CCS DC Fast Charge Not Working

I have a 2015 i3 (100% electric) and found that CCS Fast Charge was working up until earlier this week. Suddenly no CCS station I go to can successfully charge the car, even at different locations. Level 2 charging works though. I even tried holding the CCS cable up while the charging session starts, with no success. I know others have had success sometimes when doing that.

My i3 is with the dealer. Last year they replaced a part when I had the CCS latch / cable issues and it's been working well up until now. I see people with the newer i3s have no issue using CCS. Perhaps I need a charge port hardware or software update?

Also as this is my first post, I wanted to say that I really like the i3 overall. I've enjoyed driving it.

Thankfully the car is charging normally now! It turns out that the CCS Level 3 charging module needed to be replaced. The dealer told me that they’re making improvements on the cars every year, so I expect (and hope) this issue won’t occur again.

Having the same problem with my BMW i3 REX 2014. Any chance someone could tell me how much it cost to have the charging module replaced like the poster had to do? Curious because I'm assuming that's what I'm going to have to do. Not having my own at home charger has been an absolute nightmare considering every single ccs fast charger I go to doesn't work with my car 85% of the time.

gabi.knight13 said:

Having the same problem with my BMW i3 REX 2014. Any chance someone could tell me how much it cost to have the charging module replaced like the poster had to do? Curious because I'm assuming that's what I'm going to have to do. Not having my own at home charger has been an absolute nightmare considering every single ccs fast charger I go to doesn't work with my car 85% of the time.

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A common reason that CCS charging fails is because the pin that latches the plug into the charge port no longer functions or functions sporadically. Unlike AC charging, DC CCS charging won't initiate unless the plug has been latched into the port. Sometimes, spraying silicon lubricant on this latch pin could help. Also, reaming out the hole through which the latch pin moves could help.

Sometimes, the latch pin is working but the heavy plug and cable distort the charge port which can break the connections of some critical charging pins. This can usually be overcome by lifting the plug until charging initiates.

gabi.knight13 said:

Having the same problem with my BMW i3 REX 2014. Any chance someone could tell me how much it cost to have the charging module replaced like the poster had to do? Curious because I'm assuming that's what I'm going to have to do. Not having my own at home charger has been an absolute nightmare considering every single ccs fast charger I go to doesn't work with my car 85% of the time.

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If it works sometimes, it is probably not the charge cable lock actuator at fault. A simple way to find out is plug in to a level 1 or 2 with your battery somewhere below 100% and lock the car. If the little white pin above the charge cable moves out when you lock it, it is working properly and your issue may be with the charging station. If you call the tech line of the charging station, they can often get you up and going.