Leaf 2014 SV DTC codes P3170 and P3170

[marc.cha...@gmail.com]

Hi,

I build my OpenEVSE last December and the charger is working great. From December from until mid January, I was charging at 24A and I got the warning triangle with the "Check Engine" light only once. I recover the DTC codes with Leaf Spy and I got P3170 and P3171 (those are charger issues). But lately, I always got them when I charge. This morning, the car didn't charge, hopefully I woke up early enough to manually start the charge, the charge worked ok (unplugged before full charge). I checked the car charger timer settings and they were ok. First time it happens.

I don't have this issue if I use public chargers, mostly Aerovironment and AddEnergie SmartTwo here in Quebec.

From mid-January to now, I charge with 30A set (Leaf withdraws about 27.5A). Even if the charger is heating, the winter was very cold (about -25C every night) and I don't think the charger even reach the freezing point. I'll try to set it back to 24A to see if the problem disappears.

Do someone else experience the same problem? I using the default firmware (the one programmed into the board when I got the kit), do a firmware update can fix this issue?

Thanks.

[chris1howell .]

There are no known compatibility issues with the Nissan Leaf. If you have a 30A kit you should not charge above 24A. The QC connectors can not handle continuous current above 24A. Even in the cold resistance at 30A can heat up fast.

[marc.cha...@gmail.com]

Hi Chris,

It is not my intention to leave it to 30A, just this winter was pretty bad here and it saved my day (or avoided me 30 min coffee charges) a couple of times.

I wanted to know if this could trigger the charger error codes or what I can look on to see what can cause this issue. I got this problem once at 24A last December, the charger was still on the default settings.

The charger is still working, the car is charging properly except this morning, it was properly plugged I didn't touch it and started it manually and charged fine. The warning is just annoying. I love my OpenEVSE, the Dostar cable is still flexible in the cold not like my LCS-25 becoming a steel rod at -30C.

[Craig Kirkpatrick]

Marc, if I were in your shoes I would open up the EVSE and smell it and look for any signs of overheating probably near the fuses and each quick connect. Even beginning at -25C the EVSE is delivering near 7,000 watts of power to your Leaf. With that sort of power anything running beyond specifications can develop heat quickly at any spot that has the slightest resistance. Chris said where to look.

Consider rebuilding it with the 50A design capable of 40A continuous. With correct AC mains wiring and adequate J1772 cable it will not generate much heat even with the high current the Leaf wants to draw. Chris uses this setup to charge his Leaf in the California desert.

Let us know what you find when you open your EVSE.

[marc.cha...@gmail.com]

Yesterday I unplug everything, plowed my extension (charger is located inside winter car shelter) and checked everything.

I opened the OpenEVSE, everything is ok, no bad smells, no burned wires. I found out that on my extension the male connector has a brown color and when I open it up the plastic was melt. I don't know which brand was this connector (got it from an electrician), the female was a Cooper and the male was a Leviton and both were ok. I plugged the charger directly to my house outlet, set the charger at 24A for the night, the car charge and I didn't got any codes from the Leaf. I didn't got this problem before with the LCS-25 (20A), but maybe it was just this connector was just bad.

Side note: The Leaf charger is 6.6kW, so it draws 27.5A from the charger. Still, it is over 24A. I'm thinking of building a 50A (40A continuous) one.

Thank you for your help