Failing Level 2 and DCFC...

[jlferg0509]

So, the story begins that I usually use my FCSP to charge once weekly (on average), sometimes twice weekly depending on my travels. I only use DCFC, I'm sure as most of us, when traveling.

Level 2 Charging:
The past two days, I've been unaable to charge using my FCSP, the charger would stop and within 30 minutes, and the (100 amp) circuit breaker would kick off. I tried this a number of times with the same results, even derating the FCSP from 80 amps to 60 amps. I thought I needed to check DC fast charging to see if it work.

DCFC:
NOPE!
I drove the truck to the local EA station a few miles away, attempted to connect to mulitple chargers (2 x 350 k/wh, 1 x 150 kwh), each time, the charger failed to connect to the truck.

I'm currently at 65% SOC and have scheduled my 50k mile service appointment (4 days from now) with a note of the charging issue. I searched the forum to see if anyone else has experienced the same issue, but didn't see any results. Anyone have any insights or experiences to share before I go to the dealer?

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[RickLightning]

I would try a level 2 charger other than your FCSP. If it works, the answer is to inspect the DC pins on your truck.

 

[Pacific.NW]

I had a very similar issue (minus popping breakers); I couldn’t charge at all. Took it to Ford, they did some diagnostics, updated software, plugged it in and said “working.”

It wasn’t.

Took it back, they had it for two weeks and eventually replaced the charge port under warranty. The service tech told me this wasn’t uncommon on ‘22 models.

Not sure if this is the case for yours, but thought I’d share my experience.

 

[chl]

Popping breakers probably means a short somewhere, probably in the port as is implied by the post above.

The house 100A breaker pops when overloaded.

Somewhere the two hot leads in the CCS1 system are shorting when connected to the truck and energized - if there were a short in the feed lines to the FCSP it would pop all the time, so most likely the charge port as mentioned.

It could be the CCS1 plug or CCS1 cord of the FCSP but...not if the same thing happens with other L2 EVSEs, then it's the truck, not the FCSP.

Good luck.

 

[jlferg0509]

Thanks for your insights, I will definitely bring yours @Pacific.NW to the dealer when I drop the truck off tomorrow.

I'll keep you all updated, once I have a fix.

 

[jlferg0509]

It feels like it's taken forever, but I finally have a fix for this issue and wanted to share in hopes of helping someone here.

I finally got an electrician out to check the circuit breaker. After taking the truck to the dealer and having Ford run diagnostics on the FCSP with no findings or Error Codes anywhere.

The electrician said that due to the high amperage (100 amp dedicated circuit with the FCSP set to 80 amps), the circuit breaker built up some damage caused by the constant expansion and contraction. He ended up cleaning the bus bar and replacing the 100 amp circuit breaker. It worked!

This took 2.5 years of weekly usage to fail. I have reduced the amperage from 80 to 50. I'll still get a good charge overnight and hope it will reduce the heat on the bus bar and circuit breaker.

Hope this helps someone in the future.

 

[TaxmanHog]

Glad that your Level-2 issue is resolved!!

What about the DCFC problem, how was this fixed?

DCFC:
NOPE!
I drove the truck to the local EA station a few miles away, attempted to connect to mulitple chargers (2 x 350 k/wh, 1 x 150 kwh), each time, the charger failed to connect to the truck.

I'm currently at 65% SOC and have scheduled my 50k mile service appointment (4 days from now) with a note of the charging issue. I searched the forum to see if anyone else has experienced the same issue, but didn't see any results. Anyone have any insights or experiences to share before I go to the dealer?

 

[K6CCC]

The electrician said that due to the high amperage (100 amp dedicated circuit with the FCSP set to 80 amps), the circuit breaker built up some damage caused by the constant expansion and contraction. He ended up cleaning the bus bar and replacing the 100 amp circuit breaker. It worked!

Is your breaker panel in direct sun? Remember that almost all residential breakers operate from heat. Put them in a overly hot environment and they will trip well under their rated trip current. Also some breaker panels are famous for crappy buss bar connections (Zinsco comes to mind in particular). I replaced a bunch of breakers due to similar issues and later my Zinsco main panel when I added solar because I did not want that much power flowing through it at the same time as the sun was beating down on it. The FCSP would have made that worse - although that almost always operates at night.

 

[chl]

It feels like it's taken forever, but I finally have a fix for this issue and wanted to share in hopes of helping someone here.

I finally got an electrician out to check the circuit breaker. After taking the truck to the dealer and having Ford run diagnostics on the FCSP with no findings or Error Codes anywhere.

The electrician said that due to the high amperage (100 amp dedicated circuit with the FCSP set to 80 amps), the circuit breaker built up some damage caused by the constant expansion and contraction. He ended up cleaning the bus bar and replacing the 100 amp circuit breaker. It worked!

This took 2.5 years of weekly usage to fail. I have reduced the amperage from 80 to 50. I'll still get a good charge overnight and hope it will reduce the heat on the bus bar and circuit breaker.

Hope this helps someone in the future.

A newish breaker (2 or 3 years old) failing is relatively rare I think, that was totally unexpected.

They do age, usually though it takes 30 to 40 years or more to go bad.
Live and learn.

Clearly the regular high amperage usage with a continuous load took its toll on yours very quickly.

That should probably serve as a warning for those who charge at 80A on a regular basis to keep an eye on the breakers.

At least yours failed by popping (open circuit) - one that fails closed (short circuit) would be a danger. I had a lightning strike a roof fan one year and it fused the circuit breaker it was on closed among doing other damage!

Now you've got me thinking...

My panel is relatively new, about 15 years old, but some of my breakers are probably at least 30 years old - the electrician who did the upgrade used the old breakers. Since then I have replaced a few old breakers that had begun to show signs of age - maybe I should replace them all about now?

I wonder, did you notice any discoloration or cracking on the breaker before or while it was failing?

Was this a brand new 100A breaker when the FCSP was installed so it was only 2 or 3 years old?

Was it a high quality breaker (not sure how one knows that if not a pro, maybe by the manufacturer warranty) from a name brand?

We are often limited as to what breaker brand to buy based on the model of our panel, and what the electrical installer supplies.

Did the electrician clean the bus bar because of the age of the panel (accumulated oxidation, etc.) or did the failing breaker cause some charring or discoloration of the bus bar?

I installed a brand new 100A breaker and wire for my FCSP, but with an SR battery I never draw more than about 44A and the FCSP is set for a max of 48A.

With many electrical parts made overseas, one wonders about quality control these days!

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