Bought a non running 2001

Got the batteries back up to a little over 12 volts. Turn the disconnect on - the BDI shows the milage for a couple of seconds, then shows 7U for a second, then nothing. Plug 120 v power cord - flashes yellow light twice, a slight pause then keeps flashes yellow light . No power to anything. Previous owner said two repair shops said the charger (zivan) was bad.
Any help ? — what I know about EV’s you can put in a thimble .

Thanks a Bunch.

I guess I should add:
It’s a GEM 825 – with Trogan Motive T1275 batteries - 2 years old I was told.

Hey Johnnie,

Yellow flash with a beep is a Bat Temp Sensor issue. Try unplugging the round plug on top of your charger and see if it will charge without it.

You will lose function of your LED because it uses the same plug, but at least your charger will bring your batteries back up. I did one of these yesterday and the Temp sensor was smashed so I cut it off. It did not solve the issue. I took apart the 5 pin DIN plug and plugged in just the 5 pins without the metal shield and everything was fine. For some reason Pin 3 of the LED did not like being connected to the shield. Weird.

Key ON not doing anything when switching on is another issue. You should check if your car has had the PWB Recall/wiring update installed.

Since this is your first time here I’ll also point out the search tool. It is the Magnifying Glass in the upper right of your window. Using a combination of keywords it leads you to decades of other posts in the archives that really help you learn more about your car.

Try using the keywords “PWB Recall”, “DC Converter Update”, and even “NTSB safety recall” in the search box and see what you get. Even “Key On No Power” might point you to a few others with the same issue.

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The fan in the zivan turns off when charge is complete, so it’s not the greatest indicator, but at least you’ll have that.

Oh, and it’s a 2001, so shoot it. Burn it. Chop it into little pieces and finally load it into a rocket to shoot into a decaying orbit around the sun.

You’ll thank me later.

Thank you Sir. going to the shop and try this.
And Thanks for help using the forum. It will take me a while. ( I’m in the Vintage Group )

Thanks, that’s probably the best idea.

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Thank You AssyRequired - You were spot on with the Bat Temp Sensor - it was under #5 and the tray was not draining - the insulation on the sensor was crushed and in water - dried everything out and did not put the sensor under the battery - charger works as it should.
Still have not got any 12V power any place - do have 72v at top of controller.
I have been using the search tool - my brain and eyes are about gone. It is very useful.
Studied yours and several others comments on ‘PandD’s’ post back in Jan ‘21.
I will try to find the 12v coming out of the converter.
As near as I can tell the converter was upgraded very early on. The vin search said ’ GEM AUX BOARD RETROFIT INSTALL’ was done. (don’t know if that is the converter ?)
The one on the car is EATON model 710301 - black with cooling fins on 3 sides.
The parking brake switch ‘seems’ to working - has half the 70v on two connecters and zero on the other - then switches when the position is changed.
Sorry for the long comment - Thanks again.

where did you search for your vin recall info?

make sure water is up if serviceable.

I’m not good enough to know how to send you the site.
but it has a big header ‘GEM VIN SEARCH’
Maybe you can google it.
And now I can’t find the post that had that info. – found it when I was searching ‘no 12v power’ on this forum – it was started by ( PandD ) I think it was back in 2019 ?
I will be able to find it after I send this - lol
Sorry can’t be more help – I’ve only owned this 2001 for a couple of weeks. Still don’t have it running.

Yes Thanks - that was the 1st thing I did - they were low but still over the plates.

I think i found it. No worries. Sorry you haven’t been able to get yours running yet. I am still learning from the great folks here. A few are really hateful of the older gems like we have. Of course newer is usually better, except with classic cars as an example, but we still like our “oldie”. It doesn’t have many miles or hours and after a little tinkering and a few upgrades, it does the job great. I have not need to speed 10k plus on a newer one at this time. I am good with nickel and diming it as needed. We are not vain to where we need the best looking or the best running one. We get a lot of compliments on what we have and we are not even done fixing it up. In a couple of weeks our local upholster is going to fix up the seat for us. Excited for that. Good luck with yours and keep the faith. Ill help where i can, but again i am still new.

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