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Could not disconnect charging cable

10535 Views 13 Replies 8 Participants Last post by  sankar10
Yesterday I stopped at an Electrify America charging station near my home. The station offers free charging powered by solar cells on the roof of the two position station. No logging in necessary. I plugged the charging cable into the car and the charging light was green yet it was not charging per the dashboard. I don't remember if the green light was blinking. The station has no controls and no charging display just the plug. I tried to disconnect using the button next to the charge cable outlet on the car. The cable plug would not release from the car. Panic set in. I recall reading in the manual there was an emergency disconnect under the topic "Removing charging cable with mechanical emergency handle". Fortunately my wife went to get sit back in the car and noticed an unlock button on the center display. We pressed that and the cable released.

Today I went looking for the mechanical emergency handle in the trunk per the instructions. I removed material below the floor so the bare metal of the trunk was exposed. I could not find anything that looks close to an emergency handle. I connected my home charging cable and no handle appeared. I disconnected my home charging cable and no handle. You can hear the solenoid activating when you connect and disconnect. You can see the pin extend from the car just above the charging cable to lock the release button from moving until the solenoid retracts the pin.

I called Volvo Customer Service and spoke to a nice lady who read to me the same language I was looking at in the manual. She assured me these instructions apply to the P8. I asked if she had pictures in her reference material - she did not. I asked would happen if I didn't get the cable disconnected yesterday. She they would call Volvo road service to come out. Certainly they could fix it she said. She did admit we are all learning about this new vehicle.

Heads up! I do not think these emergency charging cable instructions apply to the P8. If anyone has found the "mechanical emergency handle" for releasing the charging cable, please let us know where it is and post a picture. Thank you.
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I know you’re asking about the emergency handle, but is there normally any way to unlock the charging cable without having to enter the P8 and press the unlock button on the center display? I don’t have VOC set up yet … wondering if you can use that app (or any others) to unlock the cable? Or any other way to do it without having to open the door and sit down (or reach across) to access the center display?
I know you’re asking about the emergency handle, but is there normally any way to unlock the charging cable without having to enter the P8 and press the unlock button on the center display? I don’t have VOC set up yet … wondering if you can use that app (or any others) to unlock the cable? Or any other way to do it without having to open the door and sit down (or reach across) to access the center display?
See my "marked up" image for you --- pressing this button will release the charge port. Your car may need to be unlocked and/or at least your key in proximity for this to work. But pressing this you should audibly hear the pin release allowing you to remove the charging cable from your XC40.

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See my "marked up" image for you --- pressing this button will release the charge port. Your car may need to be unlocked and/or at least your key in proximity for this to work. But pressing this you should audibly hear the pin release allowing you to remove the charging cable from your XC40.
Perfect, thank you! (and sorry to hijack this thread with a pretty basic question ... I should have done a bit more reading of the manual before posting that one).

Back to the original question - if anyone has found the "mechanical emergency handle" for releasing the charging cable, please let us know where it is and post a picture. Thank you!
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Perfect, thank you! (and sorry to hijack this thread with a pretty basic question ... I should have done a bit more reading of the manual before posting that one).

Back to the original question - if anyone has found the "mechanical emergency handle" for releasing the charging cable, please let us know where it is and post a picture. Thank you!
Checked my car today - not there - can see where there is a spot for it but no handle for release.
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Yea my release button flashes red and will not unlock unless I have the key in my pocket
Yea my release button flashes red and will not unlock unless I have the key in my pocket
The release button also works without the key if the doors are unlocked.
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Ive had other pure electric cars and this is the first one that locks the cord in place. I'm trying to figure out how this is a useful feature? Public chargers? Yea probably someone taking my paid charge right?
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Checked my car today - not there - can see where there is a spot for it but no handle for release.
Removing charging cable with mechanical emergency handle
Some vehicles are equipped with a mechanical emergency handle for situations when the charging cable does not detach from the charging socket after charging has been stopped via the button next to the vehicle's charging socket, in the center display or via the charging station's user interface.

For vehicles without mechanical emergency handles, contact Volvo Support.

Owners Manual - Stopping charging of high-voltage battery
Tried to determine whether my P8 is one of the “some vehicles“. Removed the recessed floor panel to look for the release handle. Big mistake. Not only did I not find the release, but I was certain I’d never get the floor panel back in place. (It only took 15 minutes and lots of cursing.) Guess I need to contact Volvo Support. I agree that some photos/pictures in the manual would be helpful.
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Tried to determine whether my P8 is one of the “some vehicles“. Removed the recessed floor panel to look for the release handle. Big mistake. Not only did I not find the release, but I was certain I’d never get the floor panel back in place. (It only took 15 minutes and lots of cursing.) Guess I need to contact Volvo Support. I agree that some photos/pictures in the manual would be helpful.
Warning to all: don't take the bottom trunk panel out unless you are willing to fight with it. I too took 15 or more minutes to get it back. I finally had to release the springs holding the folded trunk floor so I could tilt it up to get access to properly lay the floor back in.

Before pulling the charge cord out, the charging circuit needs to be shut down. There is high current flowing that could arc. The release pin is a safety precaution.
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Yesterday I stopped at an Electrify America charging station near my home. The station offers free charging powered by solar cells on the roof of the two position station. No logging in necessary. I plugged the charging cable into the car and the charging light was green yet it was not charging per the dashboard. I don't remember if the green light was blinking. The station has no controls and no charging display just the plug. I tried to disconnect using the button next to the charge cable outlet on the car. The cable plug would not release from the car. Panic set in. I recall reading in the manual there was an emergency disconnect under the topic "Removing charging cable with mechanical emergency handle". Fortunately my wife went to get sit back in the car and noticed an unlock button on the center display. We pressed that and the cable released.

Today I went looking for the mechanical emergency handle in the trunk per the instructions. I removed material below the floor so the bare metal of the trunk was exposed. I could not find anything that looks close to an emergency handle. I connected my home charging cable and no handle appeared. I disconnected my home charging cable and no handle. You can hear the solenoid activating when you connect and disconnect. You can see the pin extend from the car just above the charging cable to lock the release button from moving until the solenoid retracts the pin.

I called Volvo Customer Service and spoke to a nice lady who read to me the same language I was looking at in the manual. She assured me these instructions apply to the P8. I asked if she had pictures in her reference material - she did not. I asked would happen if I didn't get the cable disconnected yesterday. She they would call Volvo road service to come out. Certainly they could fix it she said. She did admit we are all learning about this new vehicle.

Heads up! I do not think these emergency charging cable instructions apply to the P8. If anyone has found the "mechanical emergency handle" for releasing the charging cable, please let us know where it is and post a picture. Thank you.
EVgo DC charging today did not end well. Could not remove charger from P8 socket. Light was RED and would not release. Called EVGo, they turned off power to charger and still could not disconnect. Dash display indicate red “error”. Unlock did not work from console. Spoke to dealer. Locked and unlocked car three times and was able to disconnect. Not fun!
EVgo DC charging today did not end well. Could not remove charger from P8 socket. Light was RED and would not release. Called EVGo, they turned off power to charger and still could not disconnect. Dash display indicate red “error”. Unlock did not work from console. Spoke to dealer. Locked and unlocked car three times and was able to disconnect. Not fun!
Thanks for sharing! So sorry. Were you told that locking and locking three times is the choice of last resort? This could happen to any of us.
Yesterday I stopped at an Electrify America charging station near my home. The station offers free charging powered by solar cells on the roof of the two position station. No logging in necessary. I plugged the charging cable into the car and the charging light was green yet it was not charging per the dashboard. I don't remember if the green light was blinking. The station has no controls and no charging display just the plug. I tried to disconnect using the button next to the charge cable outlet on the car. The cable plug would not release from the car. Panic set in. I recall reading in the manual there was an emergency disconnect under the topic "Removing charging cable with mechanical emergency handle". Fortunately my wife went to get sit back in the car and noticed an unlock button on the center display. We pressed that and the cable released. Today I went looking for the mechanical emergency handle in the trunk per the instructions. I removed material below the floor so the bare metal of the trunk was exposed. I could not find anything that looks close to an emergency handle. I connected my home charging cable and no handle appeared. I disconnected my home charging cable and no handle. You can hear the solenoid activating when you connect and disconnect. You can see the pin extend from the car just above the charging cable to lock the release button from moving until the solenoid retracts the pin. I called Volvo Customer Service and spoke to a nice lady who read to me the same language I was looking at in the manual. She assured me these instructions apply to the P8. I asked if she had pictures in her reference material - she did not. I asked would happen if I didn't get the cable disconnected yesterday. She they would call Volvo road service to come out. Certainly they could fix it she said. She did admit we are all learning about this new vehicle. Heads up! I do not think these emergency charging cable instructions apply to the P8. If anyone has found the "mechanical emergency handle" for releasing the charging cable, please let us know where it is and post a picture. Thank you.
Yesterday I stopped at an Electrify America charging station near my home. The station offers free charging powered by solar cells on the roof of the two position station. No logging in necessary. I plugged the charging cable into the car and the charging light was green yet it was not charging per the dashboard. I don't remember if the green light was blinking. The station has no controls and no charging display just the plug. I tried to disconnect using the button next to the charge cable outlet on the car. The cable plug would not release from the car. Panic set in. I recall reading in the manual there was an emergency disconnect under the topic "Removing charging cable with mechanical emergency handle". Fortunately my wife went to get sit back in the car and noticed an unlock button on the center display. We pressed that and the cable released.

Today I went looking for the mechanical emergency handle in the trunk per the instructions. I removed material below the floor so the bare metal of the trunk was exposed. I could not find anything that looks close to an emergency handle. I connected my home charging cable and no handle appeared. I disconnected my home charging cable and no handle. You can hear the solenoid activating when you connect and disconnect. You can see the pin extend from the car just above the charging cable to lock the release button from moving until the solenoid retracts the pin.

I called Volvo Customer Service and spoke to a nice lady who read to me the same language I was looking at in the manual. She assured me these instructions apply to the P8. I asked if she had pictures in her reference material - she did not. I asked would happen if I didn't get the cable disconnected yesterday. She they would call Volvo road service to come out. Certainly they could fix it she said. She did admit we are all learning about this new vehicle.

Heads up! I do not think these emergency charging cable instructions apply to the P8. If anyone has found the "mechanical emergency handle" for releasing the charging cable, please let us know where it is and post a picture. Thank you.
Thank you for a valuable tip. Very helpful
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