DC Fast Charge Error Message 0x050 – Click to enlarge

That Sinking Feeling

There is a sinking feeling as you approach a quick charge station with just a few miles of range left only to see a red fault light and error message on the units display panel. Great! Now what? You think.

One of the most common errors experienced on the Nissan Quick Charge units is a communication error between the charging station and the car. This is frequently due to a badly inserted plug in the cars DC Fast charge socket. With colder weather the cable can get very stiff and result in misalignment. Drivers may get frustrated when they see this and drive off. Two of the three units at Nissan HQ had this error condition this morning, both were fixed easily. Here’s how.

Reset the DC Fast Charge Unit

Press and hold the small green stop button for 3-4 seconds – click to enlarge.

Close examination of the error message actually reveals the action necessary to fix the error. Unplug the car, press and hold the small green STOP button for 3-4 seconds which does a soft reset of the charging station. DO NOT press the large red emergency stop button which will render the unit inoperative until reset at the breaker panel.

Unit displays diagnostic information during reset. Click to enlarge.

You can then plug in the car and start the charge process. Just be sure the plug is well aligned and goes all the way in. If the cable is stiff due to cold, you may have to re-position the extra cable slack to help with successful alignment. Press the blue start button and you should see and hear the plug ‘lock’ into position and the charging unit. There is  small red indicator on top of the plug which illuminates when the plug is locked into position.

Charge On

Charging successfully!!

This simple procedure will resolve this common error on Nissan DC Fast charge units. It takes all of 5 seconds to accomplish! If the unit continues to fault and you are sure the cable is well inserted into the cars CHAdeMO socket, then call the number displayed on the unit you are located at. Please don’t just drive off without reporting errors that cannot be resolved, the site administrator depends upon field reports to know when the unit needs attention.