Mk1 ZS EV and Easee One charger problems

[mykd83]

We recently bought a 20 plate ZS Exclusive, and having moved from an Outlander Phev to a full BEV we thought it was time to get a home charger installed. We picked the Easee One as it's very neat and we needed it to be small for where it was going, and set up the schedule on the charger to only work during the Octopus Go off-peak hours of 00:30-04:30. I know the 1st Gen ZS EV doesn't have charge timers, but I'd read that some updates allowed the chargers to wake up the car, and since both services had been done at the MG dealer I figured it would be up to date.

First time we tried to charge overnight, nothing happened. After some Googling, a Bluetooth OBD 2 adapter and an app to read the versions, it looked like the car was still on original software for most things (although has the outside temperature and range displayed, so seems to have had the Comfort 2 update). So we took it in to the dealer, tried to explain what was happening and what should happen with delayed charging, and they did an update and told us it should be fixed.

Checked the software versions again, and the only one that has changed is listed as DCDC in the app, which should be related to the on board charger. But the next time we tried to charge overnight, again nothing happened. So now I'm not sure if there are other updates that need doing, or if there is an issue with the Easee One charger and the MG (the Rolec chargers at Center Parcs on holiday had no problem with the delayed charge before any updates had been done!)

Does anyone on here have a first gen ZS EV and an Easee One charger? I'm hoping I can find some quick fix through Easee support or holding the dealer's hand as for what update to do, as they keep telling me everything is up to date

Edited to include the fact that it's a UK car - not sure if different regions have different software/firmware versions etc.

 

[Jomarkh]

If you got it from an MG dealer then get it back to have the updates done.
If you put a few words in the search bar you will loads about the BMS and Bong updates.

 

[Lovemyev]

The annoying excessive "Bonging" was cured as part of the Comfort 2 update I believe, I think the car has already received this.
Can I assume that the Rolec units at Centre Parks are only able to provide a charge from the "Off Peak" early hours of the morning then, as per your post above ?.
As the ZS EV (Gen 1) has no facility to preset a delayed charge from either the head unit inside of the car or any type of App facility, like the face lift model.
If the car accepted a delayed charge at Centre Parks, then that would suggest to me that it's NOT the car that is at fault surely ?.
It sounds like the issue is with the "Easee One" set up or in the App used to control the delayed charge.
A relative had ZS EV ( Gen 1 ) and a Rolec smart wall box at home, he was able to set a delayed charge via an App from his phone, which worked fine for his 2 years plus time with the car.
When we had our ( Gen 1 ) back in 2019 we also had one of the early Rolec dumb wall boxes installed in 2016 at home.
To take advantage of our "Off Peak" tariff, I had a Wi-Fi relay installed into the case, then this would allow me to control a delayed charge from my phone.
This worked fine for our 2 years with that car.
Now we have the ( Gen 2 ) face lift model, so the Rolec has been returned back to being a dumb unit once again, as I am now able to set the delayed charge from the head unit inside the car or from the MG Ismart App on my phone.
It has to be a compatibility issue between the car and the wall box in your case.

 

[mykd83]

The annoying excessive "Bonging" was cured as part of the Comfort 2 update I believe, I think the car has already received this.
Can I assume that the Rolec units at Centre Parks are only able to provide a charge from the "Off Peak" early hours of the morning then, as per your post above ?.
As the ZS EV (Gen 1) has no facility to preset a delayed charge from either the head unit inside of the car or any type of App facility, like the face lift model.
If the car accepted a delayed charge at Centre Parks, then that would suggest to me that it's NOT the car that is at fault surely ?.
It sounds like the issue is with the "Easee One" set up or in the App used to control the delayed charge.
A relative had ZS EV ( Gen 1 ) and a Rolec smart wall box at home, he was able to set a delayed charge via an App from his phone, which worked fine for his 2 years plus time with the car.
When we had our ( Gen 1 ) back in 2019 we also had one of the early Rolec dumb wall boxes installed in 2016 at home.
To take advantage of our "Off Peak" tariff, I had a Wi-Fi relay installed into the case, then this would allow me to control a delayed charge from my phone.
This worked fine for our 2 years with that car.
Now we have the ( Gen 2 ) face lift model, so the Rolec has been returned back to being a dumb unit once again, as I am now able to set the delayed charge from the head unit inside the car or from the MG Ismart App on my phone.
It has to be a compatibility issue between the car and the wall box in your case.

Yes, at Center Parcs I plugged the car in at around 8pm and the chargers work from 11pm to 6am. It clicked onto green as if it was charging for about 30 seconds, then went back to its original state. I trudged back to the car at 11pm fully expecting to have to unlock and lock it again, but the green light was on and it was charging. I unlocked the car to get something out of it, so the cable unlocked and charging stopped, but then didn't restart until I locked the car again.

The options in the Easee app are Delayed Charge (essentially a one-off schedule), Weekly (can set up Schedule that repeats every week) and Off-Peak which is the government's suggested hours limiting charging around normal network peak times.

Regardless of whether I use the schedule or manually ask if to charge outside of scheduled hours, the only way to charge at home is to have the charger ready to charge when I lock the car. I'm not sure if Rolec have a special signal to wake up the MG's - the Easee support site basically says they can't wake a car up because there's no industry standard for doing it, but I'm not sure if the updates to the ZS would mean it doesn't need to be woken up like that.

It's so confusing and hard to figure out where we are!

 

[Lovemyev]

I trudged back to the car at 11pm fully expecting to have to unlock and lock it again, but the green light was on and it was charging. I unlocked the car to get something out of it, so the cable unlocked and charging stopped, but then didn't restart until I locked the car again.

Okay - it would appear that the car did charge from the charging post at Centre Parks then.
When you returned later, the car WAS charging fine, until you then unlocked the car with the key fob.
Now in many cases with other owners of the ZS EV ( Gen 1 ) this is the very same case, it will pause the charge until the car is relocked, then it should commence charging again.
However - When the Comfort 2 update is done, there is another tick box procedure to perform ( that sometimes easily get missed ) when another module in the car requires an updating.
When this tick box exercise is done correctly, it will allow the car to continue receiving a charge from a 7 Kw unit even when the doors are unlocked and even when the doors are opened !.
Our ZS EV ( Gen 1 ) had the Comfort 2 update done, but you could still never charge the car with it unlocked.
Until it developed a problem while at the dealers, which left the car stranded ( long story ).
To rectify the problem MG Tech fired the software cannon at the car and updated everything was possible to update, in order to get the car breathing again.
When the car came home, it could now for the first time, charge without the need for the doors to be locked or closed !.
I will try and include some info below that explains what module /software is affected.
There will be many cars out there without this facility I am absolutely sure.
I guess it depends on how badly you want this option ?.
I doubt this is connected to your inability to delay charge your car though ?.
Do you have a friend with an EV who is willing to try delay charging from your wall box by any chance ?.
At least by going this, you could narrow down if it's the car or the wall box.
Or, try delay charging at a friends home who has a different make of wall box maybe ?.

I will include the link to a great site, that you may find some useful information regarding ZS EV ( Gen 1 ) software updates / history etc etc etc.

The below statement on charging while locked / unlocked has been extracted from that site.

"Charging unlocked/locked update for ZSEV"​

The ZSEV has always supported unlocked charging on CCS (rapid chargers) and in 2020 a software update was released to add this function to charging on type 2 (6.6 kWh fast chargers). You are less likely to want to sit in your car for this slower charging, although it can still be occasionally useful. This is a side update to the BMS update: specifically to the EVCC module of the car. Once this is installed, the car will charge both locked or unlocked.

Update information

The MG5 recall is for the earlier activation of brake lights using Kers 3. The other item is the confirmation of 35 kg limit on the roof bars which requires an extra page being glued into the...

www.mgevownersclub.co.uk

 

[Ruislip Resident]

Yes, at Center Parcs I plugged the car in at around 8pm and the chargers work from 11pm to 6am. It clicked onto green as if it was charging for about 30 seconds, then went back to its original state. I trudged back to the car at 11pm fully expecting to have to unlock and lock it again, but the green light was on and it was charging. I unlocked the car to get something out of it, so the cable unlocked and charging stopped, but then didn't restart until I locked the car again.

The options in the Easee app are Delayed Charge (essentially a one-off schedule), Weekly (can set up Schedule that repeats every week) and Off-Peak which is the government's suggested hours limiting charging around normal network peak times.

Regardless of whether I use the schedule or manually ask if to charge outside of scheduled hours, the only way to charge at home is to have the charger ready to charge when I lock the car. I'm not sure if Rolec have a special signal to wake up the MG's - the Easee support site basically says they can't wake a car up because there's no industry standard for doing it, but I'm not sure if the updates to the ZS would mean it doesn't need to be woken up like that.

It's so confusing and hard to figure out where we are!

Which Center Parcs was it. How much is to charge and do you have to book a time slot or is it first come first served.

 

[N2STY]

Which Center Parcs was it. How much is to charge and do you have to book a time slot or is it first come first served.

I seam to remember it's all sites was free(2300to0600) podpoint but last I looked 39p all day just check on zap maps

 

[Kithmo]

My 2020 ZS has not had the delayed charging update but it works fine with scheduled charging on my Podpoint, I think it's just a case of don't plug it in to far in advance. I usually plug mine in just a couple of hours before the scheduled time.

 

[mykd83]

Which Center Parcs was it. How much is to charge and do you have to book a time slot or is it first come first served.

It was the Sherwood Forest one. I reckon I could have done there and back in one trip if I was very careful, but it's 65 miles door-to-door so it was a bit risky!

You have to book an EV parking slot as an "activity" I think, which was free itself, but then you pay per kWh. The one at Sherwood is through VendElectric and it was 39p per kWh. It's a designated parking slot when you get there as well - if you are staying for more than a weekend or Mon-Fri then you'll need to move the car as it only lasts between starting days, if that makes sense.

Okay - it would appear that the car did charge from the charging post at Centre Parks then.
When you returned later, the car WAS charging fine, until you then unlocked the car with the key fob.
Now in many cases with other owners of the ZS EV ( Gen 1 ) this is the very same case, it will pause the charge until the car is relocked, then it should commence charging again.
However - When the Comfort 2 update is done, there is another tick box procedure to perform ( that sometimes easily get missed ) when another module in the car requires an updating.
When this tick box exercise is done correctly, it will allow the car to continue receiving a charge from a 7 Kw unit even when the doors are unlocked and even when the doors are opened !.
Our ZS EV ( Gen 1 ) had the Comfort 2 update done, but you could still never charge the car with it unlocked.
Until it developed a problem while at the dealers, which left the car stranded ( long story ).
To rectify the problem MG Tech fired the software cannon at the car and updated everything was possible to update, in order to get the car breathing again.
When the car came home, it could now for the first time, charge without the need for the doors to be locked or closed !.
I will try and include some info below that explains what module /software is affected.
There will be many cars out there without this facility I am absolutely sure.
I guess it depends on how badly you want this option ?.
I doubt this is connected to your inability to delay charge your car though ?.
Do you have a friend with an EV who is willing to try delay charging from your wall box by any chance ?.
At least by going this, you could narrow down if it's the car or the wall box.
Or, try delay charging at a friends home who has a different make of wall box maybe ?.

I will include the link to a great site, that you may find some useful information regarding ZS EV ( Gen 1 ) software updates / history etc etc etc.

The below statement on charging while locked / unlocked has been extracted from that site.

"Charging unlocked/locked update for ZSEV"​

The ZSEV has always supported unlocked charging on CCS (rapid chargers) and in 2020 a software update was released to add this function to charging on type 2 (6.6 kWh fast chargers). You are less likely to want to sit in your car for this slower charging, although it can still be occasionally useful. This is a side update to the BMS update: specifically to the EVCC module of the car. Once this is installed, the car will charge both locked or unlocked.

Update information

The MG5 recall is for the earlier activation of brake lights using Kers 3. The other item is the confirmation of 35 kg limit on the roof bars which requires an extra page being glued into the...

www.mgevownersclub.co.uk

We have a couple of neighbours with EVs that are different makes, and they have different wall chargers, so I will ask one of them next time I see them if they want to swap chargers for a night!

The dealer called this morning to say they've had a reply from MG Technical and need to book the car in again, so it's off in tomorrow - assuming they've got something else to try?!?

 

[Lovemyev]

My 2020 ZS has not had the delayed charging update but it works fine with scheduled charging on my Podpoint, I think it's just a case of don't plug it in to far in advance. I usually plug mine in just a couple of hours before the scheduled time.

I always found it a little farcical that when the ZS EV was first released, way back in 2019.
The two MG recommend wall boxes to be used on this model, was a Rolec and a Pod Point unit.
Of which neither could be used to conduct a delayed charge for customers using a time of day tariff.
Then the two companies blamed each other for the problem !.
In the mean time, a very clever owner found a workable solution, in order to charge his car from a dumb wall box on the time of day tariff.
Hear we are three years down the road and we are in a similar situation with another charging unit ?.

 

[mykd83]

Just picked the car up from the dealer, having had an update "as per MG instructions" after their technical report. Checked the versions when I got back and the BMS has now changed to 1027630EU4, so they've definitely done something - we'll seee whether it's worked later!

 

[Lovemyev]

My guess would be that the car will charge now with the doors unlocked !.
If so, they have updated the EVCC module.
Good luck !.

 

[mykd83]

Haven't tried charging it with the doors unlocked yet, but can confirm that it still doesn't charge like I want it to ? I've kind of come to the conclusion that it's an issue with my charger, and more specifically charger and car combination, so until I have another car or charger available to test some more then I'll just be waking up to unlock/lock my car to start off peak charges!

 

[Spinynorman]

I think you’re due a BMS update that allows charging with the doors unlocked. It has its problems with pod points though…
if you only partially charge - say to 80% - there’s no way to stop the charge. The pod point software doesn’t have a stop charge and will only stop the charge at 100%. You then have the problem that the Mk1 software has no control over the charge - so you can’t release your cable lock.
I’ve had this problem for a while now and every time I’ve had to pop the bonnet and pull the manual release to take out my cable and stop the charge. It’s OK but damn inconvenient in the rain…. The only advantage is it allows you to sit in an unlocked car whilst charging.

 

[Lovemyev]

Haven't tried charging it with the doors unlocked yet, but can confirm that it still doesn't charge like I want it to ? I've kind of come to the conclusion that it's an issue with my charger, and more specifically charger and car combination, so until I have another car or charger available to test some more then I'll just be waking up to unlock/lock my car to start off peak charges!

It's a ridiculous situation TBH.
This was a problem with ZS EV when they first got released in 2019 and here you find yourself in a similar situation in 2023.
It's a process of elimination now I am afraid.
Just a thought ....... have you tried using your Granny charger in conjunction with a plug in timer ?.
I only suggest this as a proof of concept option !.
It's not the answer of course - but if you where to do this early evening and set up the car to carry out a delay / timed charge from say midnight, you maybe able to witness / catch on film it obeying that command.
Then you have proof it is NOT a problem caused by the car, but a problem with the wall box.
If so, then that box is not fit for purpose.
Or as you said, you ideally need to find somebody who has a different wall box who is willing to allow you test your car with, or charge their car from YOUR wall box.