Charge Port Replacement?

[mpshizzle]

I've been having some strange, somewhat sporadic problems with AC charging my car recently. It started with my home charger (a custom built unit by openEVSE). My car would charge for a while, then randomly stop and say "charge station error". When I tried to re-plug my EVSE interface would flash randomly between "no vehicle connected" and "plugged in, not charging".

I also, noticed a difference in current draw. It used to be that the Mach E would draw .5-1.5 Amps less than the pilot current on the EVSE. For example: if the EVSE is set to 32A, it would draw 31A. But recently that's not been the case. It's been reading at slightly above. 32A pilot, car draws 33. 48A pilot and the car draws 51A.

At first I thought it was a problem with my EVSE, as I had recently been making changes to it. But I've had problems with other chargers too.

I was visiting a friend with a rivian charger at his house. His rivian unit is set to 48A, and my car would charge for maybe 2 minutes before cutting off.

So I tried a few more. 2 public EVSEs (probably set to somewhere around 32A). It charged just fine from those..

I'm thinking maybe something is wrong with my car's on board charger? Here's my theory: When it's on an EVSE with a 32Amp pilot, it over-draws by a small enough amount it's within margin of error. When it's on a 48A pilot, drawing 51A it's either overheating itself by running over its limit, or it's tripping the EVSE over-current protection.

Anybody have thoughts on this? Any ideas on how to test and verify this? I do have access to Forscan and an expired FDRS license

Update: just got "charge station error" again on my home EVSE after 15 minutes of charging with the pilot set to 32Amps and the car drawing 33.6A. EVSE is rapidly flashing between "no vehicle connected" and "plugged in, not charging". So i have no idea. Is it the car? is it the EVSE? Both?

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[Keith in KC]

I experienced the same fact pattern. It turned out to be the car’s charging port. Ford tried everything else first - including replacing my original Ford charging station with a new one. They later reprogrammed the car and called it good - it was not. Go to the dealer and before accepting the car back after the repair/ reprogramming, ask them to put the car on one of it’s 48A chargers and watch your app to see how long it takes to get an error message.
DO NOT let them get away with putting the car on an older charger that is less than 48A. It will charge and you will be right back the next week. Keep in mind that you probably know more about MachE problems than any of the local techs. Be a pain in their backside!

 

[mpshizzle]

Uph... Well I'm 15k miles out of warranty... That's gonna hurt if it's the charge port..

Plus my dealer only has a 32 A charger. They don't have anything more. Yikes.

Looks like I may have an uphill battle here

 

[mpshizzle]

Update - need advice.

TL;DR I've discovered my dealer is incompetent and I need to spoon feed them EVERYTHING. So I'm trying to figure out what data to collect and where to look.

I have issues with anything over 30A 200v (very common for commercial buildings). I specifically told them the issue is with 48A charging to point them in the right direction.

So here's the sequence of events:
1) they test with 30A charging and the mobile L1 charger and tell me nothing is wrong. They have no 48A charger on property
2) I find a 48A charger 3 miles away from them
3) They give up and contact Ford Helpline.

They clearly have no idea what they're doing and aren't willing to go 3 miles down the road to test. So while I wait 30 years for Ford to respond to them, I have the car back.

I'm considering renewing my FDRS license so I can add my frunk button, and possibly do some testing so I can spoon feed the dealer and tell them what I need.

Any recommendations on what to look for??

PS - regarding the "over draw" I was mentioning in the first post, turns out that was just the EVSE misreading and I got that fixed

 

[Mach-Lee]

Well if you want to compare to this: https://www.macheforum.com/site/threads/44a-charging-temperature-study.29165/

Pay particular attention to the BC_COUPL_TEMP_A. You will need to start FDRS and watch charging for the next hour without any charging interruptions so it fully warms up. It shouldn't be more than about +45ºC or +80ºF above the ambient temp.

You may also want to look at the pilot signal information (duty cycle, frequency, etc), those pertain to the "plugged in not charging" issues, which seems mostly like a software bug.

 

[mpshizzle]

Well if you want to compare to this: https://www.macheforum.com/site/threads/44a-charging-temperature-study.29165/

Pay particular attention to the BC_COUPL_TEMP_A. You will need to start FDRS and watch charging for the next hour without any charging interruptions so it fully warms up. It shouldn't be more than about +45ºC or +80ºF above the ambient temp.

You may also want to look at the pilot signal information (duty cycle, frequency, etc), those pertain to the "plugged in not charging" issues, which seems mostly like a software bug.

That's a good idea looking at pilot information.. I'm beginning to wonder if it's not temperature related - as it always stops within 3 minutes of plugging in - regardless of ambient temp.

 

[josephyancey]

I had very similar symptoms. Reach out to @Ford Motor Company with your VIN. They opened a ticket with the BEV department form me and got involved with my dealer. It turns out that my charge port needed replaced (which seems to be common in 2021 models). The dealer just ordered that part yesterday so I'm waiting for it to come in. Here is my post about it.

@Mach-Lee also confirmed for me that the charge port is covered in the EV components warranty that lasts till 100k miles so if you are over 36k but under 100k you should still be good.

Edit - I just realized that you and I have been following the same posts. Here's hoping that you can get your charge port replaced quickly.

 

[mpshizzle]

I had very similar symptoms. Reach out to @Ford Motor Company with your VIN. They opened a ticket with the BEV department form me and got involved with my dealer. It turns out that my charge port needed replaced (which seems to be common in 2021 models). The dealer just ordered that part yesterday so I'm waiting for it to come in. Here is my post about it.

@Mach-Lee also confirmed for me that the charge port is covered in the EV components warranty that lasts till 100k miles so if you are over 36k but under 100k you should still be good.

Edit - I just realized that you and I have been following the same posts. Here's hoping that you can get your charge port replaced quickly.

Was your dealer able to replicate the issue with one of their on-site charges? The problem I'm having is they don't have a 48 amp charger and don't know how to verify the issue without it.

 

[Mach-Lee]

Was your dealer able to replicate the issue with one of their on-site charges? The problem I'm having is they don't have a 48 amp charger and don't know how to verify the issue without it.

You have a P0E5F code set for the port temp too high. To me they should be able to operate off that code and replace the charge port based on the issue you're reporting if they aren't willing to test it with a 48A charger. Not sure if you are working with the BEV team, they should be able to see that code too and direct replacement.

https://www.macheforum.com/site/threads/p0e5f-error-in-sobdm.26060/

See above, @kltye has his port replaced for the same reason, and it seems like the car has been fine charging at 48A since then.

 

[kltye]

I had to bring it to two different dealers to get it replaced. The first one couldn’t replicate it so they just sent me home. The second one also couldn’t replicate it but it seems that they replaced it based on the code thrown.

 

[mpshizzle]

You have a P0E5F code set for the port temp too high. To me they should be able to operate off that code and replace the charge port based on the issue you're reporting if they aren't willing to test it with a 48A charger. Not sure if you are working with the BEV team, they should be able to see that code too and direct replacement.

https://www.macheforum.com/site/threads/p0e5f-error-in-sobdm.26060/

See above, @kltye has his port replaced for the same reason, and it seems like the car has been fine charging at 48A since then.

I had to bring it to two different dealers to get it replaced. The first one couldn’t replicate it so they just sent me home. The second one also couldn’t replicate it but it seems that they replaced it based on the code thrown.

This is all very helpful. Thank you! I've not contacted Ford directly - if I don't hear back from the dealer on Monday, I'll start pursuing this.

 

[josephyancey]

My in town dealer is incompetent. They only have 1 EV certified tech and keep calling it a hybrid and offering me oil changes. I have any EV specific stuff handled at a dealership out in the burbs 10ish miles from town that seems to know what they are doing. I kept a log of when and where it happened and what amps the charger was set to. I gave them that when I dropped the car off on Monday and they worked with ford corporate and ordered the part on Thursday. I think it would have been sooner but they were also doing a brake wiring recall and a 12 hour bluecruise update their system said my car needed (even though I’m caught up on OTA updates). I’m not upset about the update since it’s updating the BCM so now I should be able to enable the drunk button in the car.

If you’ve got a good dealer you should be able to tell them where some higher amperage chargers are in town and maybe that can help their testing.

I highly recommend opening the ticket with the BEV team at ford corporate. There is a list of VINs they have that are known to have this issue. If yours is on the list they will have the dealer replace the part without even making them troubleshoot it.

 

[mpshizzle]

My in town dealer is incompetent. They only have 1 EV certified tech and keep calling it a hybrid and offering me oil changes. I have any EV specific stuff handled at a dealership out in the burbs 10ish miles from town that seems to know what they are doing. I kept a log of when and where it happened and what amps the charger was set to. I gave them that when I dropped the car off on Monday and they worked with ford corporate and ordered the part on Thursday. I think it would have been sooner but they were also doing a brake wiring recall and a 12 hour bluecruise update their system said my car needed (even though I’m caught up on OTA updates). I’m not upset about the update since it’s updating the BCM so now I should be able to enable the drunk button in the car.

If you’ve got a good dealer you should be able to tell them where some higher amperage chargers are in town and maybe that can help their testing.

I highly recommend opening the ticket with the BEV team at ford corporate. There is a list of VINs they have that are known to have this issue. If yours is on the list they will have the dealer replace the part without even making them troubleshoot it.

They're supposed to be getting back to me tomorrow - I will definitely be escalating if not!

 

[macchiaz-o]

Uph... Well I'm 15k miles out of warranty... That's gonna hurt if it's the charge port..

Electric vehicle components are covered to 100,000 miles.

https://www.fordservicecontent.com/...-E-Warranty-version-2_frdwa_EN-US_06_2021.pdf

From the page numbered 11:

(2) The high voltage battery and eDrive systems of your vehicle are​

covered by the Electric Vehicle Component coverage for eight years or​

100,000 miles, whichever comes first. High voltage battery and eDrive​

components covered by this warranty include the high voltage battery​

assembly, Bussed Electrical Center (BEC), Battery Energy Control​

Module (BECM), on-board charger, Inverter System Controller (ISC),​

DC/DC converter, and eDrive. If a covered component requires​

replacement under the Electric Vehicle Component warranty, it may be​

replaced with a new, factory remanufactured, or factory refurbished​

component, at Ford’s discretion. Refurbished battery components​

selected for your vehicle will align with your vehicle’s age and mileage​

and meet Ford’s requirements and standards.​

​

Looks like I may have an uphill battle here

I tend to always feel that way with home and vehicle repair/service items.

 

[mpshizzle]

Electric vehicle components are covered to 100,000 miles.

https://www.fordservicecontent.com/...-E-Warranty-version-2_frdwa_EN-US_06_2021.pdf

From the page numbered 11:

(2) The high voltage battery and eDrive systems of your vehicle are​

covered by the Electric Vehicle Component coverage for eight years or​

100,000 miles, whichever comes first. High voltage battery and eDrive​

components covered by this warranty include the high voltage battery​

assembly, Bussed Electrical Center (BEC), Battery Energy Control​

Module (BECM), on-board charger, Inverter System Controller (ISC),​

DC/DC converter, and eDrive. If a covered component requires​

replacement under the Electric Vehicle Component warranty, it may be​

replaced with a new, factory remanufactured, or factory refurbished​

component, at Ford’s discretion. Refurbished battery components​

selected for your vehicle will align with your vehicle’s age and mileage​

and meet Ford’s requirements and standards.​

​

I tend to always feel that way with home and vehicle repair/service items.

Yeah, I don't know how I forgot that's got a 100k warranty. Thank goodness for that at least!!

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