do this, it is either a bad ground or is has been restricted intentionally! This is not a complex issue and it also has nothing to do with AV as they are there to sell their overpriced junk and give bad advice. The EVSE just passes voltage. Anyone can test this on a properly wired 208 outlet with a ground, if it does not work then it was intentional in the design. Enough said. Nissan remains conservative and clueless about EV design features. The adapter system on the cord is a stupid and bulky as it can get, they likely thought the AV turbocord was a good idea and took the bulk a step further.
 
aldanra said:
Did anyone get an answer from Nissan on this?
I spoke to the dealer, and they referred to me to the Aerovironment support people (I am not sure why, probably they are the original manufacturers). When I talked to Aerovironment support, they told me that it needs to be 240 V input, and the "cord" will never work with less voltage. According to them the only solution is to install a true 240V outlet, which in our tri-phase complex I am not sure it is even possible.

It is a pretty bad design, but I would have expected to have a better answer from them than: the problem is in your home, so we will do nothing to help. I guess they should have at least made you aware of the problem before they sold you the cord.

Well AV is being sold and the new owners promise to "expand and enhance" the existing network so hopefully that will happen quickly (doubtful)

In talking with various AV personal and techs, I got the impression that the issue was tossed into Nissan's court. Considering the growing list of locations my LEAF cannot charge, I have to agree that Nissan needs to fix the issue.
 
alozzy said:
@Levenkay Yet, EVSE manufacturers other than Nissan have the ability to handle a range of supply voltage, usually from 100V to 250V.

My Zencar 32A portable EVSE handles 100V - 250V supply, as does the JuiceBox Pro 40. Most ClipperCreek EVSEs will take either 208V or 240V supply - just to name a few...

So, it can't be that hard for Nissan to do likewise.
I'm quite sure Levenkay was being sarcastic :)
As you said, tons of other much cheaper EVSEs that have no problem working on a wide range of voltages/frequencies. I believe his comment about Digi-key(which BTW is headquartered in my state and is the fourth largest electronic component distributor in North America) was meant to say how common and cheap it would to have been to get components that would have no problem working on the voltages were talking about here :)
 
jjeff said:
alozzy said:
@Levenkay Yet, EVSE manufacturers other than Nissan have the ability to handle a range of supply voltage, usually from 100V to 250V.

My Zencar 32A portable EVSE handles 100V - 250V supply, as does the JuiceBox Pro 40. Most ClipperCreek EVSEs will take either 208V or 240V supply - just to name a few...

So, it can't be that hard for Nissan to do likewise.
I'm quite sure Levenkay was being sarcastic :)
As you said, tons of other much cheaper EVSEs that have no problem working on a wide range of voltages/frequencies. I believe his comment about Digi-key(which BTW is headquartered in my state and is the fourth largest electronic component distributor in North America) was meant to say how common and cheap it would to have been to get components that would have no problem working on the voltages were talking about here :)
Of course he was.

Anyway, since it works on 120v, I'm sure the components already cover the whole range. They purposely programmed it this way.
 
Was it the first generation 120v evse that was not really J1772 compliant but worked fine with LEAF but not other vehicles?
I wonder if this is the same. Maybe it is not built to control amps increase when the voltage is low. Could just rely on the LEAF max charge rate on 240 volts.
 
smkettner said:
Was it the first generation 120v evse that was not really J1772 compliant but worked fine with LEAF but not other vehicles?
I wonder if this is the same. Maybe it is not built to control amps increase when the voltage is low. Could just rely on the LEAF max charge rate on 240 volts.
The EVSE doesn't handle that. The amperage that the wiring, etc... can handle doesn't go up when the voltage fires down, so the EVSE advertises the same voltage whether on 240 or 208. For that matter, I don't think the LEAF's charger does that either.
 
With a fixed charger output to the battery.... the input wattage would need more amps as the voltage sags.
I am speculating Nissan is limiting that rise in amperes by simply not allowing the lower 208 volts.
Yes a bit of conspiracy theory.

The pilot signal is supposed to direct the charging system to limit the amps drawn from the evse.
 
smkettner said:
With a fixed charger output to the battery.... the input wattage would need more amps as the voltage sags.
I am speculating Nissan is limiting that rise in amperes by simply not allowing the lower 208 volts.
Yes a bit of conspiracy theory.
The pilot signal is supposed to direct the charging system to limit the amps drawn from the evse.
No problem; the charging system doesn't HAVE to deliver any particular power into the battery. Whatever power the input voltage represents at or below the EVSE's declared maximum current, that's what goes in.
 
smkettner said:
Has anyone tried one of these failed Nissan evse on a Tesla or other EV that can pull 40+ amps?

There is nothing wrong with my EVSE as I have tested it successfully on other 14-50 outlets. It only fails on certain ones. Its my guess that my EVSE WILL charge an earlier model LEAF just fine.
 
It is not clear to me if anyone has tested this on a properly grounded 208 outlet but if they have and it does not work then Panasonic has set a a hard voltage limit with the assumption that 208 could be a voltage issue as residential 14-50 outlets should be 240V, Pretty simple and there is no conspiracy or mystery here. This tread is 5 pages long and all questions presented were pretty much answered:

Design of the unit dictates a properly installed and inspected 240V, 50A circuit, anyone that does that won't have an issue. End of story, not sure how much easier it can be. It's not:

Designed to be used on 208, with other outlet types, etc.

There are no conspiracies, etc other than for those that do not use it as intended. Anyone that has a properly grounded (properly verified) 14-50 circuit having issues yet?

Those that do not want to use the EVSE as above should buy another product or they can continue complaining and speculating about all the reasons it won't work as designed on the other 5 plus pages this tread should have by year end.
 
i just picked up 19 leaf s and having same issue.
Connected to 240V 4 prong RV 14-50 Rv receptacle wired to 50Amp w 6 Gauge wires but fault signal comes on after 10 sec into charging.
I called nissan leaf customer support and could not help except informing me to change the charger came w the car.
I went to the Nissan Leaf Certified dealer, but no one was aware of this issue. I ended up ordering the new cable.
I just wanted to know the original poster had fixed the problem after changing the charger.
 
I bought a third party charger (zencar) and it's been working fine. The issue is that the Nissan provided EVSE does not work with 208V. Pretty sad that they haven't fixed this yet and apparently have no idea it's even a problem.
 
dingdong said:
I bought a third party charger (zencar) and it's been working fine. The issue is that the Nissan provided EVSE does not work with 208V. Pretty sad that they haven't fixed this yet and apparently have no idea it's even a problem.

What a shame.

I am not going to pay another $200.00 (at least) top of $800.00 i had to pay electrician to install 240v outlet for third party product.
If comes to that I will make sure Nissan pay for the third party charging cable. If they refuse I will return my car with lemon law.

Thanks for the prompt reply tho.
 
paradisedj said:
i just picked up 19 leaf s and having same issue.
Connected to 240V 4 prong RV 14-50 Rv receptacle wired to 50Amp w 6 Gauge wires but fault signal comes on after 10 sec into charging.
I called nissan leaf customer support and could not help except informing me to change the charger came w the car.
I went to the Nissan Leaf Certified dealer, but no one was aware of this issue. I ended up ordering the new cable.
I just wanted to know the original poster had fixed the problem after changing the charger.
So your 240V outlet is really less than 220V? You could probably eBay the Nissan EVSE for $400+ or in the for sale forum.
 
paradisedj said:
i just picked up 19 leaf s and having same issue.
Connected to 240V 4 prong RV 14-50 Rv receptacle wired to 50Amp w 6 Gauge wires but fault signal comes on after 10 sec into charging.
I called nissan leaf customer support and could not help except informing me to change the charger came w the car.
I went to the Nissan Leaf Certified dealer, but no one was aware of this issue. I ended up ordering the new cable.
I just wanted to know the original poster had fixed the problem after changing the charger.

Could be the outlet. Mine worked at several locations but failed at Wild Horse Renewable Energy Complex. There was nothing wrong with the outlets. Showed power but simply faulted after a few seconds. I ended up having to borrow their 6-50
 
Pls., refer this post
https://www.mynissanleaf.com/viewtopic.php?f=30&t=25881&start=20
Most if not all of 3 phases provide 208v 120v 3 does not equal 360v combined according to the post.
It seems like I am all out of options but to buy 3rd party charger unless Nissan acknowledges this issue w panasonic's EVSE and do something abt it.
 
DaveinOlyWA said:
paradisedj said:
i just picked up 19 leaf s and having same issue.
Connected to 240V 4 prong RV 14-50 Rv receptacle wired to 50Amp w 6 Gauge wires but fault signal comes on after 10 sec into charging.
I called nissan leaf customer support and could not help except informing me to change the charger came w the car.
I went to the Nissan Leaf Certified dealer, but no one was aware of this issue. I ended up ordering the new cable.
I just wanted to know the original poster had fixed the problem after changing the charger.

Could be the outlet. Mine worked at several locations but failed at Wild Horse Renewable Energy Complex. There was nothing wrong with the outlets. Showed power but simply faulted after a few seconds. I ended up having to borrow their 6-50

Check w all my friends' house w 3 phases which all comes up as 208v and will not charge.
 
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