The German car club ADAC says it discovered a safety problem in the Chinese electrical design Ora Funky Cat. It is possible to end throughout the charging procedure. If a locked electrical car is opened by means of the radio secret, the very same occurs with the charging plug.
And this is the core of the matter: According to ADAC tests, the Ora Funky Cat does not stop the charging procedure throughout this time and the present continues to stream – in contrast to other electrical automobiles that stop charging as quickly as the plug is opened. If the plug is not taken out in the Funky Cat, it locks once again after about 15 seconds.
But: According to the ADAC, throughout these 15 seconds it is possible to take out the Type 2 plug while charging under load with approximately 16 amps streaming. “In extreme cases, the result is a bang, flying sparks and a burning smell. In the long term, this can lead to wear of the contacts and heating of the contact surfaces,” says the car club. “Charging is only stopped when the charging plug is disconnected.”
The ADAC does not define whether the charging procedure is still dropped in the regular method when the cable television is detached – however considering that there is talk of “bangs, flying sparks and a burning smell”, it appears that electrical energy was still streaming. Actually, the interaction pin (CP) of the Type 2 plug is somewhat much shorter. When the cable television relocations, this pin loses contact initially, interaction in between the column and the car stops working and the charging procedure is ended right away as an outcome.
Journalist cannot recreate ADAC mistake
“The manufacturer or importer informed ADAC upon request that the vehicle complies with all applicable standards and is therefore safe,” the declaration checks out. In the view of the auto club, this is not acceptable and represents a safety danger. It has actually notified the Federal Motor Transport Authority (KBA) about the test results. For the time being, the club recommends users to ensure that the charging procedure is ended up prior to disconnecting the battery charger.
However, it stays to be seen whether other elements such as the wallbox or charging pole contribute in whether the charging cable television can be detached in the situation explained above. On Twitter, innovation reporter Dominik Lux, who says he presently has “exactly the same car (same registration plate) as the ADAC”, contacted us. “I can’t pull the plug when the car is locked. It’s locked. And when I unlock it, it stops charging. At least with my wallbox does,” checks out the tweet.
Plus, the mistake just takes place when air conditioning charging. “With DC fast charging, it is a legal requirement that the charge must be interrupted before the cable can be disconnected. This is checked by the charging station, among others. This means that even if there would be an error at the vehicle and charging cannot be interrupted via the vehicle (e.g. due to a communication error with the charging pole), the charging plug remains locked until the charging process is interrupted at the DC charging pole,” an ADAC spokesperson explained when asked.
But it is not just the Ora Funky Cat that is revealing some limps. Like Ora, the Wey brand name likewise comes from the Chinese car business Great Wall, and both brand names are offered in Europe through a cooperation with the Emil Frey Group. Both brand names have actually had a rough start in Germany: from January to May, the Ora Funky Cat was signed up 423 times, the Wey Coffee 01 just 7 times. According to the Manager Magazin, there is an internal disagreement about Wey circulation. While the Emil Frey Group disperses Ora’s Funky Cat to around 160 dealerships after it shows up in Bremerhaven, it leaves the Wey SUVs at the port. It is still uncertain “how distribution at Wey is supposed to work at all – and who is responsible for collection and distribution”.
Reporting by Sebastian Schaal, Germany.
