Will a battery charge it if's hot ?

I pulled into my local DC fast charger place today, outside temp 97 degrees F. I plugged it in started charging. SOC was around 20% when I started. I sought shelter and came back after 15 minutes. The charger had turned off and the SOC was 44%. I started the procedure again but it cut off after less than a minute. I repeated this two more times (3 total) and each time it turned off after about 30 sec.
I then drove home and parked in my relatively cool basement, plunged into the supplied 110V charger, and the car began charging normally.

So, why did the DC fast charger turn off ? Was it too hot outside ? Is it broken ? Or is there something wrong with my car that it won't accept DCFS ? 2017 REx.

The i3's battery pack and charging electronics are actively cooled, so I doubt overheating of either is to blame. However, the DC fast charger itself might have overheated.

One can easily hear the A/C compressor when AC charging in hot weather, but I don't have experience DC fast charging in hot weather. The in-car charging electronics are not used when DC fast charging, but the battery pack would probably need to be cooled, so I'm guessing that you should have heard the A/C compressor while charging. If I'm correct and you did not hear the A/C compressor, maybe something isn't functioning correctly in your car.

Thanks Art
I didn't hear the A/C compressor running, but then again I wasn't paying much attention to it. Maybe it wasn't running at first because it charged for about 10 minutes, then turned off. I'll try again in a few days and this time try to stay with the car, even in the heat, so I can tell what is happening.
The other thing is the charger has a fan or something running that makes noise that might mask the A/C compressor. Should I raise the hood so I can listen better (I assume the A/C compressor is located in the front) ?

theothertom said:

Should I raise the hood so I can listen better (I assume the A/C compressor is located in the front) ?

Click to expand...

The compressor is in the rear. But the heat exchanger and its fan are in the front behind the lower air intake, so you might be able to hear the fan and/or feel air movement. But I think the compressor is much louder.

Every time I've had a problem during a DC fast charge session, it was because of a fault with the EVSE not the i3. In my purely anecdotal experience, the units seem finicky and experience frequent down time. PlugShare is a good source of info on their status and whether others are having issues.

A CCS unit is a huge DC power supply. Say it was all of 90% efficient, but output 50Kw (about the max the i3 can handle)...that's about 5kw of heat, or over 17K BTU...that's a LOT of heat. On a hot day, it can be a challenge to keep the CCS unit cool, let alone a car that may have been running hard before you stopped to charge. An EVSE is pretty easy in comparison...it's essentially just a switch...the conversion heat is located in the i3's internal power supply.

OK, I went back to the charge station today. Outside temp was 89 and SOC was 39%. Plugged it in and it charged for about 28 minutes (should have been 30 minutes). SOC was 81% after charging and outside temp had risen to 92. I tried to restart it for another charge but it would not restart (same issue as last time).
I listened a few times but didn't hear the A/C compressor running. There is a fan type noise coming from the charger and also a lot of street noise at this charger. Since it cut off a couple of minutes early (and wouldn't restart), and the outside temp had risen, my theory is that this particular charger is heat sensitive. If I had the time, i would've waited 15-20 minutes for the charger to cool, then retry.