7kW Fast charge doesn't always start at home

[Radiocode]

Hi All,

I have a MG4 LR (Blue) as a interim company car, having had several EVs including a couple of Leafs, Twizy and a Tesla Model S.

My home charger is a Pod Point that was installed in 2016 and is the 7kW model. It has performed flawlessly on every car EXCEPT the MG4. It may be finger trouble on my part but it regularly fails to start a charge when plugged in and I really cannot find out why. Does anyone else have these issues?

The charging profile is set to "max current" from the energy management screen and there is no schedule set for charging. The car appears to be at the latest software revision, according to the settings.

I have tried plugging the charger in when the car is locked; when it is closed but powered up; unlocked and driver door open. In each case the car will say "connecting" on the screen, but 3 out of 4 times it will abort the charge. Trying to set it going via the app too - it fails on a regular basis.

None of the other cars I have plugged into the charger have suffered these problems, and I have tried a different charge lead (from a Mercedes EQC) - no difference. Most cars - you get out, take the cable out of the boot, close the boot/doors, plug the cable into the wall unit then the car, press lock on the keyfob and voila! Charging starts.

Have I missed an important note in the manual, is there a known issue or should I take the car to my local dealer to investigate why it is so unreliable?

Any pro tips appreciated.

Lee

 

[Koomi]

Normal procedure should be car unlocked (my doors are normally closed, but doubt it matters), connect charger, lock car.

When you say the charging profile is set to Max Current, and there is No Schedule set... I am guessing that is for the Pod Point?
Is there anything set in the car? As it's a LR, there are battery charge limits to choose from, as well as the car having it's own schedule.

Maybe try setting a schedule in the car/through the iSmart App to start 5 minutes after you are trying to plug in?
See if that works and charges ok... And then turn off scheduling for the following charge and see what the differences are?

 

[ukslim]

Ask PodPoint support. They'll have logs. For example when I had problems with an Ohme charge and my MG4, they could see that the car was sending a code of "SuspendedEV", meaning the car didn't want the charge. And they were able to configure the charger to fix it.

 

[Radiocode]

Normal procedure should be car unlocked (my doors are normally closed, but doubt it matters), connect charger, lock car.

When you say the charging profile is set to Max Current, and there is No Schedule set... I am guessing that is for the Pod Point?
Is there anything set in the car? As it's a LR, there are battery charge limits to choose from, as well as the car having it's own schedule.

Maybe try setting a schedule in the car/through the iSmart App to start 5 minutes after you are trying to plug in?
See if that works and charges ok... And then turn off scheduling for the following charge and see what the differences are?

The charge current and no schedule are set on the app/or in the MG screen. I leave the battery max charge limit set to 80% for most charges, and only go up to 100% if I am driving Chippenham-Derby, or Chippenham-York the next morning. The pod point itself is not intelligent - it just charges anything you plug into it - there are no timers.

I plugged it in this morning with 22% and the car refused to charge. Tried to remote start the charge from the app, but it failed too. Tried this afternoon and eventually got it to agree to charge using the app.

Its a really odd problem. I'll try setting a schedule like you suggest and see if that is more reliable.

Ask PodPoint support. They'll have logs. For example when I had problems with an Ohme charge and my MG4, they could see that the car was sending a code of "SuspendedEV", meaning the car didn't want the charge. And they were able to configure the charger to fix it.

I'll give them a call. the charger is 2016-vintage so I expect it fell off their network many years ago. It has/had a built-in SIM card but I think it was only ever used to get statistics from early adopters.

 

[ukslim]

I'll give them a call. the charger is 2016-vintage so I expect it fell off their network many years ago. It has/had a built-in SIM card but I think it was only ever used to get statistics from early adopters.

Ah this might be a different world to my Ohme then -- which is very much reliant on being online via its SIM. All home chargers sold in the UK have to be smart now, but yours predates that.

 

[Lovemyev]

What about carrying out a few trials by using the supplied Granny lead ????.
If it obeys the commend to charge every single time you try it, then this may point the finger at the wall box / cable being the problem ???.
Oh ...... You don't have any of them Wi-Fi extender produces that piggy backs via your mains house wiring, by any chance ?.
These have been problematic for some people when trying to charge I believe.

 

[Radiocode]

What about carrying out a few trials by using the supplied Granny lead ????.
If it obeys the commend to charge every single time you try it, then this may point the finger at the wall box / cable being the problem ???.
Oh ...... You don't have any of them Wi-Fi extender produces that piggy backs via your mains house wiring, by any chance ?.
These have been problematic for some people when trying to charge I believe.

That's a good idea. I forgot completely about the granny charger. That would prove/disprove a prblem with the car itself.
We don't have any powerline extenders.

 

[tsedge]

It isn't the delay feature on the charger is it? Up to 10 minutes before it will start. Just a thought, sounds unlikely.

 

[GameZone]

I have this issue. Did you solve it?

 

[Kithmo]

Check if the target charge level in the battery gauge is below the SOC.