Charging fault, charging port locked and won't let go

[f1geek]

Barry,

I do the same thing when I take the plug out of my 2015 e-Golf SEL. What you describe is the "normal" operation of the 2015 e-Golf plug receptacle lock. I think the other people who posted in the thread experienced a problem where the car did not unlock the plug under any circumstances. I don't think your process will work for a malfunctioning receptacle lock.

I do wish VW would offer an in-car option to turn off the plug locking. I have asked numerous times and have been told numerous times the car does this for safety reasons. Yet, based on my research of this topic, VW is not following the J1772 standard. Maybe they will change it on future EVs.

 

[JoulesThief]

Folks, if you tug on the charger handle, and it does not come out, firmly press it all the way back in, and retry. Sometimes the o-ring in the handle just presents too much outward pressure to allow the latch to unlock on the e-Golf. So press it all the way back in, press the unlock button on your key fob, wait a second to hear the latch click, THEN try removing the handle. There is some timing involved. Get the timing right and you'll have a lot less problems. Give a one one thousand count, hear the click, then pull.

 

[NeilBlanchard]

I have tried unlocking the car with the remote, and with the switch on the door (the car is not locked at home), and it is hit or miss. Sometimes it works first time, and other times I have lost count how many times I try to unlock it. In those instances, I have to push and pull on the cable handle and get it just so and it finally unlocks.

It is worse in the winter.

 

[miimura]

There was some discussion on the Facebook group about the lock when you get the Red LED error light. In this case, the normal operation of the lock solenoid is lost. The guy that had the red light said he was able to use a long thin tool to directly push the solenoid pin back in, thereby allowing the J1772 handle latch to open and remove the handle from the port. Not only that, but he said that after he drove the car and plugged it back in, everything was back to normal. The Red LED did not turn on again.

Good luck to everyone who encounters this issue.

Image credit: Abrasha Staszewski

 

[NeilBlanchard]

There was some discussion on the Facebook group about the lock when you get the Red LED error light. In this case, the normal operation of the lock solenoid is lost. The guy that had the red light said he was able to use a long thin tool to directly push the solenoid pin back in, thereby allowing the J1772 handle latch to open and remove the handle from the port. Not only that, but he said that after he drove the car and plugged it back in, everything was back to normal. The Red LED did not turn on again.

Good luck to everyone who encounters this issue.

Image credit: Abrasha Staszewski

Thank you, thank you thank you! This picture and post saved my bacon this morning! The red light was on, and the lock would not release for anything or any way.

Pushing the metal pin as shown in the picture allowed the plug to be taken out.

I was then able to plug in our Leaf, to get a charge before going to work.

Thank you, once again!

 

[bhan89]

Has anyone tried the process above.

I'm wondering if it worked for those stuck plugs?

Barry

I have my 2016 SE for about a month. The charger's been getting stuck a couple times a week in the morning. Usually if I lock the car and then unlock it, it'll let me get the charger out. I assume this shouldn't be something we should get used to, but VW should fix? Has anyone asked VW about it?

Also, I would say about once a week or so, I have a charging fault where the indicator is red. If I unplug the charger and put it back in, it's able to charge. I'm worried that one night, I won't catch it and then my car wouldn't be ready for me in the morning. Has anyone else been having this issue?

 

[f1geek]

For the first issue: VW has made it a bit difficult to remove the charging plug. This is what I do in the morning after my 2015 e-Golf SEL has fully charged overnight: I walk up to the passenger door, place my hand in the handle to unlock the car and wake it up and immediately take a few steps to stand in front of the charge port. I see the green light come on and go off. As soon as the green light goes off (and the plug lock disengages), I quickly pull out the plug. If you hesitate, the car will begin charging again and locks the plug again. I don't think VW is going to change this behavior.

For the red light: Does this only happen at home? With just one charging station? If so, it might be an issue with that charging station. If you are using the included trickle charging station, maybe your 120 V outlet has a grounding issue or a GFI issue (GFI outlets can fail after several years of use)? Good luck.

 

[bhan89]

For the first issue: VW has made it a bit difficult to remove the charging plug. This is what I do in the morning after my 2015 e-Golf SEL has fully charged overnight: I walk up to the passenger door, place my hand in the handle to unlock the car and wake it up and immediately take a few steps to stand in front of the charge port. I see the green light come on and go off. As soon as the green light goes off (and the plug lock disengages), I quickly pull out the plug. If you hesitate, the car will begin charging again and locks the plug again. I don't think VW is going to change this behavior.

For the red light: Does this only happen at home? With just one charging station? If so, it might be an issue with that charging station. If you are using the included trickle charging station, maybe your 120 V outlet has a grounding issue or a GFI issue (GFI outlets can fail after several years of use)? Good luck.

I have a JuiceBox Pro 40 and have it plugged into a NEMA 14-50 outlet I had installed recently. I haven't used other charger so I'm not sure if it's my charger or car.

 

[forbin404]

Has anyone tried the process above.

I'm wondering if it worked for those stuck plugs?

Barry

I have my 2016 SE for about a month. The charger's been getting stuck a couple times a week in the morning. Usually if I lock the car and then unlock it, it'll let me get the charger out. I assume this shouldn't be something we should get used to, but VW should fix? Has anyone asked VW about it?

Also, I would say about once a week or so, I have a charging fault where the indicator is red. If I unplug the charger and put it back in, it's able to charge. I'm worried that one night, I won't catch it and then my car wouldn't be ready for me in the morning. Has anyone else been having this issue?

Just to ask a question you must have a SE with Fast Charging right? Because a Base 2016 SE doesn't lock.

 

[bhan89]

Yea I have an SE with fast charging.

 

[roblew]

This just happened to me last night. Tried again this morning and it's still stuck. Red light is on. Tried ALL the previous suggestions. Calling the roadside assistance for a tow now, but not sure how they will tow it since the connector is plugged into a public charging station. Maybe they will cut the cable? Don't think the owner of the charger would appreciate that.

 

[roblew]

The guy that had the red light said he was able to use a long thin tool to directly push the solenoid pin back in, thereby allowing the J1772 handle latch to open and remove the handle from the port.

Wow, I totally missed this post and it saved me just now. Thank you!! FYI, I was able to use the screwdriver that's included in the flat tire kit in the trunk. I'll try to attach some photos that will hopefully help someone.

Photos added here:
https://drive.google.com/open?id=0B7C5KVwQxtn2M3Q3S1NvNVpHeGs
https://drive.google.com/open?id=0B7C5KVwQxtn2N2xvYUhxUUR6c1U

Anyone know how to properly embed photos here from google drive?

 

[miimura]

The guy that had the red light said he was able to use a long thin tool to directly push the solenoid pin back in, thereby allowing the J1772 handle latch to open and remove the handle from the port.

Wow, I totally missed this post and it saved me just now. Thank you!! FYI, I was able to use the screwdriver that's included in the flat tire kit in the truck. I'll try to attach some photos that will hopefully help someone.

This is why I post on the forum. Hopefully people learn from our experience and either get better use out of their cars or save themselves some headaches.

 

[NeilBlanchard]

I just asked my dealer to look at this problem - they will try and find why it is sticking. He said they can't change the locking behavior, though.

 

[miimura]

A recent post (either here or Facebook, I don't remember) said that there is a recent revision of the charge port assembly. I would assume that it is an improvement to the locking mechanism or an improvement to the fit of the J1772 port. I feel those are the two things that need improvement on that assembly. If you have a 2015 and have experienced the red error light, I suspect that they will install this revised charge port.

 

[f1geek]

So does the existence of a modified charge port assembly suggest that all of the 2015 and 2016 DCFC equipped e-Golfs may experience this problem? I guess we all should be carrying a tool to press in the stuck solenoid.

 

[miimura]

So does the existence of a modified charge port assembly suggest that all of the 2015 and 2016 DCFC equipped e-Golfs may experience this problem? I guess we all should be carrying a tool to press in the stuck solenoid.

I think the percentage of failures is pretty low, but man it's a hum-dinger when it does happen. Given that roblew said he could do it with the screwdriver in the provided kit, you probably don't need anything special. Well, except the knowledge of how to handle the situation....

 

[jack8trades]

So does the existence of a modified charge port assembly suggest that all of the 2015 and 2016 DCFC equipped e-Golfs may experience this problem? I guess we all should be carrying a tool to press in the stuck solenoid.

I think the percentage of failures is pretty low, but man it's a hum-dinger when it does happen. Given that roblew said he could do it with the screwdriver in the provided kit, you probably don't need anything special. Well, except the knowledge of how to handle the situation....

When it happened to me, I had been using the OEM EVSE that came with the car. It's plug's shell extends as a guard over the latch, preventing the simple screwdriver plunger manipulation described above. So, I made this tool*. It takes a bit of finessing to get around the guard, but it works.

It's conceivable that another plug could have an even more occluding guard over the latch, in which case one possible option would be to trim the guard back.

* The quarter is for size reference.

 

[bhan89]

I've been having issues with the charging port lock and also the car thinking the charger is plugged in when it's not. I talked with the dealer today and they told me they already did this repair for one car where they had to remove the entire battery from the car and replace some parts. I'm going to take it in later this week to get it fixed.

Has anyone else had problems where the car still thinks the charger is plugged in after you get it to release the charger? How after you gone about getting your car started without turning your car on/off multiple times for ~5 mins?

 

[Lining]

I've been having issues with the charging port lock and also the car thinking the charger is plugged in when it's not. I talked with the dealer today and they told me they already did this repair for one car where they had to remove the entire battery from the car and replace some parts. I'm going to take it in later this week to get it fixed.

Has anyone else had problems where the car still thinks the charger is plugged in after you get it to release the charger? How after you gone about getting your car started without turning your car on/off multiple times for ~5 mins?

My 2016 e-golf, at second charge - car have only 145 Km - get the same defect. Car are from 14 days in Porsche service and they don`t know where is the problem.
Does anyone know where to find a diagnosis program?