Electrical system failure: Stop!

[sfsoundguy]

I think we are drifting a bit off topic...

"Electrical system failure: Stop!" Really has nothing to do with the amount of units sold or which dealer sells the most eGolfs after all they are just the middle guy.

It has to do with the amount of units that fail due to this potentially catastrophic design flaw.

Is it 0.5%, 1% , 5% of cars manufactured that have this issue and what is Volkswagen going to do about fixing it and notifying existing owners about this issue?

IMHO One car having this happen is an anomaly but 12+ Is potentially a major engineering fault.

For the sake of argument, let's presume that 2/3's of all e-golfs sold were sold in California and Oregon, about 2000 out of that 3000 + units sold. Now take a guess, if Sunnyvale has sold the most of these, if they've fixed 12 of these... that the Parts Manager remembers... and multiply that by a factor of 1.5, since a few may have slipped his memory... call it 18. I would be willing to bet that Sunnyvale has sold 3-400 of these units.

I mention "slipped his memory" because when VW first brought out TDI clean diesels, and High Pressure Fuel Pumps started taking out the whole fuel system, contaminated and replaced fuel tanks too, VW USA told every single service manager and service writer to tell customers that they'd "only changed out a few". Yeah, well, it was pretty ironic how the recycle area was littered with contaminated fuel tanks out of numerous TDI's on the premises, they were reproducing like rabbits back there, far more than "a few" the service writers were claiming. There was a lot of denial/playing cover up going on at VW about that problem.

We can speculate, some of you could talk to Parts managers at various Bay area VW dealerships, besides the guy named Mike I talked to over at Sunnyvale VW, to get a better feel for it.

So based on these numbers it is looking like about 5% of there cars fail. That is a huge percentage for a car failure that is so serious!!! Especially on a car that sales have gone up 300% in 12 months....Why is VW being so tight lipped about? Why is it not in the national news?

 

[miimura]

The total USA sales of the e-Golf is about 4,000. Let's say Sunnyvale sold 600 and repaired 18 with this problem. That's 3%. Still pretty high, but not out of line for other manufacturers in their first year of BEV sales.

 

[JoulesThief]

The total USA sales of the e-Golf is about 4,000. Let's say Sunnyvale sold 600 and repaired 18 with this problem. That's 3%. Still pretty high, but not out of line for other manufacturers in their first year of BEV sales.

3% is not out of line for a first year BEV car? It's the level of seriousness of failure in rush hour traffic, or that HOV lanes give you in very very high speed, dense traffic conditions, that makes it dangerous. In the HOV lane, there's rarely an option to pull to the inside shoulder of the freeway, or get all the way over across all the lanes to the outside or right hand shoulder here in the USA. THAT is what makes it so dangerous and problematic.

 

[sfsoundguy]

The total USA sales of the e-Golf is about 4,000. Let's say Sunnyvale sold 600 and repaired 18 with this problem. That's 3%. Still pretty high, but not out of line for other manufacturers in their first year of BEV sales.

No... Sunnyvale sold 300-400 and had 18 same issues so it's 5% but who's counting a car that just randomly comes to a "STOP" while in drive is a very serious issue in fact it's potentially fatal. I for one did not sign up with VW to be a test "Guinea pig" on their first EV under the circumstances. It is totaly out of line for a car manufacturer to sell car they KNOW grinds to a halt for no apparent reason, which by the way usually happens "because" it's an EV that happens to be driving in rush-hour traffic!!!

The potential for someone ending up in a fatality right now is so totaly out of line it's a class action suit waiting to happen!

 

[JoulesThief]

The total USA sales of the e-Golf is about 4,000. Let's say Sunnyvale sold 600 and repaired 18 with this problem. That's 3%. Still pretty high, but not out of line for other manufacturers in their first year of BEV sales.

No... Sunnyvale sold 300-400 and had 18 same issues so it's 5% but who's counting a car that just randomly comes to a "STOP" while in drive is a very serious issue in fact it's potentially fatal. I for one did not sign up with VW to be a test "Guinea pig" on their first EV under the circumstances. It is totaly out of line for a car manufacturer to sell car they KNOW grinds to a halt for no apparent reason, which by the way usually happens "because" it's an EV that happens to be driving in rush-hour traffic!!!

The potential for someone ending up in a fatality right now is so totaly out of line it's a class action suit waiting to happen!

Maybe the DMV should have a recall on HOV stickers then for e-Golfs. VW doesn't issue those, the DMV does. Buying a car because you assume it will give you an advantage with use of the HOV lane is not sanctioned by Volkswagen. Use the HOV lane in your car at your own risk.

As usual our government, in the form of the NHSTA, is already screwing up the statistics on this car. Can't get the car in the proper categories by model. You should complain about that also to the NHTSA.

 

[sfsoundguy]

The total USA sales of the e-Golf is about 4,000. Let's say Sunnyvale sold 600 and repaired 18 with this problem. That's 3%. Still pretty high, but not out of line for other manufacturers in their first year of BEV sales.

No... Sunnyvale sold 300-400 and had 18 same issues so it's 5% but who's counting a car that just randomly comes to a "STOP" while in drive is a very serious issue in fact it's potentially fatal. I for one did not sign up with VW to be a test "Guinea pig" on their first EV under the circumstances. It is totaly out of line for a car manufacturer to sell car they KNOW grinds to a halt for no apparent reason, which by the way usually happens "because" it's an EV that happens to be driving in rush-hour traffic!!!

The potential for someone ending up in a fatality right now is so totaly out of line it's a class action suit waiting to happen!

Maybe the DMV should have a recall on HOV stickers then for e-Golfs. VW doesn't issue those, the DMV does. Buying a car because you assume it will give you an advantage with use of the HOV lane is not sanctioned by Volkswagen. Use the HOV lane in your car at your own risk.

As usual our government, in the form of the NHSTA, is already screwing up the statistics on this car. Can't get the car in the proper categories by model. You should complain about that also to the NHTSA.

Sorry I don't understand your post I for one bought a " automobile " from VW to drive around in. If it stops on my driveway,a freeway, a HOV lane or in a parking lot it does not matter it's a car and its suppose to be able to drive! Yes we drive at are own risk but usually in a car that doesn't just come to complete stop for no apparent reason !

Most everyone who buys this car buys it for commuting and although we have HOV lane's in and around major California city's there are thousands of people driving these cars with no access to the HOV lane's they just drive the car in rush-hour traffic because they are trying to get home to their families. Pretty simple stuff really.

 

[JoulesThief]

No... Sunnyvale sold 300-400 and had 18 same issues so it's 5% but who's counting a car that just randomly comes to a "STOP" while in drive is a very serious issue in fact it's potentially fatal. I for one did not sign up with VW to be a test "Guinea pig" on their first EV under the circumstances. It is totaly out of line for a car manufacturer to sell car they KNOW grinds to a halt for no apparent reason, which by the way usually happens "because" it's an EV that happens to be driving in rush-hour traffic!!!

The potential for someone ending up in a fatality right now is so totaly out of line it's a class action suit waiting to happen!

Maybe the DMV should have a recall on HOV stickers then for e-Golfs. VW doesn't issue those, the DMV does. Buying a car because you assume it will give you an advantage with use of the HOV lane is not sanctioned by Volkswagen. Use the HOV lane in your car at your own risk.

As usual our government, in the form of the NHSTA, is already screwing up the statistics on this car. Can't get the car in the proper categories by model. You should complain about that also to the NHTSA.

Sorry I don't understand your post I for one bought a " automobile " from VW to drive around in. If it stops on my driveway,a freeway, a HOV land or in a parking lot it does not matter it's a car and its suppose to be able to drive! Yes we drive at are own risk but usually in a car that doesn't just come to complete stop for no apparent reason !

True, and sh*! happens also. Sue the subcontractor that VW uses that is supposed to be qualified in making inverters that don't break down at critical times at an affordable price point. My guess is that it's a Robert Bosch subcontracted part. Again, my guess. Innocent until proven guilty

Start that class action lawsuit, there's a ton of lawyers in the SF bay area willing to take the case in this litigious society known as Nor Cal. Or reconsider the statistics of winning and GM making defective ignition switches that killed people, and no recall was issued. never mind the fact that those ignition switches were dying because customers had 3 pounds of keys hanging off their keychain and the ignition lock was never designed to handle more than a few keys on your keychaing, not 3 pounds worth jamming all the tumbler because you have a ton of cr@p hanging on your key chain. Hmmm, by the way, did you notice VW fixed that key problem getting stuck in your e-Golf?

There are some first year teething problems with every new model, with having the newest and greatest, yes, you get to be a beta tester in the process of bringing the product to market. Keep in mind CARB forced this on VW for carbon credits, contingent they sell so many so they can sell their bread and butter cars also in CA, TDI's and gas cars.

Consider your options. Give the car a second chance to prove it was one bad part, or if you've lost your trust in VW product, lemon it, or cut your losses short, sell it, and run.

 

[sfsoundguy]

CARB forced EV's on all Car manufactures and VW had plenty of notic about that plus the eGolf is a few years old, been available in Europe for some time so it should be pretty much fully tested. Maybe I'm totally wrong and I'm sure you'll tell me the facts but I'm not aware of any other EV Fiat,Ford,Nissan, Mercedes that have the same issue of just suddenly losing all power coming to complete stop. And I agree stuff happens it has issues with one thing or another on many cars I've owned but never something so dangerous like this. I want to drive a eGolf I love my car I just need it to be safe to drive too.

 

[JoulesThief]

CARB forced EV's on all Car manufactures and VW had plenty of notic about that plus the eGolf is a few years old, been available in Europe for some time so it should be pretty much fully tested. Maybe I'm totally wrong and I'm sure you'll tell me the facts but I'm not aware of any other EV Fiat,Ford,Nissan, Mercedes that have the same issue of just suddenly losing all power coming to complete stop. And I agree stuff happens it has issues with one thing or another on many cars I've owned but never something so dangerous like this. I want to drive a eGolf I love my car I just need it to be safe to drive too.

Yep, complain to VW corporate about it, I guess. Thanks for notifying us of the problem... hopefully VW will do something about it before someone experiences loss of life or limb. The situation just is what it is.

 

[f1geek]

Let's not blame the victim here, which could be you or me in the near future (I hope not, though). I agree that we should be able to use the car just like any other vehicle sold in the USA. Remember the ad that VW ran with a tagline saying something like you can't tell it's electric? VW should, like Tesla with the seatbelt issue (Tesla recalled ALL Model S vehicles), make a full recall because this is a serious safety issue - even more serious than a potentially faulty seatbelt. I carry my kids all the time in the e-Golf and I'm a bit worried. I don't care who made the part. VW sold the car, so VW is responsible.

I think CARB did us a big favor by imposing EVs on manufacturers. The government also imposed many other car features that improve our lives: seatbelt, antilock brakes, soft dashboards, airbags, etc - all of which the car companies said couldn't be done and/or were too expensive. Bull**** : Necessity is the mother of invention. Regardless, this topic is irrelevant to the issue at hand.

The inverter issue is not a problem for Leafs, i3s, Teslas (except for those that had motor failures - some of my friends had this happen- that Tesla will fix immediately), Sparks, etc.

 

[stevestrange]

Maybe I'm totally wrong and I'm sure you'll tell me the facts but I'm not aware of any other EV Fiat,Ford,Nissan, Mercedes that have the same issue of just suddenly losing all power coming to complete stop.

Actually, it happened to Mercedes with the B-class, but they have admitted it and are fixing it via a recall (see link below). This is what VW needs to do if this is as prevalent as our ad hoc data would suggest.

http://insideevs.com/mercedes-benz-b-class-electric-drive-recalled-for-stalling-risk-linked-to-faulty-tesla-supplied-software/

 

[sfsoundguy]

CARB forced EV's on all Car manufactures and VW had plenty of notic about that plus the eGolf is a few years old, been available in Europe for some time so it should be pretty much fully tested. Maybe I'm totally wrong and I'm sure you'll tell me the facts but I'm not aware of any other EV Fiat,Ford,Nissan, Mercedes that have the same issue of just suddenly losing all power coming to complete stop. And I agree stuff happens it has issues with one thing or another on many cars I've owned but never something so dangerous like this. I want to drive a eGolf I love my car I just need it to be safe to drive too.

Yep, complain to VW corporate about it, I guess. Thanks for notifying us of the problem... hopefully VW will do something about it before someone experiences loss of life or limb. The situation just is what it is.

Funny you sound just like the VW representative I talked to, her reply was the same "thanks for notifying us"...so that's why I posted here to this form to let people who want to know about it that there is a serious POWER issue with the 2015 VW eGolf vehicle at this moment in time. Sorry if you find it Offensive.

 

[sfsoundguy]

Maybe I'm totally wrong and I'm sure you'll tell me the facts but I'm not aware of any other EV Fiat,Ford,Nissan, Mercedes that have the same issue of just suddenly losing all power coming to complete stop.

Actually, it happened to Mercedes with the B-class, but they have admitted it and are fixing it via a recall (see link below). This is what VW needs to do if this is as prevalent as our ad hoc data would suggest.

http://insideevs.com/mercedes-benz-b-class-electric-drive-recalled-for-stalling-risk-linked-to-faulty-tesla-supplied-software/

Thank you for posting this nice to see a company doing the right thing I had not see this

 

[miimura]

CARB forced EV's on all Car manufactures and VW had plenty of notic about that plus the eGolf is a few years old, been available in Europe for some time so it should be pretty much fully tested. Maybe I'm totally wrong and I'm sure you'll tell me the facts but I'm not aware of any other EV Fiat,Ford,Nissan, Mercedes that have the same issue of just suddenly losing all power coming to complete stop. And I agree stuff happens it has issues with one thing or another on many cars I've owned but never something so dangerous like this. I want to drive a eGolf I love my car I just need it to be safe to drive too.

Actually, Fiat, Ford, Mercedes and Toyota are well known to have this same issue.

The Fiat 500e has had several serious recalls, some of which I feel are far worse than the e-Golf. Can you imagine a half-shaft just falling off your car? That is exactly what happened to several people driving 500e's. It turns out that they did some re-work in the factory, probably removing the drive motor and putting it back. When they put it back, they did not use new bolts, which were required because the kind of thread locker that is pre-applied to the bolts cannot be used again. So, those bolts fell out while driving. Another 500e recall was for the drive inverter. The inverter is liquid cooled and the seals were not installed properly, so coolant was able to leak into the electronics of the inverter. Needless to say, electronics don't like a liquid coolant bath. That inverter is made by Bosch.

The Ford Focus Electric was famous for "Stop Safely Now". I don't recall what the exact fault was, but you can probably Google that one too.

The Toyota RAV4 EV that uses a Tesla drive motor also had a recall due to the speed sensor inside the drive unit having a wider tolerance than what the electronics needed. Instead of replacing the the speed sensors with ones that had a tighter tolerance, they just changed the firmware to not freak out and shut down the car when the signal went out of tolerance.

Mercedes B class also had a recall related to communication with the Tesla ECU causing a vehicle shutdown.

That is just a small sampling of issues that I recall off the top of my head. There are many more. The best we can do is make sure that all the e-Golf shutdowns get reported to NHTSA so that they pressure VW to do the right thing and address any systemic issues that they can find with a recall.

Also, if you look at the NHTSA site for complaints on the 2015 Golf, you will find a couple reports of TDIs shutting down too.

 

[sfsoundguy]

CARB forced EV's on all Car manufactures and VW had plenty of notic about that plus the eGolf is a few years old, been available in Europe for some time so it should be pretty much fully tested. Maybe I'm totally wrong and I'm sure you'll tell me the facts but I'm not aware of any other EV Fiat,Ford,Nissan, Mercedes that have the same issue of just suddenly losing all power coming to complete stop. And I agree stuff happens it has issues with one thing or another on many cars I've owned but never something so dangerous like this. I want to drive a eGolf I love my car I just need it to be safe to drive too.

Actually, Fiat, Ford, Mercedes and Toyota are well known to have this same issue.

The Fiat 500e has had several serious recalls, some of which I feel are far worse than the e-Golf. Can you imagine a half-shaft just falling off your car? That is exactly what happened to several people driving 500e's. It turns out that they did some re-work in the factory, probably removing the drive motor and putting it back. When they put it back, they did not use new bolts, which were required because the kind of thread locker that is pre-applied to the bolts cannot be used again. So, those bolts fell out while driving. Another 500e recall was for the drive inverter. The inverter is liquid cooled and the seals were not installed properly, so coolant was able to leak into the electronics of the inverter. Needless to say, electronics don't like a liquid coolant bath. That inverter is made by Bosch.

The Ford Focus Electric was famous for "Stop Safely Now". I don't recall what the exact fault was, but you can probably Google that one too.

The Toyota RAV4 EV that uses a Tesla drive motor also had a recall due to the speed sensor inside the drive unit having a wider tolerance than what the electronics needed. Instead of replacing the the speed sensors with ones that had a tighter tolerance, they just changed the firmware to not freak out and shut down the car when the signal went out of tolerance.

Mercedes B class also had a recall related to communication with the Tesla ECU causing a vehicle shutdown.

That is just a small sampling of issues that I recall off the top of my head. There are many more. The best we can do is make sure that all the e-Golf shutdowns get reported to NHTSA so that they pressure VW to do the right thing and address any systemic issues that they can find with a recall.

Also, if you look at the NHTSA site for complaints on the 2015 Golf, you will find a couple reports of TDIs shutting down too.

Thank you for this. I will call NHTSA tomorrow and follow up on my report

 

[miimura]

There is also a guy on the Facebook group who had his e-Golf shut down on him two times. As far as I can tell, it did not give the Electrical system failure: STOP! message. The first time, the dealer blamed it on him pushing the Start/Stop button. The second time they kept the car longer. The latest update I saw was that VW agreed to replace the car under "goodwill". I suspect that the car is experiencing a fault that is not handled by the firmware and engineering wants to dig into the car to find the source of the fault so that it will be handled properly in the future.

 

[sfsoundguy]

Just got a call from the Dealer the car is fixed and ready to be picked up. They replaced the Power Electronics JXi Control Module. Once I get it back and road test it I'll let you know the results hopeful it's as good as new!! I will however drive a little more prepared from now on

 

[JoulesThief]

Just got a call from the Dealer the car is fixed and ready to be picked up. They replaced the Power Electronics JXi Control Module. Once I get it back and road test it I'll let you know the results hopeful it's as good as new!! I will however drive a little more prepared from now on

What was the part description and number that they had to replace? The JX-1 that Imura called out earlier?

 

[sfsoundguy]

Just got a call from the Dealer the car is fixed and ready to be picked up. They replaced the Power Electronics JXi Control Module. Once I get it back and road test it I'll let you know the results hopeful it's as good as new!! I will however drive a little more prepared from now on

What was the part description and number that they had to replace? The JX-1 that Imura called out earlier?[/quote

VW called it The "JXi Control Module"

 

[semaldona]

This same problem just happened to me at almost 2am after seeing a movie. I was less than one mile from home. It occurred near an intersection while slowing down. It shuddered briefly, the main drive cut off, and the instrument panel lit up like Christmas. Had the same Electrical/Stop message. I was able to pull off to the side, but I had to push it into a parking lot. Very very dangerous. So it got towed to VW, which was less than 1 mile away, and I'm waiting to hear what they will do.