Tesla Charging Adaptor (SAE J1772)

[conorparis]

I have ShellRecharge Level 2 Chargers that a friend using to charge his 2023 Model 3. He uses the SAE J1772 Charging Adapter. On two occasions, he has come back to his car and found the adaptor warm/hot and been unable to easily pull it off the charger head, after which, he is unable to use the adapter again because it has warped from the heat and no longer will fit onto the Level 2 charger. Tesla gave him a replacement charge the first time at no cost because it’s been under a year, but were unable to explain the cause. I also have a Tesla (Model Y) and use the same chargers with no issues.
Thoughts on what the problem could be? Adapter, how the Model 3 chargers, or the chargers themselves (which sometimes switch on and off - potentially causing a surge of power). Please see photo below of the second, damaged adapter. Thanks!

 

[brkaus]

Bad connection. Id be worried about the other side of that connection.

What model of 3 & Y? What rate in amps are they both charging at?

If one is a RWD model, it will max out at 32a while an AWD model will go to 48a. Assuming, of course, that your shellrechsrge evse is at the typical 40a then an AWD model would generate roughly 1.6x the heat over a resistor.

 

[conorparis]

Bad connection. Id be worried about the other side of that connection.

What model of 3 & Y? What rate in amps are they both charging at?

If one is a RWD model, it will max out at 32a while an AWD model will go to 48a. Assuming, of course, that your shellrechsrge evse is at the typical 40a then an AWD model would generate roughly 1.6x the heat over a resistor.

Both sit around 30 amps. No issues with the Model Y and there are other Model 3’s in the complex who don’t seem to have a problem. Going through two adapter in 4 months when is concerning. I was presuming it was a bad connection between the adapter and charger, but perhaps it’s an issue with the battery port?

 

[brkaus]

Both sit around 30 amps. No issues with the Model Y and there are other Model 3’s in the complex who don’t seem to have a problem. Going through two adapter in 4 months when is concerning. I was presuming it was a bad connection between the adapter and charger, but perhaps it’s an issue with the battery port?

It could be on the other side, but then I’d expect problems at other locations or at any Tesla charger. Humm.

 

[conorparis]

No issues at Tesla chargers. The Shell chargers in my complex are the only non-Tesla charges he uses and he can be parked there for several hours at a time. Perhaps a simple overuse and overheating during the day, causing the adapter to degrade. Maybe they aren’t built for extended use.

 

[jjrandorin]

No issues at Tesla chargers. The Shell chargers in my complex are the only non-Tesla charges he uses and he can be parked there for several hours at a time. Perhaps a simple overuse and overheating during the day, causing the adapter to degrade. Maybe they aren’t built for extended use.

Some people use these adapters for years, as their only interface with charging, so I dont think its "overuse". Increased heat from electrical devices normally means resistance. What is causing that could be bad connections, undersized wiring, etc. For the adapter, it wouldnt be undersized wiring. It could be bad connections.

People are creatures of habit. Based in your description it sounds like you have multiple of these chargers available. Does your friend always park at the same one (people tend to park in the same spot if they can)?

 

[conorparis]

Some people use these adapters for years, as their only interface with charging, so I dont think its "overuse". Increased heat from electrical devices normally means resistance. What is causing that could be bad connections, undersized wiring, etc. For the adapter, it wouldnt be undersized wiring. It could be bad connections.

People are creatures of habit. Based in your description it sounds like you have multiple of these chargers available. Does your friend always park at the same one (people tend to park in the same spot if they can)?

Multiple chargers, some are more reliable than others. The one he was parked at this time around is a spotty one so he’s going to avoid it in the future. Has a service appointment next week to make sure it’s not an issue with the charging port. Thanks for the thoughts!

 

[terranx]

Multiple chargers, some are more reliable than others. The one he was parked at this time around is a spotty one so he’s going to avoid it in the future. Has a service appointment next week to make sure it’s not an issue with the charging port. Thanks for the thoughts!

Sounds like the spottiness may well have been due to poor contact, resulting in this issue

 

[Rocky_H]

Multiple chargers, some are more reliable than others. The one he was parked at this time around is a spotty one so he’s going to avoid it in the future. Has a service appointment next week to make sure it’s not an issue with the charging port.

I've seen a few reports of these over the years, and the source generally is the wire connection inside the J1772 plug handle. With it being loose in some way, it is resistive and creates a hot spot, which makes that voltage pin very hot, which can melt the connection from the plug into the adapter.

 

[miimura]

To be more specific, the source of overheating for this failure mode is usually the quality of the crimp between the wire and the pin in the J1772 handle of the charging station. It could also be dirty pins.

 

[davewill]

Yeah it looks something like this when they go bad:

As you can see, it burned the insulation off the wires inside the handle.

It caused this kind of melting of the port of my Rav4:

 

[TeslerJ]

Mine arcs. No idea why.

 

[davewill]

Mine arcs. No idea why.

A little more detail would be helpful. Is it arcing when you unplug or arcing while you're charging? If the latter, how do you know?

Arcing happens when make or break a connection that has current flowing through it or you have current flowing through a very poor conneciton. That's why you should turn things off before plugging or unplugging them. With car charging, the car has to tell the EVSE to turn the power on, so it pretty much can't arc when plugging in since there's no power available.

When you push the button on the handle to remove it from the port, it's supposed to pull down the proximity signal, which signals the car to stop drawing power. If that were broken it could cause arcing as you pull it out.

 

[PdxAmp]

i had the same problem after charging at work. it took me about 15 minutes to get the adapter off because it melted/warped. several other Teslas at work experienced the same issue - all linked to the same charger. i’ll order a new adapter at some point but i’ve decided to only charge at home or at tesla chargers for now.

 

[TeslerJ]

A little more detail would be helpful. Is it arcing when you unplug or arcing while you're charging? If the latter, how do you know?

Arcing happens when make or break a connection that has current flowing through it or you have current flowing through a very poor conneciton. That's why you should turn things off before plugging or unplugging them. With car charging, the car has to tell the EVSE to turn the power on, so it pretty much can't arc when plugging in since there's no power available.

When you push the button on the handle to remove it from the port, it's supposed to pull down the proximity signal, which signals the car to stop drawing power. If that were broken it could cause arcing as you pull it out.

I wrote out a whole explanation/question in this group last week and the moderators have not approved it — no idea why. I have a Ford and the J1772 EVSE. It was hardwired in by a master electrician. I noticed that when it charged to the % that I’ve indicated both in my car itself and in the FordPass app (90%), the unit still sends energy to my vehicle, even when lit solid green. The ONLY workaround I have found is if once it’s charged, I go into the app and click “charge to 100%” and then “stop charging”…which takes a few minutes for both the EVSE and vehicle to stop clicking and responding. Then it will allow me to unhook the charger from the port. I have tried installing a second J1772. Same deal. If I don’t follow these steps, it arcs every time. Electrician and I have tried everything. I have it on video and shared it in a forum for my car, with thousands of people and no one has an answer. I feel this isn’t safe. Thanks for your input.

 

[davewill]

I wrote out a whole explanation/question in this group last week and the moderators have not approved it — no idea why. I have a Ford and the J1772 EVSE. It was hardwired in by a master electrician. I noticed that when it charged to the % that I’ve indicated both in my car itself and in the FordPass app (90%), the unit still sends energy to my vehicle, even when lit solid green. The ONLY workaround I have found is if once it’s charged, I go into the app and click “charge to 100%” and then “stop charging”…which takes a few minutes for both the EVSE and vehicle to stop clicking and responding. Then it will allow me to unhook the charger from the port. I have tried installing a second J1772. Same deal. If I don’t follow these steps, it arcs every time. Electrician and I have tried everything. I have it on video and shared it in a forum for my car, with thousands of people and no one has an answer. I feel this isn’t safe. Thanks for your input.

You may have better luck on a Ford forum, as they will know more about your particular vehicle, but I've owned other EVs and know quite a bit about how J1772 works, so here we go.

There are a couple of issues here.

1. It MAY be ok if the EVSE is left energized when you reach your charge level. It doesn't necessarily mean the car is actively charging. It could want some wall power to run cooling pumps or fans, or for other purposes. However, I do think it sounds a bit fishy, and if the car DOES keep charging the battery, then the feature is obviously not working.

2. When you press the button on the J1772 handle, it is the car's responsibility (not the EVSE's) to stop drawing power in a very short time, quick enough that you can't pull the plug out before it happens. This is how arcing is prevented when you unplug (and also prevents arcing inside the EVSE when the contactors open). Generally, cars will also shut off power from the EVSE, but it's not necessary. My old LEAF, for example, didn't turn off the EVSE when you pushed the button, just stopped charging. The important thing is that the car stops drawing current before you have time to pull the plug out.

Since you've tried two EVSEs, and are reporting two odd behaviors that would both be controlled by the car, I think the car has a serious problem and needs to be checked out.

 

[TeslerJ]

You may have better luck on a Ford forum, as they will know more about your particular vehicle, but I've owned other EVs and know quite a bit about how J1772 works, so here we go.

There are a couple of issues here.

1. It MAY be ok if the EVSE is left energized when you reach your charge level. It doesn't necessarily mean the car is actively charging. It could want some wall power to run cooling pumps or fans, or for other purposes. However, I do think it sounds a bit fishy, and if the car DOES keep charging the battery, then the feature is obviously not working.

2. When you press the button on the J1772 handle, it is the car's responsibility (not the EVSE's) to stop drawing power in a very short time, quick enough that you can't pull the plug out before it happens. This is how arcing is prevented when you unplug (and also prevents arcing inside the EVSE when the contactors open). Generally, cars will also shut off power from the EVSE, but it's not necessary. My old LEAF, for example, didn't turn off the EVSE when you pushed the button, just stopped charging. The important thing is that the car stops drawing current before you have time to pull the plug out.

Since you've tried two EVSEs, and are reporting two odd behaviors that would both be controlled by the car, I think the car has a serious problem and needs to be checked out.

Thanks, Dave. Pushing the button on the handle triggers something ON on my vehicle. I left out two important points that I had written in my own post hat was never approved here. I brought my car in for service at the dealership to see if it was my car itself. There were no reports on record in their backlogs for any such occurrences. I also had a friend with the exact same vehicle as mine (other than paint color) bring his to my home to see plug it in and see what would happen, and the problem replicated. This tells me that it could be an incompatibility issue of sorts or an issue with the EVSE. Tesla claims to know nothing of this either but I wonder how many owners of my vehicle also own this EVSE. I’m bringing my vehicle to a friend’s house this week to see if the same thing happens. If it doesn’t we know for certain that it is the charger. I just wish there were another way to do this because I am a bit worried it may not be safe, and of course it’s a pain to have to use the app work around. I have to also have empty hands when I go to remove the charger, because if I open my car door first to throw my jacket inside, it re-triggers something ON again. I’m guessing I need to get rid of this charger and buy a different brand.

 

[davewill]

Thanks, Dave. Pushing the button on the handle triggers something ON on my vehicle. I left out two important points that I had written in my own post hat was never approved here. I brought my car in for service at the dealership to see if it was my car itself. There were no reports on record in their backlogs for any such occurrences. I also had a friend with the exact same vehicle as mine (other than paint color) bring his to my home to see plug it in and see what would happen, and the problem replicated. This tells me that it could be an incompatibility issue of sorts or an issue with the EVSE. Tesla claims to know nothing of this either but I wonder how many owners of my vehicle also own this EVSE. I’m bringing my vehicle to a friend’s house this week to see if the same thing happens. If it doesn’t we know for certain that it is the charger. I just wish there were another way to do this because I am a bit worried it may not be safe, and of course it’s a pain to have to use the app work around. I have to also have empty hands when I go to remove the charger, because if I open my car door first to throw my jacket inside, it re-triggers something ON again. I’m guessing I need to get rid of this charger and buy a different brand.

What EVSE is it anyway? if you mentioned it, I couldn't find it. Also, exactly how are you noticing the arcing? Do you hear it, or just see some signs of scorching, or ...

 

[TeslerJ]

I’ve got the J1772 (non-Tesla, Tesla charger), and use it with a Mach-E. When I release the nozzle from the port, there is a small arc that occurs every time. I’m having trouble posting the video. I will try again in the AM

 

[Rocky_H]

I’ve got the J1772 (non-Tesla, Tesla charger), and use it with a Mach-E. When I release the nozzle from the port, there is a small arc that occurs every time. I’m having trouble posting the video. I will try again in the AM

Huh. OK, I have seen that symptom before with a J1772 station at a library near me. As @davewill said, when you press the release button on the handle, it is supposed to send a signal on the communication pin to the car to tell the car to shut off current VERY quickly, so it should be impossible to pull out fast enough to get an arc. But on the station near me, something is broken in the button on the handle, so it is not sending that interrupt signal to anyone's cars, so they all get this arc when you press the latch and remove. I saw this with my car, and realized I would have to tell my car to stop first with the app or dash screen first if I wanted to use that charger again and remove it safely.