I was making a trip yesterday where my destination was very close to the range. So I stopped to charge with the handy level 1 plug along the way for 30 minutes. I pulled in at 50%, but when I left it was at 48% and quickly went to 46%. So I actually lost 3+% of the battery while charging for 30 minutes! I'm wondering if anyone can help explain what happened.
While charging for the 30 minutes, I had the car set in the ACC power mode so I could monitor the SOC. I didn't see the SOC increase any. After 25 minutes or so, I was getting ready to leave and so I turned the fan defroster on (fan only on low speed) to clear up all the fog on the inside. This is when I noticed the SOC drop to 49% within a minute or so. Puzzled, I checked to make sure the energy readout was zero for climate controls and accessories were very low (around 0.1 to 0.2 kW), and I unplugged the two phones that were charging.
Within a couple more minutes it dropped to 48%. At this time, I packed up the charger and left worried about what may happen if I stayed longer. Then as pulling out, it dropped to 47% and then to 46% within less than 1/2 mile of level driving speeding up to 50 mph.
Here are some details:
- 2013 model with 7500 miles.
- I tested the outlet before plugging in with a circuit tester, so I'm pretty sure it was wired correctly with no crossed wires or loose ground, etc.
- I kept an eye on the charger lights to make sure that no flashing error signals occurred. I've been burned before by a faulty ground wire.
- This was at night, and outside temp of 46 F.
- Battery temp stayed at 6 bars the whole time.
- I had just driven 40 miles, charged at level 2 for 2.5 hours, then drove for another 47 miles including several 1000' climbs and descents.
I ended up coming up short by 2.5 miles from my destination, so that 3% lost would have gotten me home. Fortunately, I coasted into a friend's house on turtle mode, and eventually got home nearly an hour later.
While charging for the 30 minutes, I had the car set in the ACC power mode so I could monitor the SOC. I didn't see the SOC increase any. After 25 minutes or so, I was getting ready to leave and so I turned the fan defroster on (fan only on low speed) to clear up all the fog on the inside. This is when I noticed the SOC drop to 49% within a minute or so. Puzzled, I checked to make sure the energy readout was zero for climate controls and accessories were very low (around 0.1 to 0.2 kW), and I unplugged the two phones that were charging.
Within a couple more minutes it dropped to 48%. At this time, I packed up the charger and left worried about what may happen if I stayed longer. Then as pulling out, it dropped to 47% and then to 46% within less than 1/2 mile of level driving speeding up to 50 mph.
Here are some details:
- 2013 model with 7500 miles.
- I tested the outlet before plugging in with a circuit tester, so I'm pretty sure it was wired correctly with no crossed wires or loose ground, etc.
- I kept an eye on the charger lights to make sure that no flashing error signals occurred. I've been burned before by a faulty ground wire.
- This was at night, and outside temp of 46 F.
- Battery temp stayed at 6 bars the whole time.
- I had just driven 40 miles, charged at level 2 for 2.5 hours, then drove for another 47 miles including several 1000' climbs and descents.
I ended up coming up short by 2.5 miles from my destination, so that 3% lost would have gotten me home. Fortunately, I coasted into a friend's house on turtle mode, and eventually got home nearly an hour later.