[JonesyJT]

Hi folks,
I have had a iX3 and Zappi since last May and had intermittent problems with charging - it wouldn't charge, iX3 was saying "unable to charge" and Zappi was saying "charge delayed".

I had this unit swapped out for a new one (this time without a hub) and although it has got better, I am still seeing this same problem. It randomly occurs. One of the ways I was getting round it was when I am not using the Zappi I turn it off. then when needed I turn it on and charge immediately. This seems to work, but also get times when it doesn't work.

The problem occurs in FAST and ECO modes. i don't use ECO+

Previously when I got the iX3 in May 2022, I was using ECO+ a lot and one day when I went out to the car, the car was dead. Could unlock doors but nothing else. It reported spurious errors, 1 of them being Drivetrain fault and cable still connected (when it wasn't). Next day car was totally dead and I couldn't even open the doors with remote and handbrake couldn't be disengaged. It had be be towed away to BMW garage. Result was a new firmware was installed. They didn't know what was cause of problem but I think it was because I was using ECO+ mode and the power to the car was being interrupted too much and caused it to glitch and shutdown. Ever since I had the car back I haven't used ECO+ mode and I would advise others also not too use it. Sounds great in theory to use surplus power from panels to charge car but think on BMWs it can cause problems.

When Myenergi engineer came out to replace old unit he checked it for faults and none were visible, but still we decided to replace it.

I think it is something to do between iX3 as I when I am having the problem I can take the car to a mates house who has same Zappi and plug it in and it works OK. It also works OK on public chargers. I am only experiencing the problem on my charger.
I have 15 solar panels, Hybrid Inverter and 10KW of battery storage. The zappi has 2 CT coils fitted - 1 for itself and 1 to monitor total import/export.
Any help/advice would be gratefully received.

[Dave Wh]

Hmmmm. I have a similar set up to you with solar/battery and mine has been fine. Only had a small issue when in Stop mode on App and had a schedule set ip and Zappi (PE fault) & Car would error when schedule was meant to take place.

The support team asked me to change a setting on the Zappi and update the firmware and it has been faultless since.

It’s a bit weird what is happening on yours especially with the strange behaviour with the car. Sorry I can’t offer any advice. This one is a bit of a head scratcher.

[JonesyJT]

Been out in car today. started with 100% charge and when I got back I decided to try and charge it (iX3). Unfortunately after 3 attempts (choosing FAST, ECO ) and turning the Zappi OFF then ON I couldn't get the car to charge.

As it has been a sunny day here my solar panels have been charging the internal house batteries but nothing was showing on the zappi charger front panel, yet the myenergi app was showing 0.5Kw which confirmed the readings with my Inverter app (Sunsynk).

So still none the wiser why my BMW iX3 won't charge at times. I will try again tomorrow and see if I get a different result.

In the mean time is there any logs I could be checking in the Zappi to understand what caused it not too charge? The iX3 always states "unable to charge" and you then OK this, but it never stays in the Control Messages. I know I have tried plugging it in at local BMW garage (not zappi) and it works first time OK!

TIA

[kevinm03]

I use a 3 phase zappi at work and a single phase one at home. Never had an issue

[ATCO41]

Do you have your CT clamps installed correctly? I would expect to see a reading in your MyEnergy app between home and grid. Or are you using exactly the same amount as produced?

[Dave Wh]

Does your battery take priority on excess solar? I noticed that it is 80% and so there wouldn’t be any excess if the battery is charging. The Zappi would kick in when the CT detects excess solar going out to the grid if set in Eco+ mode.

Quick question: do you have a timer set in the car for your charging? “ When a message of 'Charge Delayed' appears it means the Zappi is providing power for the EV to charge from, but the EV is not accepting the charge for whatever reason. Usually it means the EV has a timer set that is preventing a charge at that time.” <- found this on the Zappi website.

[JonesyJT]

Originally Posted by ATCO41

Do you have your CT clamps installed correctly? I would expect to see a reading in your MyEnergy app between home and grid. Or are you using exactly the same amount as produced?

Yes I have 2 CT clamps installed. 1 for the Zappi and 1 for import/export to Grid. What appears in the Zappi app matches up with what appears in the SunSynk app(Hybrid inverter app)

At the time the screenshot was taken, it was sunny and generating enough electricity for me to not have to use the grid.

[JonesyJT]

Originally Posted by Dave Wh

Does your battery take priority on excess solar? I noticed that it is 80% and so there wouldn’t be any excess if the battery is charging. The Zappi would kick in when the CT detects excess solar going out to the grid if set in Eco+ mode.

Quick question: do you have a timer set in the car for your charging? “ When a message of 'Charge Delayed' appears it means the Zappi is providing power for the EV to charge from, but the EV is not accepting the charge for whatever reason. Usually it means the EV has a timer set that is preventing a charge at that time.” <- found this on the Zappi website.

Yes the battery will take any excess power to charge. Then when fully charged it will export any excess. When the EV is charging, this will appear as an internal load within the household, so any Solar Power will get directed to this before the batteries, and if required, the batteries will top up any power that is required plus any from the grid.

The car is set to "charge immediately" and therefore disables any timers that have been set in the car. I agree with you that it would appear that the car is rejecting the charge. I reset all data and settings in the car yesterday and tried a FAST charge and it still wouldn't charge! Attached screenshot from charge log on Zappi shows that it tried to charge but was rejected/stopped.

[Dave Wh]

What firmware is your Zappi on?

[DeanW94]

Seems like an isolated issue (as far as members within this group go anyway) but holding off in getting my Zappi installed on the off chance it’s something bigger.

[Dave Wh]

It may be a long shot but when I had an issue with the communication between the iX3 and Zappi (before firmware update) the engineer asked me to change the PE setting which worked at the time.

menu > other settings > advanced > password (default is 0000) > supply grid > device > earthing - set this to IT

[JonesyJT]

Originally Posted by Dave Wh

It may be a long shot but when I had an issue with the communication between the iX3 and Zappi (before firmware update) the engineer asked me to change the PE setting which worked at the time.

menu > other settings > advanced > password (default is 0000) > supply grid > device > earthing - set this to IT

Thanks, Dave I will check this and change it if necessary

[Flash11Flash]

Hi JonesyJT, could you possibly confirm whether changing the earthing setting to IT in the Zappi menu fixed the problem for you, please?

We have a new IX3 and have encountered the same / similar problems. We also have solar panels, a SunSynk inverter and 10KW batteries, but an older Rolec home charger (7KW - about 4 years old) - we had no problems with this charger on our old I3. Intermitantly, IX3 errors with Drivetrain fault when charging at home - we're trying to work out whether potentially caused by using some surplus power from batteries (topped up from the grid) and / or if caused when timer / delayed charge is set in the car (to charge overnight on cheaper tarrif).

Would appreciate an update on your issue/s.

Many thanks.

[Flash11Flash]

Just wanted to post the resolution to our problem. SunSynk carried out a firmware update on our Solar Panel inverter and changed the low noise mode setting to 20KHz. Bingo! The car starting charging immediately with no errors. At time of writing, we have successfully charged 3 times on different nights using the car's inbuilt timer from a mixture of stored battery power and Octopus Go overnight tariff. We'll continue to monitor, but fingers crossed - this seems to have fixed the problem. Thanks.

[IanG]

I'm having exactly same problem, BMW IX3, Zappi charger, sunsynk solar panels & invertor. Intermittently won't charge and twice needed to call out assist as multiple drive chain faults showing & once car completely discharged, in BMW service for 2 weeks!. Zappi changed twice, set up and connections fully checked. Remote upgrade to Sunsynk on Monday which was supposed to correct problem but occurred again when trying to use Eco mode. Switching the Sunsynk system off before starting charge allows charge to start and keeps charging once switched back on so problem seems to be with charge initiation. Am now at a loss, waiting for solar system installers to confirm site visit.
What is really frustrating is that no one acknowledges this as an issue as if it has never occurred before but clearly this is not the case!

[Flash11Flash]

Hi Ian G, all I can tell you is that SunSynk changed the Low Noise Mode on our invertor to 20KHz and it fixed the problem. You can check what yours is set to in the SunSynk App - go to Equipment, hit the three dots and go into Settings, go into Battery Settings, then scroll down to 'Low Noise Mode'. It should be toggled ON. You can't change this yourself, and neither can the equipment provider / installer, as it will toggle OFF by itself - it has to be done remotely by SunSynk themselves. I'm not sure just a firmware update by itself will fix the problem - it didn't for us, although SunSynk did do that at the same time. It's specifically the Low Noise Mode you need enabling. Good luck!

[IanG]

Hi All, thanks for helpful comments. I am happy to say that my solar panel installers and Sunsynk have finally solved my problem and after changing to the low noise setting and a remote software upgrade all is now well. Zappi working on fast & eco but I haven't used eco+ as I believe there is a different issue with the IX3 and that setting but I am happy to live with that.