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

[Carinosa]

Has anyone held onto their 2g TCU?
I am in New Zealand and our 2g doesn't get turned off till 2025. However most of our cars are imported from Japan and use a CDMA TCU, and the CDMA network was shut down years ago. I would be interested in experimenting with a 2g TCU to see if I can get it to work here

[smitty89]

I've got around and around with both my dealership and NISSAN regarding my upgrade. First is was my original TCU was bad, that was replaced. Next I heard, we know there is an issue, you just need to wait for the software upgrade. Well, I finally got the upgraded software, it still doesn't work. Then it was, there's a problem with my app settings. Did you know that according to NISSAN, the app can't send out multiple notifications? If you have text messaging and email messages turned on, it gets confused and will (maybe) only send out one notification?

Then once those settings were "corrected", it was another software issue, and by the way, your part is out of warranty so the dealer wants to charge me again to fix something that never worked at all. Now that the software is all updated, and it still isn't working the problem is my cell phone provider. Sprint is the reason that my texts aren't coming through. I'm testing that by updating my phone # to a friend's on Verizon. So far, he hasn't received any text messages from the two status updates that I've tried to send.

Long story short, anyone with Sprint having this issue? I think it's purely BS from NISSAN.

[Stanton]

Long story short, anyone with Sprint having this issue? I think it's purely BS from NISSAN.

Long story short, there is way too much FUD around the whole TCU thing.
The mobile carrier has nothing to do your ability to get notifications from your Leaf (beyond being in an AT&T coverage area...for the modem).
Find a competent dealer with a competent Leaf tech and installation/configuration/whatever should work. That and delete any "saved" charging stations.

[smitty89]

Find a competent dealer with a competent Leaf tech and installation/configuration/whatever should work. That and delete any "saved" charging stations.

I wish I had multiple dealerships to choose from. Unfortunately, there's only one in my local area. I'm tempted to drive to the next closest one and see if they can be of any help, but in the winter they are a little too far out of my comfort driving zone based on my battery.

Thank you for confirming my thoughts that the wireless carrier shouldn't be playing a part in this mess.

[mxp]

Hi Stanton,
I am just catching up with this thread. I am about to the get the 2G TCU replaced in my 2011 Leaf.

I don't understand the rationale behind ".. delete any "saved" charging stations. "
Do you perform this before the installation of the new TCU or after?

Also, will any other settings/personal get wiped out after the new TCU install? (Perhaps I should take note of all that before I go in....)

I'ld like to be prepared before I drop the vehicle into the dealer.

Thank you for any advice.

Long story short, anyone with Sprint having this issue? I think it's purely BS from NISSAN.

Long story short, there is way too much FUD around the whole TCU thing.
The mobile carrier has nothing to do your ability to get notifications from your Leaf (beyond being in an AT&T coverage area...for the modem).
Find a competent dealer with a competent Leaf tech and installation/configuration/whatever should work. That and delete any "saved" charging stations.

[Stanton]

Hi Stanton,
I am just catching up with this thread. I am about to the get the 2G TCU replaced in my 2011 Leaf.

I don't understand the rationale behind ".. delete any "saved" charging stations. "
Do you perform this before the installation of the new TCU or after?

Also, will any other settings/personal get wiped out after the new TCU install? (Perhaps I should take note of all that before I go in....)

I'ld like to be prepared before I drop the vehicle into the dealer.

Thank you for any advice.

I don't remember having to "reset" any info after my TCU (3G) upgrade, but then again my dealer seems to know what they are doing. At the very least, they need to register the modem, etc. with Nissan/AT&T/etc.
The "deleting saved locations" thing related to a "bug" that affected early 3G modems, in that it (appeared) to end the periodic timeouts/reboots that folks talk about. It's possible that new hardware has fixed this issue, but I have never missed having those locations marked and it would seem to eliminate a known problem (at one point in time anyway).
Bottom line: make sure your car is "communicating" before you leave the dealership...or have a defined time in which they promise you will be "in the system".

[GerryAZ]

MXP,

I see no reason to delete saved locations now--you should get a new TCU with latest firmware which should eliminate the locking and associated 12-volt battery draining. My saved charging locations were not deleted when the TCU was first replaced before 2G was discontinued and they were not deleted when that unit was replaced with a later version last month.

Also, to chime in on earlier posts:
1. Carrier for your phone has nothing to do with communication problems as long as your phone works for other text messages.
2. Car must have reasonable signal on AT&T network for remote access to work.
3. There should be no issue with having both text message notifications and email notifications. I have been getting both since June 2011 with only occasional failures due to Nissan server problems and TCU locking (which should be fixed now since my upgraded modem was replaced by a later version last month). The messages come from the Nissan servers so both notification methods typically fail at the same time (indicating to me that the problems are at the server end).
4. It should not take more than 48 hours after the installation to have remote access working. Remote access started working within a few hours all four times that I had to activate/reactivate it by following detailed instructions provided by the dealer (purchased 2011, purchased 2015, first TCU replacement in 2015, and second TCU replacement in 2015).
5. Do not let customer service representatives convince you to delete and recreate your online account unless they can give a good explanation why it will fix your issues.

[baustin]

As long as the dealer follows all the steps, in order, outlined in the TCU Replacement Bulletin, there should be no issues. If they try shortcuts to speed it along, or don't follow all the steps, there will be issues.

Go to the Carwings info screens and take a photo of the current TCU information, before the swap is done, and after. Those numbers will prove useful, if there is an activation issue caused by the dealer.

[Rat]

I just spoke to the service manager at Nissan Sunnyvale, the dealer who installed my new TCU in December (and then a second one under the new service bulletin) and told him mine just doesn't work. He agreed to refund my money with no hassles. He apologized profusely and said that it was "the best decision I could have made" to give up on the unit and not try to fix it again. He said they have been getting a lot of complaints and failed TCU units. He told me the new system just doesn't work. Now on cold mornings I go into the garage and start the engine and turn on the heat and let it run a few minutes to warm up, just like the old days with ICE cars. I can't do this while it's plugged in, so it reduces available battery level, but I never need that extra mileage.

After this continuing disaster, they never gave me the promised refund. I called yesterday and "the manager was in a meeting, but will call you back as soon as he gets out." No call. Today "The manager was in a meeting, can you call back in an hour?" When I said yesterday I was promised he would call me, the response was "Oh, we didn't know you were expecting a call back. I'll let him know. Nissan is supposed to refund you but we've had trouble getting through." The TCU just doesn't work, at least not on the 2011 models and Nissan is dishonest about it. They couldn't connect with the TCU from Nissan HQ, so the cell phone carrier has nothing to do with it. Nissan uses the AT&T system. I couldn't connect to the car from my desktop computer or my phone app, although Nissan confirmed I was connecting with Nissan Carwings just fine. The problem is with the TCU itself, either hardware or software.

Edit: the above was written on 3/5. On 3/7, after two more days of no calls, I filed an online complaint with the Bureau of Automotive Repairs. Today (3/11), Nick, the service manager, called me to say he had the check in hand and I could pick it up or have it mailed. I told him to mail it. This makes sense only if the complaint with the agency was the motivator. If it was a routine refund it would have been a rebate on the same credit card I used to pay the $199.Edit: the check arrived March 16. Sunnyvale Nissan came through in the end, but it was an ordeal.

[drobtravels]

Should Carwings connect immediately after the upgrade, or is there a waiting period?

I recently purchased as 2015 Leaf SL and have brought it to the dealer 3x so far for the upgrade, so they're obviously not familiar with how to do this. On Friday they did actually upgrade the hardware, as I can verify via the Unit ID. However, I still can't connect from the car and when attempting to register online, get the "To enroll, the hardware in your vehicle must be upgraded."

Do I need to bring it back to the dealer again, or is there a chance it will start working later? Is there anyway I can "register" it myself since it has the right hardware now? If I bring it back to the dealer, does anyone have a specific reference number or something I can tell them to make sure they do what is required?