Destination charger nightmare

[HZ2004]

I arrived at our destination hotel after a great 200 high speed miles, and had the valet plug in to the ccs destination charger. Next am, the valet could NOT get the plug to release. What follows can only be described as a nightmare. Released from inside the front fender. NO. Unlocked from the charging overview. NO. Called Porsche Roadside assistance. Not their problem. Called the local Porsche dealer. No help. Called the charging station provider. No answer. Called the building handyman. Total zero. After 3 hours the building handyman called his boss who said he wouldn’t go near it with the power still on at the charger. He shut it off at the circuit breaker. Ouila. Out came the charger. Lesson learned. I also learned from the local Porsche dealer that re-setting the mechanical release inside the front fender will not be cheap.

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[Genau]

Sorry this happened to you! Since others reading this thread may or may not have exactly the same scenario, I'm capturing here some wisdom from prior threads that may or may not be fully relevant to your situation. I'll come back and edit this post with links when I've had my coffee. Updated with links.

1. The charging cable cannot be unplugged if the car is locked. https://www.taycanforum.com/forum/t...-at-remote-station-good-tip.10464/post-151051
2. If the illuminated charging cable release button at the charging port on the Taycan doesn't work, try the unlock command on the PCM screen. Go to Charging, then press the three dots (...), then press Unlock.
3. Pulling the emergency release string does not necessarily mean that dealer service will be required. The reason dealer service might be required is if there was a fault preventing cable release (as opposed to the user not attempting steps 1 and 2 above). You can push the string back into the hole and it will be ready to use another day. https://www.taycanforum.com/forum/t...trify-america-ea-massive-fail.2168/post-56967
4. Calling Porsche Roadside Assistance gets you flatbed transport to a dealership at best. They do not provide technical support. Dealerships normally know less about the Taycan than members of this forum. In North America, call 1-800-PORSCHE for real technical support for the Taycan. One of the managers from 1-800-PORSCHE, @cbx313, has been posting on this forum for the last few weeks since Volkswagen Audi Group overhauled the service. It is on a completely different level than whatever you've heard about the service in the past. https://www.taycanforum.com/forum/t...issing-the-charging-planner.10479/post-164366

 

[QueenBean]

Sounds terrible, very sorry to read what happened.

FWIW, CCS is not a "destination charger" or Level II AC wall connector.

What you might have intended to write was Type II (J-1772) destination charger which is essentially the top section of the CCS connection alone.

CCS is for DC Fast Charging and utilizes the bottom ports for DC transmission and the top section for communication between the EV and the charging station.

 

[HZ2004]

Sounds terrible, very sorry to read what happened.

FWIW, CCS is not a "destination charger" or Level II AC wall connector.

What you might have intended to write was Type II (J-1772) destination charger which is essentially the top section of the CCS connection alone.

CCS is for DC Fast Charging and utilizes the bottom ports for DC transmission and the top section for communication between the EV and the charging station.

Ah,so.
Thanks for making that distinction. J-1772 is correct.

 

[HZ2004]

I arrived at our destination hotel after a great 200 high speed miles, and had the valet plug in to the ccs destination charger. Next am, the valet could NOT get the plug to release. What follows can only be described as a nightmare. Released from inside the front fender. NO. Unlocked from the charging overview. NO. Called Porsche Roadside assistance. Not their problem. Called the local Porsche dealer. No help. Called the charging station provider. No answer. Called the building handyman. Total zero. After 3 hours the building handyman called his boss who said he wouldn’t go near it with the power still on at the charger. He shut it off at the circuit breaker. Ouila. Out came the charger. Lesson learned. I also learned from the local Porsche dealer that re-setting the mechanical release inside the front fender will not be cheap.

The other element to note is that this charger was very unstable for the Taycan and kept shutting off. The valet rebooted several times. It appeared that it was mostly used on plug-in hybrids. That would be a future warning sign for me.

 

[kort]

One of the managers from 1-800-PORSCHE has been posting on this forum for the last few months since Volkswagen Audi Group overhauled the service. It is on a completely different level than whatever you've heard about the service in the past.

if true this is a big improvement.

my experience has been that calling them is a wasted effort. they were a black hole where issues went sent to die.

 

[QueenBean]

The other element to note is that this charger was very unstable for the Taycan and kept shutting off. The valet rebooted several times. It appeared that it was mostly used on plug-in hybrids. That would be a future warning sign for me.

It really should not matter what type (PHEV, BEV) of vehicle has charged using the wall connector. The status of the wall connector and its AC power supply are most important. Your Taycan probably has a 48a maximum electrical current draw unless you optioned the 19.2kW onboard AC charger.

Your Taycan is telling the wall connector something like "I can accept up to 48a." The wall connector will deliver what the Taycan requested up to its circuit capacity.

Some reason you might have had issues charging:
-The connection between the J-1772 and the charge port was poor.
-There's an issue with wall connector itself.
-The wall connector circuit is bad (loose connections, inadequate wire gauge, running 48a on a 50a circuit or incorrectly sized circuit (32a requires 40a circuit, 48a requires 60a circuit).
-Taycan charge port and/or charger is faulty.
-It was a "smart" wall connector set to deliver power at a certain rate, perhaps only at a certain time. Generally "dumb" wall connectors are better because the vehicle determines when and at what rate to charge depending on its settings.

Anyway hope it all gets sorted and you can enjoy the Taycan.

 

[Jhenson29]

Your Taycan is telling the wall connector something like "I can accept up to 48a." The wall connector will deliver what the Taycan requested up to its circuit capacity.

Other way around. The EVSE communicates its maximum current and the car limits its draw.

The EVSE does not directly control current. Other than a contactor to open/close.

 

[jkoya]

OP - do you remember the brand of EVSE you were having the issue with at the hotel ?

I've had problems with Clipper Creek EVSEs not releasing with our Chevy Volt. Since Clipper Creek is only about 30 miles or so from me, I was about to call them for help, but finally got it to release. I know it's a different situation, but I can sympathize with you....

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