MG ZS missing V2L function

[ChunkyMonkey]

I wonder it this means they will be dropping bi directional charging on all models in the future.

It wouldn't surprise me. Important to note that Tesla have never show any interest in fitting them and the applications are quite niche - my main use case is for running power tools and camping but there are ways around that.

My main issue is that way this has been handled by MG. It seems they dropped it silently in the hope no-one would notice. Poor show.

 

[DiscoSi]

I spoke to my dealership who are aware of the issue and read me the bulletin from MG from last week - having had another car in last week for this issue. They are going to go up the chain and see what options are available (I'm not expecting much) - but they seemed genuinely interested to help and agreed it was sold/mis-sold as having the functionality.

 

[Lovemyev]

As promised in a previous thread, that I would report back with any information from Miles regarding the V2L issues on some 2023 models.
"There was a update sent out the the "Network" yesterday ( 3rd July 2023 ).
Basically, they’ve told us that the ZS EV has had a change to the specification, and vehicles received since January this year are not able to use V2L. They recommend that If customers are affected by this, and the V2L feature was a critical part of their purchase decision, then they need to speak to their dealer who will speak to MG’s Customer Services Team to come to a resolution".
So, confirmation of what some owners had suspected, if nothing else.
Interesting to hear what customers will be offered as a fix / exchange from MG CS ???.

 

[jassper]

Basically, they’ve told us that the ZS EV has had a change to the specification, and vehicles received since January this year are not able to use V2L. They recommend that If customers are affected by this, and the V2L feature was a critical part of their purchase decision, then they need to speak to their dealer who will speak to MG’s Customer Services Team to come to a resolution".

Would be interesting to know when cut off date was exactly. My car was delivered in March, but was manufactured in October last year.
Does it have v2l or not? How can we check without splurging on adapter?

 

[Susanna]

@jassper Do you know anyone locally from whom you could borrow an adapter?

 

[Lovemyev]

Would be interesting to know when cut off date was exactly. My car was delivered in March, but was manufactured in October last year.
Does it have v2l or not? How can we check without splurging on adapter?

Pure guess work here, but I would think that your should be okay.
You need an adaptor really, I think.
Have you crossed checked the numbers on your inverter, with the photos from other owners earlier in the thread ?

 

[Eclectic]

I wonder what happens if you have a vehicle with V2L capability, and later need a replacement inverter?

 

[jassper]

@jassper Do you know anyone locally from whom you could borrow an adapter?

Unfortunately I don't...

Pure guess work here, but I would think that your should be okay.
You need an adaptor really, I think.
Have you crossed checked the numbers on your inverter, with the photos from other owners earlier in the thread ?

I just have done that. It's (11473414) like those known not to work :/

Car going in for another repair in couple weeks time. Might as well ask them to check it then....

 

[Coulomb]

It makes sense a DC to AC inverter will need up to 450v DC to Make 230v AC

No, you only need √2 times the RMS voltage plus a bit (e.g. 12 V) to make a sine wave. So 350 V is enough to make a 240 V RMS sine wave.

I believe that the 230-450 V specification is just the range of battery voltages supported by the on-board charger (which covers the lowest of the lower voltage pack to the highest of the higher voltage pack).

Sadly, there is no mention of bidirectionality on the label, at least as far as I can tell. I tried Google Lens to read the Chinese characters; there are only words like "input", "output", and "model" among the specifications, and something like "High and low voltage charger combined module" at the top (from poor memory, I didn't write it down).

So per the label, this is two functions in one: the on-board charger, which is an AC to DC converter (when charging), and the DC-DC (high voltage battery to auxiliary battery charger, which is unidirectional). The third function (DC-AC converting, or inverting) is not mentioned. Hence the labels on models with and without V2L are essentially the same.

It's frustrating, really. (And understandably infuriating to those that planned to use V2L.) Electrical equipment since the earliest days always had a label on them with relevant specifications. This one is missing a vital specification (the rated AC output for the DC-AC function). I wonder if the label is actually a legal requirement.

 

[Daver]

Looks like I'm in a similar position, car delivered in June, various dates under the bonnet suggesting manufactured in October/November '22 and 11473414 on the inverter. I have no idea if V2L works or not and have no way, that I know of, of checking It's not a facility that I currently need but I was pleased that it would be there if needed in the future.
I have a further difficulty in that I purchased through a broker (New Car Discount) which speeded up delivery as opposed to my original order through a local dealer but does mean that I don't really have a dealer to go back to with any initial concerns/problems. Obviously I still have the MG warranty.
Interesting that the home screen shows charging and discharging on the battery area and if I select discharging it says "please plug in the discharge connector" - not sure if this is an indicator that mine does have V2L or just that the infotainment software hasn't been changed to reflect the loss of this facility.
Anyone in south Hertfordshire with an adaptor that I could use to check?

 

[aserraric]

So far, the menu option for discharging has been present on all cars, so that is no indicator at all. The only way to know is to plug in a discharge cable. If the car claims that a charging cable is present, you have one of the broken ones (which I'm afraid is very likely with 11473414 on the CCU).

 

[Robf]

Looks like I'm in a similar position, car delivered in June, various dates under the bonnet suggesting manufactured in October/November '22 and 11473414 on the inverter. I have no idea if V2L works or not and have no way, that I know of, of checking It's not a facility that I currently need but I was pleased that it would be there if needed in the future.
I have a further difficulty in that I purchased through a broker (New Car Discount) which speeded up delivery as opposed to my original order through a local dealer but does mean that I don't really have a dealer to go back to with any initial concerns/problems. Obviously I still have the MG warranty.
Interesting that the home screen shows charging and discharging on the battery area and if I select discharging it says "please plug in the discharge connector" - not sure if this is an indicator that mine does have V2L or just that the infotainment software hasn't been changed to reflect the loss of this facility.
Anyone in south Hertfordshire with an adaptor that I could use to check?

I bought through new car discount and have had no problems going to the nearest dealer (Hendys Crawley) to get warranty items addressed (front window seal).

 

[Staffex]

As promised in a previous thread, that I would report back with any information from Miles regarding the V2L issues on some 2023 models.
"There was a update sent out the the "Network" yesterday ( 3rd July 2023 ).
Basically, they’ve told us that the ZS EV has had a change to the specification, and vehicles received since January this year are not able to use V2L. They recommend that If customers are affected by this, and the V2L feature was a critical part of their purchase decision, then they need to speak to their dealer who will speak to MG’s Customer Services Team to come to a resolution".
So, confirmation of what some owners had suspected, if nothing else.
Interesting to hear what customers will be offered as a fix / exchange from MG CS ???.

I received my new MG5 yesterday and was disappointed to find that it didn't recognise my V2L lead purchased from Amazon a couple of weeks ago: Amazon product ASIN B0BPFY2N62
The car thought I had plugged in a charge lead, not a discharge one. Others have reported that MG's own (expensive) V2L lead has 2000 ohms across PE and PP, whereas mine read 680 ohms. I took readings directly from the car's socket and found that with the car turned off PP is +4.41 VDC wrt PE. If a 2k resistor is croc-clipped onto the PP and PE pins the voltage drops to +0.63 VDC. Having done this I was delighted to turn on the car and find the display showing "discharge connector connected".

So, all I've got to do now is find a way of opening up the Type 2 plug on my V2L lead and substituting a 2k resistor for the 680 ohm one. I can't see any easy way of opening up the back of the plug without using a hacksaw - probably wrecking it in the process. Does anyone have any suggestions please?

(FYI I measured across PE and PP on a couple of my other leads. The 22kW 3-phase charger lead has 220 ohms and the MG supplied granny charger has 1500 ohms.)

 

[Gadget Geek]

I received my new MG5 yesterday and was disappointed to find that it didn't recognise my V2L lead purchased from Amazon a couple of weeks ago: Amazon product ASIN B0BPFY2N62
The car thought I had plugged in a charge lead, not a discharge one. Others have reported that MG's own (expensive) V2L lead has 2000 ohms across PE and PP, whereas mine read 680 ohms. I took readings directly from the car's socket and found that with the car turned off PP is +4.41 VDC wrt PE. If a 2k resistor is croc-clipped onto the PP and PE pins the voltage drops to +0.63 VDC. Having done this I was delighted to turn on the car and find the display showing "discharge connector connected".

So, all I've got to do now is find a way of opening up the Type 2 plug on my V2L lead and substituting a 2k resistor for the 680 ohm one. I can't see any easy way of opening up the back of the plug without using a hacksaw - probably wrecking it in the process. Does anyone have any suggestions please?

(FYI I measured across PE and PP on a couple of my other leads. The 22kW 3-phase charger lead has 220 ohms and the MG supplied granny charger has 1500 ohms.)

I would use Amazon's excellent returns policy.

 

[cvsmjd]

Those of you who have recently received your car and having this problem, could you please check if the USB sockets work to play music/ videos from a USB fob.

I received my car beginning of June from Vanarama so i assume my V2L will also be an issue although cant test that yet.
But l can't get anything to be recognised/play from a variety of USB fobs that worked in other cars.
Has anyone else had this issue?

 

[Staffex]

I would use Amazon's excellent returns policy.

I've just checked MG UK's website and unfortunately it only lists a Type 2 charger cable (£236.48!) and not a V2L lead. I'm not confident that any of the other V2L leads on the market are compatible with MG cars so I'm going to have a go at opening up mine to change the resistor. If I do end up wrecking the plug then I'll just have to bite the bullet and purchase a single Type 2 female plug for around £60 - how can a bit of moulded plastic justify that exorbitant price?

 

[Lovemyev]

Does anyone have any suggestions please?

This is the 100% working cable I have on my ZS EV LR facelift model.

MG Vehicle to Load V2L Discharge Cable

A Simple Adapter Power Source (MG Only) PLEASE NOTE: We have received reports that the latest deliveries (06/2023) of MG ZS models have had the V2L functionality disabled or removed. Please confirm with your dealer before purchase. Turn your MG ZS (2022), MG 5 (Facelifted 2023), MG4 (2022), MG...

evcables.com

 

[Coulomb]

I took readings directly from the car's socket and found that with the car turned off PP is +4.41 VDC wrt PE. If a 2k resistor is croc-clipped onto the PP and PE pins the voltage drops to +0.63 VDC.

Did you mean it dropped by 0.63 V, i.e. to about 3.78 V? [ Edit: Though I'm basing that expectation on a type 1 circuit; proximity pilot is likely a little different in type 2 vehicles. But if 2000Ω brings the voltage down that low, 470Ω must bring it down very low. ]

I'm going to have a go at opening up mine to change the resistor.

That's the spirit! Silicone and spray paint can fix a lot of sins. It's slightly surprising that there aren't any fasteners on a type 2 plug... it's completely moulded to the cable?

 

[ChunkyMonkey]

I have been told by my dealer that MG will replace/install the components required to enable v2l on my car. They are awaiting the part to arrive and I will therefore get booked in to fix.

I'd therefore recommend anyone who wants this enabling contact their dealer ASAP as I imagine they have a limited number of components left over and anyone complaining will get the fix.

 

[aserraric]

I would expect them to still make the inverter. For one, the LR battery cars in Germany (and possibly other countries in Europe) still officially have V2L. And secondly, there are quite a number of cars on the road that are only a year or two into the seven year warranty, and they need to have spare parts for those as well.

I've made my dealer aware of the problem last Monday and am waiting to hear back once they've raised the issue with MG.