Be careful with v4 Superchargers ⚡

[REM]

I tested one out yesterday to see if 500kW charging was available, but unfortunately it was not. They just installed them last month so maybe they will enable it soon after proof testing for a while (I only saw about 120kW at peak, so my pack may have not been warm enough since I was just driving around town).

Anywho... the cable and handle on these things are much beefier, and apparently there was way too much strain on my charge port. I learned the next day that apparently something in my port has been bent or shifted. I checked it by using another supercharger cable and my own mobile charger. After driving straight home, I managed to angle the handle in a way to get it fully seated, but I will be opening a ticket with my service center to have them check/realign the pins.

Definitely concerning that the first time I try one it bends the s*** out of my charge port. ?

update: it seems my port has returned to normal, as I don't have to insert at an odd angle to achieve a positive lock now. My best guess is that the port/pins got slightly bent from the excessive strain, and a thermal cycle allowed it to return to spec (cold night + charging for a few hours to heat it back up). Seems well and good for now, but I'm still going to be more cautious now about the amount of awkward strain a heavy cable is putting on the port.

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[Natelarson]

Did you get any pictures?

 

[REM]

Did you get any pictures?

Not yet. I wanted to charge back up to more than 50% before I examine it again. I was in the middle of a busy city so I didn't have time to fuss with it while at the supercharger.

I'll try to remember to take good pics. And of course, I'm going to ask Tesla to check it under warranty since one of their brand new chargers is responsible for it in the first place.

 

[tbuck]

I tested one out yesterday to see if 500kW charging was available, but unfortunately it was not. They just installed them last month so maybe they will enable it soon after proof testing for a while (I only saw about 120kW at peak, so my pack may have not been warm enough since I was just driving around town).

Anywho... the cable and handle on these things are much beefier, and apparently there was way too much strain on my charge port. I learned the next day that apparently something in my port has been bent or shifted. I checked it by using another supercharger cable and my own mobile charger. After driving straight home, I managed to angle the handle in a way to get it fully seated, but I will be opening a ticket with my service center to have them check/realign the pins.

Definitely concerning that the first time I try one it bends the s*** out of my charge port ?.

The V4 installs are in stages. The first is the installation of the new dispensers - which you used. These are often installed on existing cabinets - the charging rates are the same as before - just new fancy dispensers.

The next stage is to upgrade the cabinets to support the higher charging rates. However, these may be derated until the last stage and may have limitations due to infrastructure.

The last stage is all about the local electrical infrastructure. Some sites may require upgrades from the local power provider to ensure the feeds to the cabinets can supply the current required.

So, we may see new V4 station equipment - but may not see full V4 potential for a while (on a station-by-station basis).

 

[REM]

The V4 installs are in stages. The first is the installation of the new dispensers - which you used. These are often installed on existing cabinets - the charging rates are the same as before - just new fancy dispensers.

The next stage is to upgrade the cabinets to support the higher charging rates. However, these may be derated until the last stage and may have limitations due to infrastructure.

The last stage is all about the local electrical infrastructure. Some sites may require upgrades from the local power provider to ensure the feeds to the cabinets can supply the current required.

So, we may see new V4 station equipment - but may not see full V4 potential for a while (on a station-by-station basis).

Indeed! This particular bank has new cabinets as well, but I suspect you are spot on about waiting for (x) amount of MWh 3 phase bandwidth from the electric company.

 

[Cybertruck26]

This is disconcerting as I have been really waiting for the ones near me to open up.

 

[REM]

This is disconcerting as I have been really waiting for the ones near me to open up.

Yep!

I don't always discount myself as being an idiot and doing something wrong, however, I am an engineer at heart so I take care to notice details that probably the average person wouldn't. As soon as I noticed the huge amount of strain on the port I just left it to continue charging in case it was already bent and then I'd be really screwed and left with a low SoC and a borked port.

Ugh.

 

[Natelarson]

I just charged up at a v4 charger in Utah. It got up to 317 KWH speed

 

[Natelarson]

The V4 installs are in stages. The first is the installation of the new dispensers - which you used. These are often installed on existing cabinets - the charging rates are the same as before - just new fancy dispensers.

The next stage is to upgrade the cabinets to support the higher charging rates. However, these may be derated until the last stage and may have limitations due to infrastructure.

The last stage is all about the local electrical infrastructure. Some sites may require upgrades from the local power provider to ensure the feeds to the cabinets can supply the current required.

So, we may see new V4 station equipment - but may not see full V4 potential for a while (on a station-by-station basis).

When I charged up at a v4 supercharger the other day, soon after hitting an all time high of 317 kWh it suddenly went down to 27kwh for about ten minutes or so. I stopped and unplugged and then plugged it back in and it went up to around 150 kWh (it was about at 30 percent by then). Any idea why there power dropped so drastically? Of the 15 stalls, 13 of them were being used. Think it might be that? Or just the power cable moving a bit to make a weak connection? Maybe the battery getting too hot? I’m not sure. You seem to know about v4 chargers so I thought you might have some insight.

 

[Cybertruck26]

When I charged up at a v4 supercharger the other day, soon after hitting an all time high of 317 kWh it suddenly went down to 27kwh for about ten minutes or so. I stopped and unplugged and then plugged it back in and it went up to around 150 kWh (it was about at 30 percent by then). Any idea why there power dropped so drastically? Of the 15 stalls, 13 of them were being used. Think it might be that? Or just the power cable moving a bit to make a weak connection? Maybe the battery getting too hot? I’m not sure. You seem to know about v4 chargers so I thought you might have some insight.

Impressive. Did you happen to observe any strain on your charge port like @REM did? I am wondering if vehicle height could help alleviate some of the strain.

 

[Natelarson]

I didn’t, I’ll have to watch it again next time at at a v4 supercharger. Probably in a couple weeks. I’ll update then

 

[AlmostHuman]

I always make sure I am pulling on the cable to have little to no tension on the charge put when plugging in. On the V4 units the cables are heavier but they are also longer so you can normally get the tension low. Don't worry about pulling on he cable coming from the unit, I doubt a human could pull on them hard enough to damage them.

 

[REM]

I always make sure I am pulling on the cable to have little to no tension on the charge put when plugging in. On the V4 units the cables are heavier but they are also longer so you can normally get the tension low. Don't worry about pulling on he cable coming from the unit, I doubt a human could pull on them hard enough to damage them.

I agree, managing the slack in the cable is very important. These stalls were configured awkwardly in parallel between parking spaces instead of horizontally and behind the parking spot. I think that's the main problem. I'm going to report this to Tesla as soon as I can so others don't end up in the same situation.

I know for a fact that Tesla has a ton of different iterations when it comes to layouts so they can gather as much data as possible on what works and what doesn't. I'm very skeptical of this configuration.

 

[jimnycricket65]

This is disconcerting as I have been really waiting for the ones near me to open up.

Don’t you have a charger at home? Ever since I got it installed it home, I seldom go to superchargers.

 

[Cybertruck26]

Don’t you have a charger at home? Ever since I got it installed it home, I seldom go to superchargers.

Na. I used to, but I am in an apartment complex for a bit at the moment. I do have a supercharger across the street, but I get free charging at work. That said, takes like 10 hours to get to 80% lol

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