Car went into neutral then park spontaneously - deja vu all over again

[Marcad80]

Conjecture on my part but I think this problem isn’t software related. If it was Porsche would be all over it working on a download fix. Instead I think it’s likely a problem with chips controlling the park/neutral/drive functions - probably a bad batch of them which explains why not all Taycan owners are experiencing this problem, and further likely Porsche knows exactly what the problem is but can’t get its hands on enough replacements chips for a fix. And of course those chips are integrated on electronic controller boards so who knows how complicated/difficult a repair would be. But I don’t believe for a micro second that Porsche doesn’t know exactly the reasons and fix for this problem.

Kind of sucks having the excitement and joy of being a new Taycan owner tarnished by this sword of damacles hanging over our heads, wondering if/when we’ll experience it.

It could be, but I’ve worked with ASICs (application specific integrated circuits) for a long time, and most of the time a defect in a chip doesn’t result in another function being executed but a BiT(built in test) error. Or if no Bit is available, if a part of the chip goes bad it ends up creating a random signal that has no meaning at all and flags implausibility levels that shut down the function.
This is most likely a “corner” software case that their software design verification process didn’t consider. This I see a lot.

The problem is, if they are deep in a corner they are very hard to find in a test environment.

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[IrwinJ]

It could be, but I’ve worked with ASICs (application specific integrated circuits) for a long time, and most of the time a defect in a chip doesn’t result in another function being executed but a BiT(built in test) error. Or if no Bit is available, if a part of the chip goes bad it ends up creating a random signal that has no meaning at all and flags implausibility levels that shut down the function.
This is most likely a “corner” software case that their software design verification process didn’t consider. This I see a lot.

The problem is, if they are deep in a corner they are very hard to find in a test environment.

I pray you’re right. A software issue seems less difficult to address than a chip issue. Either which way it sucks having this hanging over new Taycan owners.

 

[Taycanfamily]

There is now a TSB for this: https://static.nhtsa.gov/odi/tsbs/2022/MC-10210797-0001.pdf

It's very serious. Based on this it can happen on all 2022 Taycans with the 11kW on-board charger (not with the 22kW one strangely enough).

When this issue is reported to dealers, dealers have to immediately provide a Porsche Mobility Loaner Vehicle, and get in touch with their senior specialist at PCNA.

Based on the information that is requested (even the sales contract) it does seem like Porsche is taking this serious enough that they will authorise repurchases. Take your car to your dealer at your own risk with this issue. Until a fix is available, they might just not allow you to drive your car until it's fixed. Loaner availability is terrible, so don't expect to just get one.

Be aware that dealers have had this document since April 13th. If they've been saying they don't know anything, they're holding back information on purpose. Insist that they take action on Bulletin #2209 if you no longer want to drive your car like this.

Sorry for the rudimentary question. How do you know if the car has the 11kW or the 22kW? I don't see any info on Porsche's Taycan site that evens mentions 11kW or 22kW. I see the option of 150kW on board charger.

 

[tigerbalm]

11kW AC charger is standard - the 22kW AC Charger is an option.

 

[Ambroos]

In the US it shows up as the 19.2kW charger in the option list, but it's the same unit. It's not as common in the US as in Europe.

To benefit from it in the US you need a pretty wild charging setup which does not exist in public charging and is rare even at home. In Europe you can actually find public 22kW AC stations.

My car did the whole shift into park thing twice yesterday, at around 2800 miles on the odometer. I'm not mentioning it to the dealer until I know there's a fix available.

 

[Taycanfamily]

In the US it shows up as the 19.2kW charger in the option list, but it's the same unit. It's not as common in the US as in Europe.

To benefit from it in the US you need a pretty wild charging setup which does not exist in public charging and is rare even at home. In Europe you can actually find public 22kW AC stations.

My car did the whole shift into park thing twice yesterday, at around 2800 miles on the odometer. I'm not mentioning it to the dealer until I know there's a fix available.

thank you for the answer

 

[Marcad80]

My car did the whole shift into park thing twice yesterday, at around 2800 miles on the odometer. I'm not mentioning it to the dealer until I know there's a fix available.

have you reported it to NHTSA?

 

[tigerbalm]

In Europe you can actually find public 22kW AC stations.

Exhibit A from today:

A public 22kW charger in a small town in south west Ireland - the only one for 80km radius.

Vital to pull in the power as quickly as possible.

 

[Ambroos]

have you reported it to NHTSA?

No point, Porsche is clearly aware and taking it very seriously. I'll just keep an eye on the TSB and will take it to the dealer when a fix is available.

 

[Tiree Taycan]

Happened to me twice today at traffic lights ..Was left frantically pedalling the accelerator and left just sitting there at the lights like a twonk . Very disconcerting.....

 

[BigBob]

Exhibit A from today:

A public 22kW charger in a small town in south west Ireland - the only one for 80km radius.

Vital to pull in the power as quickly as possible.

I guess it was a choice between the 22kw charger or the park assist option then?

 

[tigerbalm]

I guess it was a choice between the 22kw charger or the park assist option then?

You know I didn't even notice that until you mentioned it! In my defence I did stay with the car for the top up charge.

 

[jcg]

Happened to me twice today at traffic lights ..Was left frantically pedalling the accelerator and left just sitting there at the lights like a twonk . Very disconcerting.....

Did the same thing and felt the same way. I now check gear indicator every time I pull up to a light. Frustrating for sure - but can live with it until there is a fix. Only happened once thus far.

 

[Marcad80]

Did the same thing and felt the same way. I now check gear indicator every time I pull up to a light. Frustrating for sure - but can live with it until there is a fix. Only happened once thus far.

I hope everyone has been reporting this to NHTSA (only 11 reported so far). This is a safety issue and has been happening for at least 4 months now. On Porsches own notice they say it is only happening on a “small number of vehicles”. Clearly they are not understanding the impact this issue is having on their customers. And clearly because of this they are not responding accordingly.

BTW, my car shifted into Park yesterday …

 

[taycan_mbt]

Happened to me for the first time as well. D to P while waiting at a red light. Fortunately, I was prepared (thanks to this forum!) so it wasn't much of an issue. 2022 4S with less than 200 miles. Very frustrating as I love everything else about the car. Hope they can figure out a fix quickly.

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