Broken plastic clipper

[arch1s]

Hi guys,

I am a newbie with i3 but recently I have faced the following issue: I tried to charge my i3 on the fast charging station but the station safety plastic clipper was broken. Because of that, the charging station couldn't recognize the car. Any ideas on how we can trick the charging station or car if the plastic clipper is broken?

 

[alohart]

If the small plastic rod that locks the charging plug into the charging port is broken, it probably needs to be replaced. If you are somewhat handy, you could replace it yourself. There are YouTube videos that demonstrate the replacement process.

Sometimes spraying silicone lubricant into the hole through which this rod extends could make it start working again.

 

[EvanstonI3]

It is not just a plastic clip. It is a motorized plastic clip that apparently sends a signal to the car that it has engaged.
If it is not able to extend, it cannot send that signal to the car to let it know its position.
This, in turn, will not allow the Fast-Charging to function.

You should test to see if it actually works by plugging in a L1 or L2 charrger, then lock the doors with the FOB.
Look at the top of the charging port to see if the clip comes out and engages or not. You can lock/unlock the car a few times to see it move back and forth (it won't do this without a chargger handle plugged in).

If it DOES move out, then you may just have to "lift" a bit on the heavy Fast Charrge handle when first engaging to get it to work.
If it DOES NOT move out when you try L1/L2 charging and locking the car, then you will most likely need to have the mechanism replaced.

If you are handy and patient, this can be done without taking it in to BMW

 

[arch1s]

It is not just a plastic clip. It is a motorized plastic clip that apparently sends a signal to the car that it has engaged.
If it is not able to extend, it cannot send that signal to the car to let it know its position.
This, in turn, will not allow the Fast-Charging to function.

You should test to see if it actually works by plugging in a L1 or L2 charrger, then lock the doors with the FOB.
Look at the top of the charging port to see if the clip comes out and engages or not. You can lock/unlock the car a few times to see it move back and forth (it won't do this without a chargger handle plugged in).

If it DOES move out, then you may just have to "lift" a bit on the heavy Fast Charrge handle when first engaging to get it to work.
If it DOES NOT move out when you try L1/L2 charging and locking the car, then you will most likely need to have the mechanism replaced.

If you are handy and patient, this can be done without taking it in to BMW

Im talking about this clipper

 

[alohart]

Im talking about this clipper

I think you'd need to contact the owner of the DC fast charger to have a new plug installed.

 

[arch1s]

But cars like Kia, and Nissan are able to charge with broken clipper. I just wanna know are there any treats to trick the Bmw and make it charge with a broken clipper.

 

[alohart]

But cars like Kia, and Nissan are able to charge with broken clipper. I just wanna know are there any treats to trick the Bmw and make it charge with a broken clipper.

The heavy DC fast charging plugs and cables seem to flex the i3's charging port which can result in one or more of the electrical contacts between the plug and port being interrupted preventing charging from initializing. This can happen even when the clipper has locked the plug to the port. So you might try lifting the plug after you plug into the port for several seconds to see whether initialization completes. Apparently, after initialization completes, charging would continue even after releasing the plug assuming that the plug doesn't fall out or isn't pulled out without being locked to the port due to the broken clipper.