Charging Nozzle would not disengage - white smoke under hood

[Jasmine]

Has anyone experienced the inability to stop a charge & disengage the charging nozzle from the driver side port? The car was actively charging, I pushed the pulsing green light on the port, & after multiple attempts, it would not stop, button turn white, then turn off. Car was at 86% charge. I went into the Porsche app and set a timer for the nearest next option to end charging. White smoke began to emit from the passenger side hood. After a minute more of depressing the button it went off and i could pull the nozzle from the charging port. I pulled the car out of my garage and exited as quickly as possible. Not sure if, or how long, smoke continued bc it was dark and I stayed far away. Needless to say, i had it towed to the dealer where it is still being assessed. Wth?

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[d00d]

I've been unable to disengage during AC charging when I didn't notice the car was locked.
When DC charging I've seen steam coming out of the passenger side wheel well because of the radiator fans running.
I wouldn't imagine AC charging should cause that because the battery usually doesn't get that hot, unless maybe the garage is heated?

 

[BjörnfromHamburg]

I know this "white smoke" casually on Teslas. Never seem it with my Taycan.
Should be some kind of damp, not smelling like something burns, did it?

 

[69Mach390]

I say this a lot on car forums-

When the car does something weird, take a video.

Not only does it help us diagnose, but it helps when you take the car to the dealership and they can’t “recreate the problem” and send you on your way. No witnesses (or video) or it didn’t happen.

 

[gnr3312]

I say this a lot on car forums-

When the car does something weird, take a video.

Not only does it help us diagnose, but it helps when you take the car to the dealership and they can’t “recreate the problem” and send you on your way. No witnesses (or video) or it didn’t happen.

Learned this from taking previous vehicles to dealerships for repairs. Always take a video of the issue at hand.

 

[whitex]

Unable to stop charging/unplug is usually associated with a locked car. It can happen for example if you plug-in, get into the car, lock the doors, then after some time, open the driver's side door, which you'd think unlocks the car but it doesn't. Then you go to unplug, and charge port is unresponsive. If you're ever faced with such a situation, hit the unlock button on the keyfob a couple of times, then try to stop charging again.

 

[prj]

Unable to stop charging/unplug is usually associated with a locked car. It can happen for example if you plug-in, get into the car, lock the doors, then after some time, open the driver's side door, which you'd think unlocks the car but it doesn't. Then you go to unplug, and charge port is unresponsive. If you're ever faced with such a situation, hit the unlock button on the keyfob a couple of times, then try to stop charging again.

+1

First thing is to always press the unlock button on the fob.
Only if that does not help should you be worried about anything at all.

Smoke is a different topic - if it did not have any smell it could have simply been water vapor from some component getting hot.

 

[Dee]

Was is smoke or vapor?
Did it smell funny or odorless?
Very important to differentiate them!
The first one is a potential fire hazard.
The latter is harmless (condensor of the cooling system).

 

[whitex]

+1

First thing is to always press the unlock button on the fob.
Only if that does not help should you be worried about anything at all.

Smoke is a different topic - if it did not have any smell it could have simply been water vapor from some component getting hot.

I wish Porsche actually thought through user experience of their software. This could easily be resolved with some logic such as "if any door unlocked or open, charge port unlocked" and some better indication that the port is locked, perhaps fast blink the button LED red 3 or 4 times if someone presses the button while charge port is locked, and perhaps popup a message on the PCM (if screen is ON) indicating that charge port is locked and cannot be released, whenever someone presses that button. Even better, is comeone has Comfort Access sense the key near the charge port and automatically unlock the charge port if key is in near and button is pressed.

 

[prj]

I wish Porsche actually thought through user experience of their software. This could easily be resolved with some logic such as "if any door unlocked or open, charge port unlocked" and some better indication that the port is locked, perhaps fast blink the button LED red 3 or 4 times if someone presses the button while charge port is locked, and perhaps popup a message on the PCM (if screen is ON) indicating that charge port is locked and cannot be released, whenever someone presses that button. Even better, is comeone has Comfort Access sense the key near the charge port and automatically unlock the charge port if key is in near and button is pressed.

It has so far worked the same way on every EV I have ever driven that has a keyfob, whether German or Asian.

That said, I haven't really had issues with removing the charging cable from the Taycan. If the doors are open the button always worked for me.

However, if you just walk up to it, and it presents the handles, and then retracts them again (key out of range), you do need to press the unlock. Generally any time you can't get the cable out for any reason you just press unlock on every EV... and if that doesn't work you pull the emergency release.

 

[Jasmine]

I've been unable to disengage during AC charging when I didn't notice the car was locked.
When DC charging I've seen steam coming out of the passenger side wheel well because of the radiator fans running.
I wouldn't imagine AC charging should cause that because the battery usually doesn't get that hot, unless maybe the garage is heated?

I've been unable to disengage during AC charging when I didn't notice the car was locked.
When DC charging I've seen steam coming out of the passenger side wheel well because of the radiator fans running.
I wouldn't imagine AC charging should cause that because the battery usually doesn't get that hot, unless maybe the garage is heated?

car not locked, garage not heated, mid 60 degrees at the time, definitely not steam, very white smoke emitting directly from only far passenger front corner under the hood. Thanks for the questions

I know this "white smoke" casually on Teslas. Never seem it with my Taycan.
Should be some kind of damp, not smelling like something burns, did it?

I did not smell anything

Car

I say this a lot on car forums-

When the car does something weird, take a video.

Not only does it help us diagnose, but it helps when you take the car to the dealership and they can’t “recreate the problem” and send you on your way. No witnesses (or video) or it didn’t happen.
[/QUOT

 

[Jasmine]

Car was unlocked. Key was in my pocket. In fact i opened the driver door to see if any message would come on the pcm or see if chging status would appear. Still pulsed green and not disengage. These steps done b4 the white smoke emitted from under the hood.

 

[whitex]

It has so far worked the same way on every EV I have ever driven that has a keyfob, whether German or Asian.

That said, I haven't really had issues with removing the charging cable from the Taycan. If the doors are open the button always worked for me.

However, if you just walk up to it, and it presents the handles, and then retracts them again (key out of range), you do need to press the unlock. Generally any time you can't get the cable out for any reason you just press unlock on every EV... and if that doesn't work you pull the emergency release.

I ran into this with driver’s side door open but car somehow must have stayed locked. The fact that people come to forums seeking advice on this means the experience is not intuitive, lacking something (such as an indication to the user why they cannot stop/unplug). UX is a little bit like a joke in one respect - if you have to explain it, it’s not a good one.

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