Warning light trouble

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HParkEV

Well-known member
Joined
Jun 13, 2013
Messages
85
Location
Toronto, Ontario
I have dropped off my i-MIEV at the dealer to have the recall work done, the AC looked at, and also the high-voltage system warning light was on.
This light was coming on very intermittently while driving the car, starting in May of this year. The very first time it came on, I just switched the car off and back on and the light was off.
Over the next few weeks it started coming on more frequently, finally by July it was on solid. Even when charging, although the car drove and charged completely normally. I dropped the car off for a week at the dealership, they said the AC rattle sound (sounds a bit like a diesel engine running when the AC is on) is not something they will look into, just normal wear and tear. They did the two new recalls.
As for the warning light, they were unable to get it extinguished. After a week I took the car back as I was going on vacation. I had returned the car to them on Sept. 2nd.
Since then, they have replaced 'a few relays', then the ECU, and the light is still on. They told me that they are stumped, and have a 'ticket open' with Mitsubishi Canada.
I am currently driving an ICE rental and really looking forward to getting my i-MIEV back, but my hopes of getting this rectified soon are fading...
Has anyone else had problems with this warning light?
 
Maybe you can ask them what trouble codes showed up when they pulled the codes using the tester (the MUT). The warning light is just an indicator that a code has been set. The codes are used for the troubleshooting and will pinpoint the issue.
 
I did not get to talk to the mechanic, only the service adviser.
He told me the light points to an issue with the EV ECU, which they have already replaced. Today they are waiting for more relays to come it, so that they can replace those.
Looking through some of the posts in this forum, it seems plausible that my AC compressor growl is related to the light coming on (both started around the same time in late May). I have suggested to the service adviser that the issues may be related.
He also said that the i-MIEV mechanic they have at the dealership is directly following the advice coming from Mitsubishi Canada. The mechanic is not really calling the shots in terms of what will be replaced in this case.
 
It sounds like they don't have a Mitsubishi Universal Tester (the MUT)--if they did they could simply read out the trouble codes and follow the diagnostic troubleshooting flowchart found in the service manual. Every code has a path, and if the warning light is coming on then it means an error condition has been detected and the code has been set.
 
I think they should have the MUT, since after my initial visit they told me that they were able to clear a number of codes stored in the ECU except one, that is why the light is persistently on.
 
HParkEV, thank you for keeping us up-to-date. When they eventually return the repaired car to you, I hope that you can perhaps sit down with the tech (if the service manager lets you) and be able to write down all the things that they did to your car during the troubleshooting. Trouble codes and diagnostics associated with them may not be mature on the i-MiEV as Mitsu might not have wanted to devote a lot of resources to developing them; OTOH, with a new technology car, one would think that they may have wanted to go overboard in this area in order to understand it better. Who knows?
 
Update: My car is still at the dealership, I am still driving a rental that the dealer pays for. Just spoke with them today - they have driven the car around with a portable diagnostic device plugged into it (again), and they claim that the warning light is being triggered by an open circuit on the radiator fan. They have ordered a pair of resistors that they think are bad and causing the open circuit - they are coming from Japan and it will likely take a few more days just to get those in.
I personally think it is still a problem related to the A/C compressor rattle but they refuse to look at that.
 
Hey there,

I had my ac compressor replaced after it was making noise when it would start up. The warrenty was almost up for 3 years. It was replaced under warrenty. I would push those guys to look at your compressor. Hopefully it is still under warranty. If you have to change it outside of the warranty you will be shocked at the price.

Another thing when I got my compressor changed the technician told me that he service another car and the car that had an AC compressor problem that caused the car to be inop I think it was some kind of short circuit in the compressor that perhaps short-circuited the high-voltage and shut the car down I don't know the details but he did mention that the AC compressor can stop the car from working.

I hope they get to the bottom of your problem soon.

Don...
 
Update: Finally got my car back on the 20th of January. After a lot of back and forth with the dealer, I drove the car with the warning light on for a month or so, they asked for time to figure out next steps to take. Then another round of diagnostics and parts replacement, they again could not fix it.
I complained to Mitsubishi Canada, they transferred the car to another dealer, finally gave me a loaner i-MiEV so I did not have to spend more money on rental car gas.
The dealer replaced a bunch more parts, including the A/C compressor and some relays, nothing worked, light still on.
Finally they tracked it down to a bad wiring harness, when that was replaced, light went away!
It is a bit disappointing that it took half a year since I first came in to the dealer with the problem, but nice of them to finally give me an i-MiEV loaner and return my car washed and vacuumed when it was finally fixed...
The morale of the story - be persistent!
 
They had the tools but didn't know how to use them. Pull the trouble codes and follow the flowchart.

P0691 Cooling fan LO relay circuit (low input)
P0692 Cooling fan LO relay circuit (high input)

P0693 Cooling fan HI relay circuit (low input)
P0694 Cooling fan HI relay circuit (high input)
P0A01 Cooling fan LO, HI trouble

... snipped from the troubleshooting flowchart:

STEP 2. M.U.T.-III actuator test
Conduct the actuator test, and check the water pump, cooling fan relay (LO), cooling fan relay (HI), and cooling fan.
Actuator test
Item 4 Radiator fan 1 drive
Turn the electric motor switch to the ON position.
Vehicle speed: 0 km/h
When all the check conditions are met, the radiator fan (low speed) is not driving. When the actuator test is started, the radiator fan drives at low speed.

Item 5 Radiator fan 2 drive
Turn the electric motor switch to the ON position.
Vehicle speed: 0 km/h
When all the check conditions are met, the radiator fan (high speed) is not driving. When the actuator test is started, the radiator fan drives at high speed.

Item No. 3 : Water pump drive
Item No. 4 : Radiator fan 1 drive
Item No. 5 : Radiator fan 2 drive
OK: The water pump, cooling fan relay (LO), cooling fan relay (HI), and cooling fan operate normally.

Q. Is the check result normal?
Yes, Go to Step 3.
No, Carry out troubleshooting for the EV-ECU diagnosis code No. P0A05 (refer to -> ), P0691, P0692 (refer to -> ), P0693, or P0694 (refer to ->).

DIAGNOSIS CODE SET CONDITIONS
When the cooling fan relay (LO) coil drive circuit monitor is set to ON while the cooling fan relay (LO) stop command is underway, the diagnosis code No. P0691 will be set.
When the cooling fan relay (LO) coil drive circuit monitor is set to OFF, while the cooling fan relay (LO) drive command is underway, the diagnosis code No. P0692 will be set.

PROBABLE CAUSES
Damaged wiring harness or connector(s)
Malfunction of the cooling fan relay (LO)
Malfunction of the EV-ECU

DIAGNOSIS CODE SET CONDITIONS
When the cooling fan relay (HI) coil drive circuit monitor is set to ON while the cooling fan relay (HI) stop command is underway, the diagnosis code No. P0693 will be set.
When the cooling fan relay (HI) coil drive circuit monitor is set to OFF while the cooling fan relay (HI) drive command is underway, the diagnosis code No. P0694 will be set.

PROBABLE CAUSES
Damaged wiring harness or connector(s)
Malfunction of the cooling fan relay (HI)
Malfunction of the EV-ECU
---------------

So how hard was that for me to find--and look there at the number one probable cause of these four troublecodes--DAMAGED WIRING HARNES OR CONNECTORS...
 
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