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120V EVSE lights - meaning?

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8K views 9 replies 7 participants last post by  dye46 
#1 ·
Hi all,

I have a question about the lights on the 120V EVSE. What does this mean?:



I've read the manual, and I know the two top lights flashing red means improper grounding. But what does the 3-1-1 pattern on the bottom green lights mean? I can't find a reference to that anywhere.

When this happens, the car stops charging, but it has only happened 5 or 6 times in the 6 weeks I've had the car, and it only seems to happen after the car is fully charged (or is finished but drawing power for temperature/maintenance purposes, I guess).

Any ideas?
 
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#3 ·
I haven't, but since the EVSE doesn't report any problems with the outlet initially (two green lights on first plug-in) and charges the car with no problems, I figured the outlet must be OK. I guess I'll go get one today and report back.
 
#6 ·
This does not look like the charge cord from either my 2013 or 2015. There was a picture posted earlier this week of a similar charge cord. I suspect the lights and button on the lower part are 8 amp/12 amp selection which would make this a replacement charge cord for a 2011. What year is your car?
As far as the red lights on top, look around for an outlet that gives two green lights. I couldn't use my garage wall outlets but could use the garage door opener outlet which was a temporary fix (in the ceiling) until I could get better power out of the wall.
 
#7 ·
I went and got an outlet tester today, and it reported no problems with the outlet. I also plugged in my Kill-a-Watt to see what it would say. It reported a no-load voltage of ~117V (it's a long run from the panel, so I'm not surprised), and when the car started charging at 12A the voltage dropped to about 107V. That seems to me like a large drop, but the car kept charging with no problem.

The EVSE is a new replacement one I got from my local dealer because the one that came with the car (I bought a certified used 2012) was defective. The bottom lights and button are indeed for the 8A vs. 12A selection, but I haven't been able to find a reference to the 3-1-1 error flash pattern. The outlet is fine, usually, but occasionally this error happens.
 
#8 ·
The manual specifies 120V. Though there seems to be some question as to the minimum voltage the EVSE will tolerate, if your circuit is dipping to 107V perhaps you have identified the gremlin. I would expect a longer charge time as well.
 
#10 ·
I had this same problem with the same ESVE charge cord (the one with a charge-current-limiting button), and posted identical video and help request to this list. Try searching for posts from "dye46".

What I found (my final reply to that discussion):

I did test the ESVE on a neighbor's outlet, and everything was fine.

I posted this video/question to the Facebook Volt Owners list. 6 years ago, a Volt early-adopter somehow came across an Excel chart from Lear, the ESVE manufacturer. He thought it might be of use to me. Here is a PDF of the chart:

Lear ESVE Errorcode Chart

The "3,1,1" error code on the chart decodes to "No protective earth connection or protective earth connection is greater than 2K Ohms".

My house was rewired in the '60s or '70s, with 2 wire armored ("BX") cable. The 2 wires are inside a flexible metal armor sheath, the sheath providing the earth/ground connection (this was up to code for the time, but no longer is). The cheapo outlet tester I used said everything was fine, but I started by noticing that the resistance readings from neutral to earth were very high at the outlet. I examined the house's system from the service entry to the distribution panel, all was hunky dory...right up to where the BX cable connected to the outside outlet box. The screw clamp on the box wasn't making a good connection to the cable. I fixed this and all was back to normal charging.
 
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