Onboard Charger (OBC) Failure - P1AFE

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OneStyle

Member
Joined
May 23, 2019
Messages
9
My mom was car shopping last December and I found out about the iMiev and I liked it and I convinced my mom with it. I looked on craigslist everyday until one day I found a very nice 2012 fully packaged iMiev with only 38k miles on it for $5,500. We go check it out and we liked it and drove it back home.

About a week ago, while attempting to charge it at home using the original EVSE, the car disconnects charging about 30 seconds after plugging it in. We took it to our local Mitsubishi dealership and after 2 weeks of testing they find out the the OBC needs replacement with error code P1AFE. A $5000 replacement, same as what we paid for the car. I tried calling Mitsubishi customer relations to see if they can help with any of the costs as the car has very low miles on it and they refuse to help.

I don't know what to do right now so any advice on this would be appreciated
 
Howdy OneStyle, welcome to the forum. Where are you located?

Sorry to hear about your charging issue, maybe it can be resolved for much less cost.

The P1AFE trouble code indicates an issue with the DC Quick Chargger and not the OBC. The DTC set conditions for this code are given in the diagnostics section of the Factory Service Manual:

After the quick contactor is driven, if the quick chargger error signal from the quick chargger is ON, the diagnosis code No. P1AFE will be set.


So possibly there is also an OBC error code, but it is not this one. The dealer service department hasn't given you consistent information with their diagnostics. The OBC is not involved in DC Quick Chargge at all, and DC QC is not involved in using the OEM Level I EV SE at all.

We have had dozens of OBC failures reported on this forum and the most common problem is a blown fuse in the Motor Control Unit (MCU) and two small capacitors blown in the OBC. These can be replaced and get the OBC working again.
 
Hey Kiev,

Thank you for replying.

kiev said:
Where are you located?

Am located in LA, California.

kiev said:
The P1AFE trouble code indicates an issue with the DC Quick Chargger and not the OBC. The DTC set conditions for this code are given in the diagnostics section of the Factory Service Manual:

After the quick contactor is driven, if the quick chargger error signal from the quick chargger is ON, the diagnosis code No. P1AFE will be set.

That's actually weird because the car charges fine from the CHAdeMO port. The issue is only with the level 1 and level 2 port.

After I plug in the original EVSE charger (level 1), the charging disconnects after 20-30 seconds. I tried an EVGO level 2 charger, the car detects it but doesn't charge.

kiev said:
We have had dozens of OBC failures reported on this forum and the most common problem is a blown fuse in the Motor Control Unit (MCU) and two small capacitors blown in the OBC. These can be replaced and get the OBC working again.

I also thought it could be a fuse (I hope it is). Do you have any information on how I can have those replaced?

Thanks again!
 
OneStyle, so very sorry to hear that your astute purchase has now gone sour. These cars have been the model of reliability and the relatively-recent worldwide rash of OBC/dc-dc failures is seriously worrisome.

As you found out, replacement of the OBC/dc-dc with a new one from Mitsubishi is cost-prohibitive.

First, some testing needs to be done to confirm that the OBC/dc-dc and/or the fuse (located in the motor controller) are your culprits, and if it's the OBC/dc-dc then there are two alternatives -

1. Find a used OBC/dc-dc and replace your original

2. Remove the original and try to repair it yourself or get it repaired.

Before we go any further, how comfortable are you with rolling up your sleeves and tackling a project such as removal of a subassembly or taking one apart and troubleshooting it? Do you have any techie friends who might help?

Tell you what - I have a used OBC/dc-dc that's out of a wrecked 2016 i-MiEV and I'd be willing to swap it with yours. As I understand it, there are some plumbing changes required to make it work but otherwise it's compatible. Someone on this forum did this but I couldn't find the thread where this is discussed.

Anyway, let's keep an open dialog and see if we can get your i-MiEV back on the road.
 
Hey JoeS

Thanks for your suggestions.

JoeS said:
Before we go any further, how comfortable are you with rolling up your sleeves and tackling a project such as removal of a subassembly or taking one apart and troubleshooting it? Do you have any techie friends who might help?

My uncle is an electrical engineer, so he can help me with that.

JoeS said:
Tell you what - I have a used OBC/dc-dc that's out of a wrecked 2016 i-MiEV and I'd be willing to swap it with yours. As I understand it, there are some plumbing changes required to make it work but otherwise it's compatible. Someone on this forum did this but I couldn't find the thread where this is discussed.

We can do that if am not able to fix it.
 
So my uncle opened the OBC and we found a blown resistor and capacitor and replaced them but no luck. There is another component that he tested and it doesn't work but he doesn't know what is it.
2nvy07l.jpg


Thanks!
 
That is a lightning surge arrestor on the AC input side.

Which resisitor and capacitor were damaged, can you post a picture or give us the reference designators, e.g. R21 or C117.
 
Hello kiev,

Those are the ones we replaced
2wnczgj.jpg


I'm also skeptical of those wires
2nlembk.jpg

Also the cover looks smoked right above them
30tjjgj.jpg
 
Those components are on the bottom board in the AC Input path. One of those ceramic resistors also has an internal fuse, may need to check it also. i think a few folks have had those parts fail, there my be some discussion about how they made and tested the repairs.

Did he replace those parts from above, or did he remove the waffle plate from the bottom board?

Post #2 of the troubleshooting thread has a Schematics section.

This is link 1. to the schematic and discussion for the AC input. The sketch of the relay is a generic relay and not the actual part on our board, so ignore the pin numbers.

Your Uncle will need to check that the relay is okay and working. This could be done with an un-powered continuity test. The relay coil can be energized by 5VDC at Diode D301 (reverse bias across the freewheeling diode to energize the coil).
 
Those smokey-looking wires are just the sleeve that was placed around them for extra insulation (keeping them extra warm). Both the sleeve and wire were still flexible in the two chargers I’ve opened up, but looked the same as this.
 
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