[RedWedge]

Having some trouble and thought I'd query the hive mind. I just got my used 2013 Smart ED about a month ago, but for the last week or two, it's been SUPER slow to charge. From almost empty, 12hrs on on the L1 gets me to 40%. I've got it on an L2 right now, and it's been almost 8 hours and still not full. (I'll update when I get downstairs to say what the SoC is at after 8 hrs...) Since I'm new to all of this, I'm not quite sure how much juice the car is supposed to be pulling from the charger. The ChargePoint L2 at my office says something about "6.6kw per plug". Does the heat have anything to do with this? (It's 107F right now)

I've attached a screenshot of the ChargePoint chart. Is this normal? Is it a problem with the internal charger? Or is it (god forbid...) the batteries?

Thanks in advance!

 

[sokoloff]

What does your cluster tell you about how long it will take to charge it when you plug it in? Also you do know that the charger that comes with the car defaults to the VERY slow charge rate when it is first plugged in. You have to press the button on the unit to get all four LED's to light up to give you the faster charge. Oh, I see you do know about L1 and L2.

Len
2014 EV Coupe 15,500 miles
2014 EV Cabriolet 6,000 miles

 

[RedWedge]

What does your cluster tell you about how long it will take to charge it when you plug it in?

I'll check tonight and let you know. I believe last night it said "18H" when I plugged it in to the charger that came with the car. Can't remember if I hit the "turbo" button or not.

 

[sokoloff]

On mine the cluster number to a full charge is a little pessimistic. When it tells me that it is 15 hours to a full charge, it's usually done an hour or two before that.

Len
2014 EV Coupe 15,500 miles
2014 EV Cabriolet 6,000 miles

 

[RedWedge]

Is that normal?

 

[sokoloff]

That's normal for my two. I just assumed it was normal for all?

Len
2014 EV Coupe 15,500 miles
2014 EV Cabriolet 6,000 miles

 

[Mister_smart_LA]

Having some trouble and thought I'd query the hive mind. I just got my used 2013 Smart ED about a month ago, but for the last week or two, it's been SUPER slow to charge. From almost empty, 12hrs on on the L1 gets me to 40%. I've got it on an L2 right now, and it's been almost 8 hours and still not full. (I'll update when I get downstairs to say what the SoC is at after 8 hrs...) Since I'm new to all of this, I'm not quite sure how much juice the car is supposed to be pulling from the charger. The ChargePoint L2 at my office says something about "6.6kw per plug". Does the heat have anything to do with this? (It's 107F right now)

I've attached a screenshot of the ChargePoint chart. Is this normal? Is it a problem with the internal charger? Or is it (god forbid...) the batteries?

Thanks in advance!

If that car is sitting in direct sunlight, with the charger in direct sunlight, suspect that heat is playing a factor at least to a certain extent. I haven't heard of only 40% in 12 hours though. You are right to have your suspicions.

 

[InjuredAgain]

That's normal for my two. I just assumed it was normal for all?

Len
2014 EV Coupe 15,500 miles
2014 EV Cabriolet 6,000 miles

Normal for our 2015 as well. Charging speed seems optimized for battery temperatures between about 60 and 85 degrees Fahrenheit. We would often see charge rates of 1.8 kilowatts with the factory EVSE when the battery was in this temperature range. Consequently, even though the instrument panel says he would take as much as 15 hours for a full charge, it always finished in 11 or 12 hours.

In colder temperatures down to about 40 degrees Fahrenheit, the amount of time it would take to fully charge more closely matched the estimate. It never gets that hot here so I don't know how higher temperatures will affect charging times.

One thing to check. What is the maximum charge rate that your car is set to accept? I believe the car setting will override the charger in every instance.

 

[Yinzer]

So that graph shows it has been charging at 1.72 kw? The normal capacity of the car's charger for level 2 charging is 3.6 kw. It is probably the charging station, although even at 1.72 kw it should "only" take 11 hours to charge from almost empty.

I never charge my Smart to full except on my L2 charger at the house. From an SOC of 20 percent, it might take 3.5 - 4 hours. The car's charger draws about 14.5 amps (in cold winter weather) to 16 amps (summer). This translated to about 3.5kW to 3.8 kW.

 

[InjuredAgain]

That really looks like the car has been set to limit charge current to 8 amps. At 220 volts, that's roughly 1.76 kw, and on 120 volt is consistent with getting 40% or a bit more charge in 12 hours.

This setting can be altered by using the ring on the right stalk and scrolling to the charge current screen. If it isn't, set it to "max" and see if charging speed increases.

 

[Yinzer]

I recall that that the max charge current setting is one of the more obscure ones to find...