Check EV System warning message

[Braxus]

Kind of a bummer Tesla didn't use a battery carrier like what is used desktop computers for easier replacement down the line.

 

[Dsinned]

My 2012 went to the dealer this morning (as Toyota instructed via the "Check EV System" warning message on the I/P) for a preliminary troubleshooting investigation. The Gateway ECU had a history code, U1146, "Communications Malfunction in Gateway ECU". They cleared it, and the service dep't called "TAS" for further information. No reply today, so apparently Toyota is STILL NOT TAKING THIS ISSUE VERY SERIOUSLY. To wit, after I had a long chat with the Service Manager, expressing my concern, I was told to pick up my car, drive it home like normal, and wait for a followup call hopefully later this week. In other words, my dealer, like all the others, appears to be rather clueless in how to resolve this potentially very serious problem at this time.

 

[miimura]

My 2012 went to the dealer this morning (as Toyota instructed via the "Check EV System" warning message on the I/P) for a preliminary troubleshooting investigation. The Gateway ECU had a history code, U1146, "Communications Malfunction in Gateway ECU". They cleared it, and the service dep't called "TAS" for further information. No reply today, so apparently Toyota is STILL NOT TAKING THIS ISSUE VERY SERIOUSLY. To wit, after I had a long chat with the Service Manager, expressing my concern, I was told to pick up my car, drive it home like normal, and wait for a followup call hopefully later this week. In other words, my dealer, like all the others, appears to be rather clueless in how to resolve this potentially very serious problem at this time.

Given that your car was able to come READY after doing multiple power cycles, I would prefer to take the car home and use it instead of leaving it for weeks at the dealer. However, I am willing to take the chance that I will be stranded somewhere because I have multiple family members available to help me out of a jam on short notice.

However, the lack of action at the dealer or even a plan of action is appalling.

 

[ocdxfv]

I asked my service adviser if I could take it home and drive it till the parts come in and he said no. I guess they are worried about liability if I stall in traffic and cause an accident.

 

[miimura]

I asked my service adviser if I could take it home and drive it till the parts come in and he said no. I guess they are worried about liability if I stall in traffic and cause an accident.

So what kind of loaner did they give you?

 

[Dsinned]

Further back in this thread I read of a potential cause of this problem suggesting that water condensation from the A/C was getting on something related to the electrical system. You can see the potential for water dripping on the right hand side of the inverter/motor in the following picture. There is an electrical (probably low voltage) 3-circuit connector attached to the end of the inverter almost directly below what looks like an evaporator/compressor, and there may be other wiring/connector assemblies in the vicinity that are not shown in this picture.

This got me thinking . . .

When my RAV4 EV failed last weekend I had just driven it home a few miles, after a trip to the mall, with perhaps the A/C turned ON. It was unusually warm that afternoon, so I may have turned it ON for a few minutes on the way home. I parked it at home on my driveway (at a slight incline) and then came back to go on another errand about 10 minutes later. I did not notice, but it is entirely possible that a small puddle of water on the passenger side was dripping down from under the car from where the condensation drips off the A/C unit. I seldom operate the A/C in my RAV4 EV, but I may have that afternoon just before I experienced the electrical malfunction and/or computer glitch that subsequently shutdown the car's electric drivetrain, then triggered a "Check EV System . . . take to dealer immediately" warning message on the dash.

The more I think about this sequence of events, it seems plausible that water condensation may have temporarily fouled a critical electrical circuit that the Tesla Gateway ECU relies on for normal operation of the electric propulsion system.

I believe it was a fellow member here ("Kohler" I think) who made this discovery on his car as well. I am now wondering if he or any other forum member or perhaps a servicing dealer may have determined this to be a potential issue, that can, in fact, intermittently cause an electrical malfunction of the Tesla Gateway computer and/or drivetrain?

Comments? Anyone?

 

[ocdxfv]

Not consistent with my occurrence but certainly not an impossibility.

 

[ocdxfv]

I asked my service adviser if I could take it home and drive it till the parts come in and he said no. I guess they are worried about liability if I stall in traffic and cause an accident.

So what kind of loaner did they give you?

Dodge Avenger! Not a bad car but not a RAV4 EV!

 

[Joe_EV]

I've been holding off on taking mine in for updates until the dealer and the whole service chain had enough practice. Yeah. As if that's gonna happen. But I've been getting regular Check EV System warnings, and in some cases failures to start. Luckily it hasn't failed while driving, and most of the warnings were easily explainable as reactions to me fiddling with the stick shift during System Check. But this could have gotten dangerous, and since I have my wife's green-stickered Prius PI this week, finally I took it in Monday.

They did all the updates, but it continued to throw them a U1146 code, and now I can't have the car back until an ECU comes in. There is some hope that those are shipping faster these days...weeks instead of months. Anyone have recent experience with how long that has been taking? Meanwhile, since the dealer doesn't have an EV or any car with HOV stickers available, I declined their loaner, at least for this first week.

 

[snoltor]

Comments? Anyone?

I ran the AC everyday last summer. We had several spells of 100+ weather. Haven't had problems yet so if the issue is condensation it's not consistently affecting us.

 

[Dsinned]

It took about 3 weeks, via my dealer's service dep't, to order and receive a new Gateway ECU replacement. That was about three weeks ago and since the replacement, I have not had any reoccurrence of this problem, and it only happened once before that. However, that is not to say, it won't happen again. Fingers crossed . . .

 

[Joe_EV]

Thanks. The service adviser said mine could arrive within one week, but I always multiply statements like that by three.

 

[n3ckf]

So.... i just had this happen tonight on the way home.

This is a week *after* i got firmware 1.3.83 installed in my car...

And a really weird thing happened:
- the check-ev thing came on
- the "turtle" came on and the range reset to LO (but the battery segments were still showing full (85%) charge). I had just fully charged the car about 5 miles earlier.
- then the GOM *counted* from "LO" all the way back up to the correct range (about 88 miles at that point), my last full charge had been to 93.
- when i got home, the car started charging as normal.

Weird.

Anyway i'm taking it over to the dealer so they can dump the codes tomorrow morning. Unless they tell me to, i think i'm going to keep using the car while they get whatever replacement part they're going to order.

 

[ocdxfv]

So.... i just had this happen tonight on the way home.

This is a week *after* i got firmware 1.3.83 installed in my car...

And a really weird thing happened:
- the check-ev thing came on
- the "turtle" came on and the range reset to LO (but the battery segments were still showing full (85%) charge). I had just fully charged the car about 5 miles earlier.
- then the GOM *counted* from "LO" all the way back up to the correct range (about 88 miles at that point), my last full charge had been to 93.
- when i got home, the car started charging as normal.

Weird.

Anyway i'm taking it over to the dealer so they can dump the codes tomorrow morning. Unless they tell me to, i think i'm going to keep using the car while they get whatever replacement part they're going to order.

Sounds similar to what mine did a few weeks before the "melt down". Who is your dealer? Try not to let them keep it more than a day or so because you may not get it back for a month!

 

[Joe_EV]

That happened to me at least once. It sounds like an ECU communications glitch. If they decide your ECU must be replaced, they probably will not give the car back to you until that is done. It's a liability thing.

 

[n3ckf]

my dealer is Fremont Toyota (the Toyota dealer *closest* to the Tesla plant. You can almost see it from there, if you were on the roof of the dealership, you *could* see it form there...)

If they keep the car, they're giving me a loaner. (after all i paid extra for extended warranty on the car, etc.)

 

[starlight]

This thing of the electric range showing low even though it wasn't happened to me about a month before the Check EV message showed up. I wonder if it is similar to other peoples experience.

So.... i just had this happen tonight on the way home.

This is a week *after* i got firmware 1.3.83 installed in my car...

And a really weird thing happened:
- the check-ev thing came on
- the "turtle" came on and the range reset to LO (but the battery segments were still showing full (85%) charge). I had just fully charged the car about 5 miles earlier.
- then the GOM *counted* from "LO" all the way back up to the correct range (about 88 miles at that point), my last full charge had been to 93.
- when i got home, the car started charging as normal.

Weird.

Anyway i'm taking it over to the dealer so they can dump the codes tomorrow morning. Unless they tell me to, i think i'm going to keep using the car while they get whatever replacement part they're going to order.

 

[Joe_EV]

All those things have happened to me at least once. The only thing that never happened to me was a failure while driving, but apparently Toyota's policy is now that it's not worth the risk to let you keep driving after even non-moving errors arise. Plan on getting a new ECU.

And, I have good news: they received and installed my new ECU within four days! This might have been only two or three days if I hadn't brought it in on a Sunday, and if Monday hadn't been a holiday at Toyota Corporate; no way for me to know. I do know that the service advisor came in on his day off Tuesday to keep the ball rolling. Thank you, John Smith at Stevens Creek Toyota!

Not everyone at the dealership knows how to deal with these cars, but if you start off with the right person then there will be less confusion. (I had to throw a bit of a tantrum before I was allowed to start over with someone who had dealt with a RAV4 EV before.) More important, I hope my experience shows Toyota has ordered enough of these ECUs from Tesla, and is prepared to take care of us quickly from here on in.

I'm looking forward to hearing from others on their experiences with ECU replacements. I'm picking up the car after lunch, and will let you know how it runs.

 

[Dsinned]

The only important thing I have surmised from reading ALL the posts here about this problem is that after all this time, it certainly seems like Toyota (Tesla) still does not know what is causing it nor how to fix it. :shock:

 

[Luckyduckie]

So.... i just had this happen tonight on the way home.

This is a week *after* i got firmware 1.3.83 installed in my car...

And a really weird thing happened:
- the check-ev thing came on
- the "turtle" came on and the range reset to LO (but the battery segments were still showing full (85%) charge). I had just fully charged the car about 5 miles earlier.
- then the GOM *counted* from "LO" all the way back up to the correct range (about 88 miles at that point), my last full charge had been to 93.
- when i got home, the car started charging as normal.

Weird.

Anyway i'm taking it over to the dealer so they can dump the codes tomorrow morning. Unless they tell me to, i think i'm going to keep using the car while they get whatever replacement part they're going to order.

The same thing just happened to me today (without latest firmware update). I have an appointment to go into Fremnt Toyota tomorrow for 10K service. Any tips on who I should talk to? TIA