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My ZS EV can't drive more than 60 miles before desperately needing to charge.

Thanks all, I will check the voltage next time it's charged and see how it goes. Hopefully whatever they did to it yesterday qill have fixed it. They didn't tell me it may take a few charges for it to fully sort out the problem though so my thanks to you guys.

Yes hopefully whatever they did to it yesterday was this. Next time it's charged I'll chexk the voltage. At least now I know that I can expect it to take a few charges to resolve because I wasn't told this at the garage
Here is my two pennies worth !.
The last time it was in at the dealer, they have finally uploaded the data pack from the car to MG Tech.
The system has picked up on the fact that you have been running on the "Buggy" software.
Now the dealer has been instructed to install the latest BMS software ( released by MG on the 15th Jan 2021 ) to correct the issues you are witnessing.
The BMS update will correct the issue, but now the pack needs rebalancing by means of either a home 7.0kw wall box or a slower 3.5 kw Granny unit.
NOT ON A RAPID CHARGER !
When the car reaches 100% fully charge DO NOT unplug the car !.
Allow the car to keep going !.
The balancing process only starts AFTER the car states it is 100% fully charged.
While it is charging, the MG badge light will pulse slowly in and out with a soft glow.
When it enters the balancing stage, the MG badge will display a CONSTANT soft "Glow".
The car will automatically switch off the wall box or Granny unit when it has finished balancing.
Don't be concerned if it takes a LONG time, this period will reduce over time.
It is only pulling a low current when it is balancing.
It's a bit like a trickle charge ( ish ) really.
IF you had the Buggy BMS software, then ever time you charge the car you are making the problem even worse by increasing the imbalance in the pack and reducing your range at the same time !.
Your car is displaying "Classic" Buggy software symptoms I.M.H.O.
As said above, next time you fully charge - check what the voltage is showing on the HV pack.
Make sure you have all electrical items turned off at this point ( HVAC etc ).
Regarding the dealer, they SHOULD know all this stuff !.
Don't bother with the sales people, as many of them have little / no experience with EV's.
Unless you are lucky enough to find somebody like Miles at the Chorley Group of course.
Ask to speak directly to the EV tech in the future !.
If they are NOT willing to let you do that - move dealer.
Pure & simple !.
 
So an update...the voltage reads 425 and the slow charge errors have started again. It's now booked in yet again for next week. This is about the 4th or 5th time since I have complained about my battery 10 days after purchase.
 
So an update...the voltage reads 425 and the slow charge errors have started again. It's now booked in yet again for next week. This is about the 4th or 5th time since I have complained about my battery 10 days after purchase.
OK, so that would indicate either an extreme case of unbalanced cells due to the bad BMS software, or your battery has a failing cell, limiting the usability of the pack.

If it's the former, and the software problem has been rectified by correctly installing the latest version, you should see the voltage slowly get higher after each full charge and balance session. Be sure to leave the car plugged in and charging well after it's fully charged to allow the balancing to happen. You can speed up the process by running it down less and charging more often, again leaving it overnight to balance each time. This will self correct your range to where it should be over time.

If it is a faulty battery, it just needs swapping out under warranty. Shame you have a s**te dealer in the way of prompt resolution. :(
 
So an update...the voltage reads 425 and the slow charge errors have started again. It's now booked in yet again for next week. This is about the 4th or 5th time since I have complained about my battery 10 days after purchase.
Okay so this would indicate that your BMS needs updating or that your BMS was updated, but that your cells are completely imbalanced and need equalising, let’s your car charge fully and keep the car plugged in the pulsing light should go to a solid stable light when in equalisation mode and hope your voltage will recover, but I would suggest you get the BMS version double checked all the same.
 
OK, so that would indicate either an extreme case of unbalanced cells due to the bad BMS software, or your battery has a failing cell, limiting the usability of the pack.

If it's the former, you should see the voltage slowly get higher after each full charge and balance session. Be sure to leave the car plugged in and charging well after it's fully charged to allow the balancing to happen. You can speed up the process by running it down less and charging more often, again leaving it overnight to balance each time. Over time, this will self correct.

If it is a faulty battery, it will get changed under warranty. Shame you have a s**te dealer in the way of prompt resolution. :(
Our advise overlapped...👍
 
It very much look like myself, @Paulie68 and @Mark Holmes have all come to the same conclusion, the HV pack is SO out balance now that both you and it are able to cover any serious mileage !.
With the voltage now at 425 volts, this gives a pretty good indication that it has suffered from the “Buggy” software.
The dealer MUST have a record of what software version you are running on ?.
Maybe as I suggested above, the software HAS been updated, but this will not correct the imbalance of the pack.
They should be able to tell you what level of imbalance is now sitting at !.
Let them have the car back and let THEM rebalance the pack.
It could take a week or so.
You will need a car.
You car with a range of only 60 miles is clearly NOT good enough and is totally unusable.
It is clearly not fit for purpose and to that end, you will only accept the car back WHEN it has a usable range.
Tell them if they can’t fix it this time, then they can keep it !.
They have had more than enough chances to fix it already, you are within your rights to reject the car.
Contact the service manger directly and him or her perfectly clear of your requirements and your intentions if your car is NOT sorted to your complete satisfaction on this last occasion.
Three strikes and your out !.
 
Thanks all, I will check the voltage next time it's charged and see how it goes. Hopefully whatever they did to it yesterday qill have fixed it. They didn't tell me it may take a few charges for it to fully sort out the problem though so my thanks to you guys.

Yes hopefully whatever they did to it yesterday was this. Next time it's charged I'll chexk the voltage. At least now I know that I can expect it to take a few charges to resolve because I wasn't told this at the garage
this is disgusting please who is your dealer ?
 
Little bit optimistic - I agree that the range they're seeing is far too low but to suggest that a ZS EV will ever easily exceed 163 miles is just plain wrong.
Rubbish, I’m getting about 170 to 178 miles on a run at the moment as are others and so it’s not plain wrong...and much more around town, happy to provide evidence on the next run if it helps to prove a point.....
Actually just checked the photos please see the attached.

See my previous posts with evidence supporting this fact

Left with 448 Volts, and trip meters reset (18027 miles on clock)
Completed 136.4 miles, 4.3 miles per KWh with 48 miles remaining so possible maximum range on that day / night was 184.4 if things continued as they were see link below to photo. Battery capacity 42.5 KWh x 4.3 miles per KWh = 182.75 miles...

 
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Are you using the HVAC at all?

Average speed is pretty low, I still think it’s misleading to suggest that a ZS EV will regularly exceed 4mi/kWh unless you’re deliberately crawling around with everything turned off. It gives the wrong impression to new owners about the performance of their car. The WLTP rating is optimistic enough.
 
Are you using the HVAC at all?

Average speed is pretty low, I still think it’s misleading to suggest that a ZS EV will regularly exceed 4mi/kWh unless you’re deliberately crawling around with everything turned off. It gives the wrong impression to new owners about the performance of their car. The WLTP rating is optimistic enough.
No it was between 12 and 16 degrees, roof open on tilt.
Regarding speed it was A roads to the M25, 70 miles on the M25 at full motorway speeds and then from Bracknell in to London via Wimbledon to the City and then out down the A13. All speeds were at road speeds, but don’t forget some of London is now only 20 mph so it will bring the overall totals lower.
And being totally frank recently driving only in to or around the city with temps at 16 degrees I have exceeded 5 miles per KWh and therefore no it’s not misleading at all and many factors to consider, like wind, temp, flatness of roads, tyre pressure, weight in the car and so no it’s not misleading I have done it and therefore the car can do it, but perhaps you and others can’t. My trip was a real journey no I didn’t have HVAC on as it wasn’t needed, but I needed my lights on and I drove to the speed limits....enough said the photo’s for this journey were provided to confirm the details at the time.
 
My zs ev is fairly new and I have had battery problems with it since the get go but the sales people keeps trying to dob me off with rubbish excuses or telling me It's normal. My car cant drive 60miles without desperately needing a charge. It's not driving style either. I've tried eco/normal, different kers levels for different roads. It doesn't matter if I'm on country lanes or a big A road or motorway. I also can never use the fans in my car if my journey is more than 30 miles because that zaps the milage as well. My car went into services yesterday for the 3rd time in the less than 8 months since I've had the car. 1st time because it wouldnt charge, then because it was draining too quickly and also getting rejected by charging stations and now because the red "please slow charge the vehicle" error keeps popping despite having slow charged the vehicle many times now as well as the poor milage my car is getting. Is anyone having these similar issues with their cars? I'm way passed p****ed off cause I keeps getting alot of sales rubbish from the guys who sold it to me and no one actually seems to be fixing it. Is this just that the make is rubbish and everyone has this rubbish car or is mine broken?
It deff sounds like you have the bad BMS software (battery management ) low mileage and asking to slow charge you need to update free of charge to latest software BMS eu01 your batteries seem well out of balance now which will take hours to get back to the right level
 
First thing to do, after you've fully charged your car, scroll down to the electrical information part of the dash display and tell us what the voltage is showing. Anything less than 449v, and the issue is the faulty BMS mentioned.

Even if you drove like a maniac in cold rainy weather with the air con and heating on, you'd be hard pressed to get less than 100 miles if the car is functioning normally! Your dealer is crap, are there any others not too far away you could contact?
I would also be tempted to contact MG UK highlighting the problem with the garage as I doubt they would be happy your garage is acting like ****s in their name ....
 
Rubbish, I’m getting about 170 to 178 miles on a run at the moment as are others and so it’s not plain wrong...and much more around town, happy to provide evidence on the next run if it helps to prove a point.....
Actually just checked the photos please see the attached.

See my previous posts with evidence supporting this fact

Left with 448 Volts, and trip meters reset (18027 miles on clock)
Completed 136.4 miles, 4.3 miles per KWh with 48 miles remaining so possible maximum range on that day / night was 184.4 if things continued as they were see link below to photo. Battery capacity 42.5 KWh x 4.3 miles per KWh = 182.75 miles...

Here is my "Two Pennies Worth" on this subject.
As many of you are already aware, my car ( under another set of circumstances - long story ) was one of the first cars to receive the BMS update first released on Friday 15th Jan 2021.
The car received the update first thing on the Monday morning of the 18th Jan 2021.
It was never affected by the "Buggy" software, because it never had it !.
MG Tech instructed the dealer to install the latest update as part of bringing the car back to life, after it was pronounced dead after the car went in for service on the Friday ( Again - Long Story ).
Okay, back ground story covered.
When we received the car back, we where only able to use the car for small trips due to the lock down situation. Very difficult to estimate how the car had been affected by all of the rectification work required to get the car up and running again.
But, over the last few weeks we have now been able to take more pleasure drives in our car.
Oh ..... the car is about 15 months old and has covered just over 11,000 miles at this point.
Prior to the problems in Jan 2021 - I had enough time behind the wheel, charging cycles done & enough miles on the clock in order to get a good handle, on what to expect regarding it's consumption and efficiency.
In the early days of ownership ( our first FULL EV ) I found myself constantly checking the remaining battery range a LOT !.
But after only a few short weeks, this constant checking soon subsided when I learnt to trust the car a little better. I found that the predicted remaining range on the GOM to be pretty accurate to the miles covered in distance ?.
One mile of range covered, to roughly mile of range used from the GOM.
Not to be totally relied on of course, but not a million miles out either folks !.
I was very concerned after having the BMS update done, like how this would have changed the car that I had become easy to understand SO well over previous 12 months.
Over the last few weeks, on our "Non Child Minding Days" we have been covering return pleasure trips of around a 100± miles.
Not the same route every time it should be noted.
This info COULD be useful for anybody who wants to use this as a "Yard Stick" to compare their cars "Post" update.
So after the update and with a full charge, the voltage on HV pack ( with all items turned OFF ) is displaying around 448 - 449 Volts - I have seen it hit 450 Volts briefly twice I think.
The predicted range ( In default NORMAL and Regen level 3 ) after resetting BOTH of the trip recorders, is anything from the lowest I have seen at 159 to highest at 162 miles.
When resetting the trips for the first few long trips and studying the evidence later.
The car was regularly returning around 4.5 m/kwh. - on the last trip it hit 4.9 m/kwh's.
This is with a little HVAC use on a hot day also.
Not always the same route, but all with some dual carriageway, some "A" roads and a bit of slow town driving.
A good mixture of every day driving I would say ?.
I believe the car is behaving in the very same way as it did PRIOR to the update.
In our latest longer trips ( About 100 miles plus ) I have not bothered resetting both trips and therefore my predicted range reported on the GOM on start up, has increased in value.
Today, we left with a fully charged & balanced battery.
The car was reporting an predicted 203 miles of range in the default mode on the GOM.
When we returned home ( some HVAC use again today ) we had covered just over 100 miles and the GOM was still reporting a remaining range of 101 miles.
Do I think we could have travelled another 100 miles on that range ?.
Probably not, who know's ?.
But I think achieving another 50 miles out of the predicted 100 remaining on the GOM, would put the car close to the figure that some believe is NOT possible to achieve ?.
Resetting the trips, or not resetting the trips does not appear to alter the consumption vs reported figure on the GOM.
The car is still pretty good at keeping a handle on reporting the distance covered, to the consumption used from the battery on a "One To One" basis.
One mile covered, to one mile consumed.
Again, just to say that my car never suffered any radical effects of massively reduced range by the "Buggy" software.
But it may offer some comfort to owners who HAVE been affected, that when the software is installed correctly and the pack is rebalanced, the car WILL be returned to the car they THOUGHT they had purchased in good faith.
Dealers who try to convince owners who's cars are "OKAY" - when they will clearly NOT even coming close to covering the distance they had expected, is clearly not acceptable.
VW tried that with their cars - look how that ended up!.
Only being able to cover 60 miles of range between each charge on a brand new car, should have had the alarm bells sounding loud and clear !.
 
My zs ev is fairly new and I have had battery problems with it since the get go but the sales people keeps trying to dob me off with rubbish excuses or telling me It's normal. My car cant drive 60miles without desperately needing a charge. It's not driving style either. I've tried eco/normal, different kers levels for different roads. It doesn't matter if I'm on country lanes or a big A road or motorway. I also can never use the fans in my car if my journey is more than 30 miles because that zaps the milage as well. My car went into services yesterday for the 3rd time in the less than 8 months since I've had the car. 1st time because it wouldnt charge, then because it was draining too quickly and also getting rejected by charging stations and now because the red "please slow charge the vehicle" error keeps popping despite having slow charged the vehicle many times now as well as the poor milage my car is getting. Is anyone having these similar issues with their cars? I'm way passed p****ed off cause I keeps getting alot of sales rubbish from the guys who sold it to me and no one actually seems to be fixing it. Is this just that the make is rubbish and everyone has this rubbish car or is mine broken?
You definitely need a battery reset - the dealership downloaded to MG lots of data as mine went in 4 times before they got it right - I am very pleased with my range now - 159 mile drive this week and 20+ left - the dealer said a complete battery reset was necessary as instructed by MG back in February - I was down to around 90 max in January - good luck !!
 
My car was similar to Paul225 above. Bought in November 20, range seemed to OK for the winter, but it gradually got worse. It would not do the return journey from Swansea to Cardiff, some 50 miles each way.

But having had the BMS update, it has taken a month or two to get the voltage up to 450v, and now it says it will do 170+ miles...
 
Hi

I know it is 2024, nearly 3.5 years after this original post, but I was wondering if Genni could give me an update on what happened at the end, please? I recently bought a used MG ZS EV and I am experiencing the same issue. It is still under Warranty and has about 5k miles on the clock.

Many thanks
 
My car is a very similar story to Lovemyev post 36 - it has now done about 20,000 miles over 4 years. Second MOT and fourth service due next week. Resetting trips on full charge shows me about 165 miles in winter and up to 180 miles in summer on the GOM. However, I would never expect the car to do more than 165 miles at any time. In winter with minimal use of heating, defrost etc it can be relied upon to do a 60 mile plus 60 mile return journey, leaving about 20 miles on the GOM for safety. And on occasion I have had to use that 20 miles when forced to detour or take a wrong turning. I have never run completely out of battety.
 
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