Failure to Charge - with a Twist

[iletric]

So, it's evening 9 pm. I plug in Spark. No yellow turning to green. Nada.
I check my Aerovironment L2. All wonderful. Three green lights.
I spray the charging port with my special Kragen contact-cleaning fluid. Plug-in again.
Nothing.

Okay, this is not good. I bring out the pod, click to unlock the car. It lights up like a Xmas tree! The coveted yellow knob comes on (!) turns green right after. Lock the car, charging light stays on.

Whew! Already envisioned trip to the dealer...

What gives? Explanation?

 

[Nashco]

Are you sure you had it plugged in all the way? Not trying to be funny. I mean, if you don't insert until the latch clicks, it won't work properly. If the connection is made but there's a problem with the connection, the yellow light will turn on and stay on. If there's no connection made, the light won't ever come on.

If it happens again, first check that there's no debris in the connector (pebble, twig, etc.), then reinsert and push the connector harder to ensure it's fully engaged.

Bryce

 

[iletric]

Clicked it many times. In fact, I omitted mentioning that I was going to charge earlier and it failed, so I gave it up and decided to try again at nightfall, which I did with the same result. Except by then I HAD to take it a step further because I HAD to get that car charged, period.

I even asked my son if he'd messed with any charging timers (don't even know if Spark has them) just to make sure.

"No, man," was the answer.

Well, glad that one's behind us. Now wondering what the big book says, if anything. Hopefully the above is a valuable info for someone.

 

[Nashco]

You really should read the owner's manual. There's so much great stuff in there, including a big section on charging in there:

Click here and read the owner's manual

Charging Status Feedback

The vehicle has a Charging Status Indicator (CSI) at the center of the instrument panel near the windshield. When the vehicle is plugged in and the vehicle power is off, the CSI indicates the following:

- Solid Green – Vehicle is plugged in. Battery is not fully charged. Battery is charging.
- Slow Flashing Green – Vehicle is plugged in. Battery is not fully charged. Battery charging is delayed.
- Fast Flashing Green – Vehicle is plugged in. Battery is fully charged.
- Solid Yellow – Vehicle is plugged in. It is normal for the CSI to turn yellow for a few seconds after plugging in a compatible charge cord. The solid yellow may be extended depending on the vehicle and if there is a total utility interruption via OnStar. See Utility Interruption of Charging on page 9-42. This may also indicate that the charging system has detected a fault and will not charge the battery. See “Charge Cord Status Indicators” in the charge cord user guide.

The system may be thermally conditioning the battery during any of the states above, requiring electrical energy to be transferred to the vehicle.

If the vehicle is plugged in and vehicle power is on, the CSI will be on solid green. The same is true during a remote start if the vehicle is plugged in.

If the vehicle is plugged in and the CSI is off, a total utility interruption using OnStar or a charging fault has been detected. See Utility Interruption of Charging on page 9-42 or “Charge Cord Status Indicators” in the charge cord user guide.

This chart indicates vehicle feedback when the charge cord is plugged in.

See section 9-39 to 9-40 for the chart

Bryce