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Thermal Management - continious while charging

15K views 58 replies 16 participants last post by  VW TECHNICIAN 
#1 ·
Hello fellow ID4 owners.

I am the "happy" owner of a ID4 1st Max - and currently the EV has been almost as much at the workshop than in my garage.

Issue is that while charging ( 11kw homecharger) the battery cooling / heatpump runs with intervals througout the charge cycle.

It will idle for 2-3 minutes then run almost spot-on 60 seconds, then a 2-3 minute break and full 60 seconds again and again and again.

The workshop is baffled, the factory has never heard about it before. I have driven less than 400km in it and already its been 3 days at the dealer.

They said the had a reference model charging next to it - and that didnt have the issue.

Any fellow owners experience something similar?

Its kept in a a garage that varies in temperature from 10-20 degrees celsius - so that shouldnt be the issue for such a prolonged period.

Thank you for any enligttment
 
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#2 ·
Do you have a departure time set? If not have you tried that? Any of the "usual" fixes tried like a full reboot or factory reset?

How about the charging lock pin issue posted on this forum by a few folks? I could see a bad connection maybe causing what you are seeing.
 
#5 ·
It would seem to be heat pump related and since we don't [yet] have same in the USA you'll be best availed of fellow International owners.
It's good that you have factory involvement. They'll either figure it out in firmware, and/or swap parts, or worst case replace your vehicle so they can study same.
 
#6 ·
It would seem to be heat pump related and since we don't [yet] have same in the USA you'll be best availed of fellow International owners.
It's good that you have factory involvement. They'll either figure it out in firmware, and/or swap parts, or worst case replace your vehicle so they can study same.
On US models we still have the BMS that runs the AC compressor (also a heat pump) to cool the battery whenever it exceeds 77F. Normally this would only be needed during DCFC or really hot weather. Its a part of what allows the ID.4 to charge DCFC at such an impressive rate. During hot weather it may kick in the battery cooling on US models, but only at a high charging rate. Does anyone else have a 11kw home charger and heard the AC compressor come on during charging? (or during DCFC?)
 
#15 ·
I am confident thats not normal. They had a reference car charging alongside that didn’t show this behaviour - also would be odd to consume power to cool when not needed. I know on fast chargers cooling needs to be a lot more frequent.

I am also sure the dealer would have said that’s normal - the mechanic - (guess it’s an IT tech in an EV) also said that was not supposed to do that.

not to speak of the “wear and tear” of the heat pump /AC or whatever it is running for full charge circles (maybe 4-5 hours every night) for years and years

I hope it’s just a sensor or something that needs to have settings adjuste
 
#18 ·
This week my thermal management system has been running when I charge with my JuiceBox in the evening. I start it at 11pm and charge for about 2 hours and it runs the whole time. When I charge in the morning it doesn't run at all. It has been cool here at night, mostly in the 60's. Anyone else have a similar issue?
 
#20 ·
My thermal management system runs while charging with JuiceBox (40 amp > 9.9kw). I am not using climate control for cabin while charging. I also assumed this was normal to cool battery. Temp has been around 78F (26C) at night. I will check if the same happens when charging in morning.

Might be design or code issue?
 
#23 ·
Keep me informed please - mine is still at the shop - a loaner ID3 never started the thermal management once in 4 weeks. The current (newer) model ID3 I am using as a lonaer ran Thermal management through the entire 2.30 hours charge time ( 20 degrees Celsius) in my garage
 
#25 ·
I noticed some literature from GE regarding their refrigerators. They say it's normal for their compressors to run 80 to 90% of the time because it's more efficient than cycling.

I wonder if this is what's going on with the ID.4? The info we're missing is the battery temp, but when two cars are parked side by side at the dealership and behaving differently, it makes me doubt this is intended behavior. Yet still... could it be?
 
#28 ·
Mine runs the front fan regularly when charging and it will cut off and on at various times. For the environmental data, it is in an enclosed garage in Florida so the ambient temp right now is in the mid-80s, EVNotify shows the battery temp as 84F. I have felt the A/C lines and they are at ambient temps, so the A/C is not running, at least when I check. And even if the A/C runs I don't think it is a big deal and it is working as designed. I would rather the A/C run as it needs to, and the system do what it needs to, the keep the battery happy. I actually think running the A/C to keep the battery cool is a pretty good idea.
 
#29 ·
It starts at battery temps of 86°F (during charging): cooling by the heat exchanger for heat condenser (AC) so check it again when its a little hotter. The AC compressor is variable speed so may not make much noise until fairly hot battery temps.
At a temperature of 59°F (15°C) or higher the thermostat opens, allowing battery coolant to flow to the radiator (passive cooling). You may hear the coolant circulating pump. The fan you hear is also on whenever charging and the radiator+battery hits another thermostat temp that I have not seen yet. By looking at EVNotify you may be able to confirm if VW is right about the above, and also if yours is working as designed.
 
#41 ·
We live in South Central Texas where is gets hot starting around April 1.....usually. Since our ID.4 is garage kept it is charged in the garage as well, door shut. Something up front is running the entire time (five-eight hours) I am charging. So, what you are saying that is unusual?
 
#45 ·
I am home from the dealer but unfortunately the car is still there. They told me it was ready and sent me on my way. When I got in the car, everything seemed normal. I backed out of the spot and tried to put it in drive, but it went to B. Tried to go back to drive but it went to neutral. I drove forward in B and noticed the rear camera was still showing. I tried to get to the main screen and somehow it went to the clock and was stuck. After hearing this they suggested that I leave the car. As far as the charging issue, they said I should lock the car, make sure all keys were at least 20 feet away, then plug in and start charging. They agreed that the thermal management system should not run continuously while charging. The fault codes were "background" codes that didn't have anything to do with the thermal system running constantly when charging. The packet of papers stapled to my RO in the picture below is the list of the codes.
Hand Personal computer Computer Cabinetry Typing
 
#47 ·
I picked up the car this afternoon. They said they did not experience any of the problems I did. So far everything is ok. I will try the suggestions they offered for charging and see if that solves the problem.
 
#49 ·
I have no idea if something is wrong as the thermal management is running continuously as I charge but as you say "as long as it drives normal......." I also question Spin's dealer's explanation that there is something wrong. If there is something wrong what is it and why was it not fixed?
Presently the car is in our very warm garage being charged to 100% for a long drive tomorrow. Again, as it has every time the car is being charged, there is something running under the hood. Nothing seems out of the ordinary but now I have doubt in my mind. I certainly will ask when the car goes back for the "Volkswagen Double Check"
 
#58 ·
And regarding noise coming out ....I will need first to have someone check if actually fan is only running or air conditioning with fan .If fan is only running then there is enough heat transfer from onboard AC-DC charger amd DC-DC 12V battery inverter that will trigger fan running to cool down above mentioned electronics.
There is various other ways that will trigger battery management without air conditioning involved to cool battery and only have radiator fan running.
Now regarding charging in the garage with a EV pointing to the nose of the garage with hood facing close to the garage wall it will be more hot than what you will have on other side of the garage or where your thermometer is located to check temperature.
Another thing is to try with hood open while charging and observe if fan time is different than with hood closed. There is many factors that will make fan running and most of people not well experienced on EV will consider whenever they hear fan running it is air conditioning.
Do some testing for me ....I think that there will be people who are familiar with how to check if compressor is running....
 
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