SPX Delayed Charging Problem

[DonBoza]

Has anyone been having problems with their volt not charging in delayed mode using SPX 240V chargers? Three times in the last month my volt failed to charge overnight. The error codes pointed to the chargering unit. The dealer can't find any problems on the Volt.

[Chevrolet Customer Svc]

Originally Posted by DonBoza

Has anyone been having problems with their volt not charging in delayed mode using SPX 240V chargers? Three times in the last month my volt failed to charge overnight. The error codes pointed to the chargering unit. The dealer can't find any problems on the Volt.

Good Evening DonBoza,

Sorry to hear your having trouble with your 240V charger. Have you tried contacting SPX yet regarding this concern? They can be reached at (877) 805-3873.

Take Care!

-Ian Chevrolet Volt Customer Service

[ELars]

I've been having the same problem. Works fine for immediate charging but randomly works for delayed charging.

[Joe_Linux]

My thoughts on the 220 Volt SPX charging unit: I'm not a fan of the "kinky curled chord" as it adds extra and excessive weight and pull on the car connector nozzle. This is rather obvious as the anti-stress collar has failed in a comparatively short time. I would have much preferred just a straight cord that could be adjusted or ordered to the actual length needed for the particular installation situation. Also the actual electronics inside the round case are far smaller than the plastic case itself. If one needs to curl the cord, all one would need is a plastic garden hose holder that usually sell for under $10.00 at most hardware stores.

So in short, I would like to have seen a smaller 220/240 charging unit that was portable. Ideally a single unit that could easily be switched from 110/120 volts or 220/240 volts depending on the input voltage to the charger at any particular location.

As it stands now, the SPX saucer charger is an over sized and overly clumsy device (considering the weight of the connecting cord) which could be greatly improved by using standard construction style straight cords. As the unit only requires a 20 amp breaker, it seems to me that a #12 or possibly #10 gauge cord would do the job. I don't know the gauge of the wire inside kinky curly cord. but there is noticeable, but not excessive heat within that chord when the car is being charged.

What I do know for sure is that the kinky curly cord is not at all useful, and does add unnecessary weight and strain on the connectors which ultimately will result in a failure of the cord at the point of entry to the connectors. There have been two instances when the car failed to charge. The exact cause / reason is unknown, but what I did notice the other day is that if the connector from the charger is wiggled just a little bit, the car looses communication with the charger and fails to charge. The only way to restore it is to completely disconnect the cord connecting device from the vehicle, and re-plug it in. All in all the charging system is not as sturdy or robust as it should be, and where it needs to be.

[Joe_Linux]

Originally Posted by Chevrolet Customer Svc

-Ian Chevrolet Volt Customer Service

Personally I would have preferred the Volt's charging input location be in the nose exactly like the Nissan Leaf. To me that would be more accommodating to more situations. As it is now, the connector sticks out a long way on the driver's side. As noted in the earlier post, if the connector is wiggled at all communications is lost with the charger, and the car fails to charge. Does the Volt Android App show the state of charge of the car?

[Hokie_Volt]

Originally Posted by Joe_Linux

My thoughts on the 220 Volt SPX charging unit: I'm not a fan of the "kinky curled chord" ...As it stands now, the SPX saucer charger is an over sized and overly clumsy device (considering the weight of the connecting cord) which could be greatly improved by using standard construction style straight cords. .[/B]

Which SPX charger do you have? The only curly cord we saw was the ginormous Voltec, and that was one of the reasons we went with the SPX Power Xpress. (We also liked the increased amperage for potential future vehicle requirements, as well as its portability to take to our cottage on weekends.)

Unfortunatley, we are now starting to get the SES light on due to a charging fault, but only experienced a no-charge one time. Luckily, I saw the text come in regarding the fault, and I went out to unplug and re-plug, which "fixed" it. The Volt has been to the dealership twice to clear the code with no real assurance that it won't happen again. We are on a time-of-day electric rate, so it really helps the electric bill to use the delay. Does anyone know if there is a known issue with either the Power Xpress charger and/or the delay based on rate and departure time? Any fixes other than not using the delay setting?

[Joe_Linux]

Just about exactly 1 year old. No red or green lights on the chargers cover display. 220/240 electricity is making it to the input of the mother board but output from the mother board is zip. None of the internal parts are visibly broken, or burned out. There seems to be a fusable wire which is okay and two ceramic type fuses that don't look burnt out, but you really can't see into the interior. I guess I should check them with an ohmn meter. The 110 volt charger is as sucky as ever with an etremely useless short 110 volt input cord that I cannot even plug into my 110 outlet so I'm running it on a 12 guage extension chord and check to see if it is getting hot at the connection. 110 charging time is horribly wrong. To me the external chargers are the extremely weak link related to the Volt. The SPX charger is vastly over priced and extraordinarily under engineered. Who wnats to spend over $600.00 a year on replacement chargers? Might as well suck it up and burn high priced gas. We have 28 PV cells on the roof, but they are useless without a working charger. It's almost manditory to have a 220 volt charger as anything less results in very long charge times. I don't know what GM was thinking when it came to the charging department. Their poor quality could kill the car as a viable alternative to gasoline.