Citroen C Zero suddenly not AC Charging

[Ch-Indo]

Hi All,

I think i have the classic AC charging problem.

I charged the car at night at home but it did not charge completely (70% or so)

I thought oke thats possible maybe there was some kind of blackout in the street.

So i drove out of my street and suddenly the red battery light was on with the orange/yellow car with ! sign.

I went home immediately and took another car luckily my wife stayed home that day.

When i was home after work i tried to charge the car, but it did not want to charge with the granny charger.

I tried fast charging it with and it was working, but when i got home my 12 volt battery was empty in front of my house and the car stopped completely without any lights on the dashboard.

My car is a 2013 version, but i can see the OBC was changed after 2016 or somebody else did. Maybe it was a recall?

I went online saw this awesome forum and i began to read, but it’s a lot and there are similar problems.

My steps:
1. I first changed the 12 volt battery in the front it was worn out and about 6,5 years old so i changed it immediately.
This was not the direct problem but its good to change it right?

2. I ordered two 20amp fuses (luckily) from the dealer, changed one 20 amp fuse in the DC converter but that did not work either. I heard an electrical buzzing when i started the car with the new 20 amp fuse. So that was a bummer!

3. Now i opend the obc charger (what a drag to open that hatch cause of the sealing) and i immediately say the black stain under the lid.

I saw the chip burned in the dog house. So today (02 aug 2024) i cleaning it up.

Now im waiting for the two 3K 1NF ceramic capacitors.

I heard it’s better to install the 3K 1NF in stead of the 2K 1NF? Could not find the information

Im not good in (de)soldering so wish me luck lol. Fingers crossed!

I will update as soon as possible.

I’m from the Netherlands by the way. Not many of these triplets here, so i cant find another OBC.

If somebody has some idea’s or comments i’d like to hear them.

 

[kiev]

re 1. Yes a verified good and strong 12V battery is necessary to rule it out as the issue.

A failure or drop-out of the 12V power could be the root cause for the blown snubber capacitors on that little daughter board with all the charring.

The good side is that you can just carefully remove (break or cut) the damaged board and solder the new caps to the stubs left from the board--it is much easier than trying to solder to the bottom side of the power board.

2. Not sure what fuse(s) you changed, but the main fuse to check is under the little access cover of the motor control unit, MCU, located to the right of the OBC in the rear "engine" compartment.
The blown MCU fuse prevents charging from the OBC and also 12V charging of the underhood battery from the DCDC Converter located in the bottom chamber the OBC.

Inspect the bottom side of the control board for metal splatter from the cap explosion. Use a magnifying glass to look for shorted pins or damaged traces. Clean off all the charring with alky-hawl.

While you are in there, check the diode drops in the Waffle Plate to ensure that it is not damaged. Do that first--no need to replace the caps if the WP is defective.

 

[MickeyS70]

I’m from the Netherlands by the way. Not many of these triplets here, so i cant find another OBC.

Hello and welcome to the forum

You’re in good hands with @kiev and chances are good you will be able to fix this yourself following his guidance and advice.

Norway seems to be the place to go looking for second hand spares, if you need some in the future:
https://www.bruktdel.no/nbf/Søk/?q=I-miev
Mickey

 

[Ch-Indo]

Happy days! Happy weekend everyone!

I fixed the car!

This was the hardest thing to do for me so it’s not the most prettiest thing i did in my life but i did it

It’s charging again with the granny charger. Love that sound of the strong buzzing + airco sound when i start the car.

No more fault codes!
I had to clear them first.



@kiev @MickeyS70 thanks for your information both of you!

 

[martinwinlow]

re 1. Yes a verified good and strong 12V battery is necessary to rule it out as the issue.

A failure or drop-out of the 12V power could be the root cause for the blown snubber capacitors on that little daughter board with all the charring.

The good side is that you can just carefully remove (break or cut) the damaged board and solder the new caps to the stubs left from the board--it is much easier than trying to solder to the bottom side of the power board.

2. Not sure what fuse(s) you changed, but the main fuse to check is under the little access cover of the motor control unit, MCU, located to the right of the OBC in the rear "engine" compartment.
The blown MCU fuse prevents charging from the OBC and also 12V charging of the underhood battery from the DCDC Converter located in the bottom chamber the OBC.

Inspect the bottom side of the control board for metal splatter from the cap explosion. Use a magnifying glass to look for shorted pins or damaged traces. Clean off all the charring with alky-hawl.

While you are in there, check the diode drops in the Waffle Plate to ensure that it is not damaged. Do that first--no need to replace the caps if the WP is defective.

Hi KiEV, I've not suffered this failure yet on any of my collection (5, now) of clones we have here on our remote Scottish island (I've gone and said it now!). Is there a good write up of this failure, its causes and remedy somewhere on this site? I don't understand the bit you wrote here about the 'waffle plate' diodes, either.

I'd like to prepare myself (have components 'in stock' and instructions for repair readily available) for the inevitable eventual failure of one or more of our cars' OBC so it is off the road for as little time as possible as all the cars are always in use.

 

[kiev]

Take a look at this list of links to troubleshooting and repair threads:

https://myimiev.com/threads/my-t-r-list.5617/#post-49698

 

[Ch-Indo]

Hi,

I just found out that the airbag light was turned on after repair.


Did i do something wrong i cant clear it with the iCarsoft i909!?

 

[MickeyS70]

Usually this happens if you re-connect the 12V aux while plugs under the seats are disconnected. Another reason could be a weak 12V auxiliary battery.
Once it’s on, you need a dealer rated diagnostic tool or HobDrive to clear it.

 

[Ch-Indo]

@MickeyS70

I did re-connect the plug 12v aux while the seat was disconnected, cause i could not get the backcover open the next day without power.

I will try HobDrive or ask a dealer.

Thanks for the information.

 

[Gary12345]

I'm pretty sure i've cleared the airbag with an icarsoft.

 

[MickeyS70]

I'm pretty sure i've cleared the airbag with an icarsoft.

Good to know, what exact icarsoft where you using? Any change you could verify this function so I can add it to the list?

 

[Ch-Indo]

I'm pretty sure i've cleared the airbag with an icarsoft.

How!?
Was it i909?

It keeps telling me failed to clear.

 

[coulomb]

I fixed the car!

This was the hardest thing to do for me so it’s not the most prettiest thing i did in my life but i did it

Good work!

I hate to tell you but it's a good idea to keep the leads to those capacitors fairly short. The long leads add unwanted inductance to the path, so these capacitors can't do their job of absorbing very brief switching transients.

Also, they may foul the board above.

Finally, and you may well have already done this, it's a good idea to replace the removed potting material with something to mechanically support the capacitors; cars have vibrations and shocks. Just neutral cure (NOT acid cure) silicone works fine.


There seems to be a lot of on-board charger related faults lately. There were definitely some design issues with this module. This forum has kept many iMiEVs, Ions and Peugeots on the road; possibly many more that don't post back. Kudos on kicking this all off, Kiev!

 

[Peter Vanhoutteghem]

Hello Chi-Indo, I see you were using a Carsoft Multi system Sanner i909. I found it for about 154€ but on the site they say it is for Mitsubish/Mazda, or am I wrong? This may cost more than the dongles (110€) suggested by other members but having the Scanner with necessary software integrated seems very convenient. What do chaps think?
Although I realize this site concentrates all the hassles encountered on the triplets it is rather scary reading what owners encounter. I just ordered "electronics for dummies" so I hope to be wiser in a short while. @kiev, coulomb how did you manage to learn so much about the electronics of these cars?
Getting back to the rear cooling pump I replaced recently-car works fine now- the mechanic at the Peugeot dealer (here in SW France), who seemed very familiar with these models, thought there had been problems with it and that there had even been recalls.

 

[Ch-Indo]

@coulomb
Thanks for advise, these all quite long indeed.

@Peter Vanhoutteghem
Yes the iCarsoft i909 is for Mazda and Mitsubishi only.

I also have the OBDlink LX but is does not connect with the car with HobDrive via android or ios. So i did not clear the DTC of the airbags yet with this B1431 code. I think i need the LEM 327 version for the HobDrive?

I have an appointment with a dealer today so i hope they can clear it with their scanner.

 

[MickeyS70]

I also have the OBDlink LX but is does not connect with the car with HobDrive via android or ios.

My OBDLink LX works (via Bluetooth on Android) with the paid version of HobDrive on a 2011 build I-MIEV.
IIRC one needs a Wi-Fi dongle with iOS.

So i did not clear the DTC of the airbags yet with this B1431 code. I think i need the LEM 327 version for the HobDrive?

Clearing the airbag DTC with HobDrive requires a special procedure but I managed fine with my OBDLink LX

I have an appointment with a dealer today so i hope they can clear it with their scanner.

Yes, that should work

 

[coulomb]

@kiev, coulomb how did you manage to learn so much about the electronics of these cars?

I have a career in software and electronics engineering. A friend of a friend has a car he is converting using iMiEV components, so I got interested in them. Also, a local EV garage asks me to fix iMiEV chargers now and then, and Kiev had a lot of the information needed on the troubleshooting thread.

I've also collaborated with Kiev and Piev before reverse engineering the firmware of Elcon/TC chargers for EVs. I attempted to reverse engineer some of the iMiEV firmwares, but only one of them (for the CMUs) is unencrypted in the available MUT CD rom images, so I didn't get very far with that. I explore and patch firmwares for Voltronic off-grid inverters.

 

[Ch-Indo]

My OBDLink LX works (via Bluetooth on Android) with the paid version of HobDrive on a 2011 build I-MIEV.
IIRC one needs a Wi-Fi dongle with iOS.

Clearing the airbag DTC with HobDrive requires a special procedure but I managed fine with my OBDLink LX

Yes, that should work

@MickeyS70

The dealer used their dianostic tool and they reset/cleared the dtc.
It cost me € 92,50 because they used their device for like 2 minutes (I was kinda shocked about the price!)

Is there a tutorial about how to use HobDrive with the OBDlink LX?

But in the end the car is safe again to bring the kids and do some groceries again.

 

[MickeyS70]

@MickeyS70

The dealer used their dianostic tool and they reset/cleared the dtc.
It cost me € 92,50 because they used their device for like 2 minutes (I was kinda shocked about the price!)

Unfortunately that’s quite common, hence the advice to buy your own dongle

Is there a tutorial about how to use HobDrive with the OBDlink LX?

https://myimiev.com/threads/hobdriv...tronic-control-units-reset-errors.4101/page-8

There is a lot of info in above but the specifics on how to reset the airbag fault are discussed in post #148 and onwards

But in the end the car is safe again to bring the kids and do some groceries again.

Happy days..