My gem is a 2005 with T4 conversion on lithium, dnd 8.5hp and programmed controller. I did smell a slight burning smell as well
I’m here in a bind. The last couple days my gem has been throwing the error code 11 so I checked to see debris in the pedal.
However if I let off the pedal and resume pushing it down and every so often it throws the code and have to release the pedal and push it down to resume.
Today it did the same and hear the relay click multiple times and eventually the display shut down and I hear the beep as the car is basically off with the brake down just rolling. Sometimes the display comes back on and I’ll have power again.
Then suddenly I wouldn’t get power again and I power cycled….nothing. Tried again waited ten minutes and I got power again and continued heading home. Then, it does it again, I wait a few minute and I have power again and it throws the code.
Long story short I made it hope but it was a painful experience. Any idea what this may be? Thank you all in advance!
I had something similar in a 2002 that i was working on a while ago. The DC-to-DC converter recall was applied. Found that the ground from the converter to the controller B- was loose so I was getting intermittent errors and power loss.
I’m not sure if the 2005 had the recall. It may have been resolved by then but it still could be a bad DC-to-DC converter.
Seems like a loose connection somewhere but let’s see what others have to say.
It sounds like two issues going on here. You might need to replace that pedal. It sounds like it is going flaky. Your description is a little vague. Did you find debris inside the pedal? I thought those were fairly sealed up?
I agree, the power issue sure sounds like a loose connection.
You said you smelled something. Wires? Motor? Plastic?
Next time you go on a run make sure you bring a meter so you can probe things out when it is dead and find the fault. It could be any number of things, but they can be difficult to track down when it is working.
A big clue is that you said the car died while rolling? Confirm that it was also beeping? That means it thought the key was in the off position. I would focus on it being the next thing you need to replace or at least bring a jumper wire so you can bypass it.
The display going suddenly dark confuses me a bit as I thought it remains lit for 15~20 secs after key off. Verify if your key off timer is active by switching off key.
We may need to go in a new direction.
I have more, but you need to confirm the above first.
I was getting -11 code while driving which didn’t cause stuff to stay powered down but it would stop applying power to the motor and I had to release the throttle and reapply throttle to get going again.
I too went for the throttle pedal but that didn’t fix the problem. Eventually I found that the 72V wires to my 12V converter were intermittent due to a poor recall application. They put sealer on which got into the connector and limited the electrical contact surface area. Documented here: Just purchased 2002 e825-4 where to start rejuvenation? - #87 by jagman
@AssyRequired
I will be replacing the pedal regardless, they all go out at some point right?
For the smell, it smelled like a wire of some sort. This will be a tough one to diagnose. Was hoping it was just the DC to DC Converter.
Yes the car died while i was moving and my displays shut off, then the beep was the solid beep as my hand brake was down. I am not sure what I would be bypassing though?
Display shut off all together, my stereo deck remained on for that 15-20 second amount of time… interesting right?
That sounds like the behavior you’d get when just turning off the car. There should be a timed relay to keep the stereo powered after the key shut off. And if you turned off the key without the parking brake on, it would yell at you.
I think it’s either your key switch, dc to DC converter, or a loose wire. My bet is the loose wire bad connection… Unless you have the recalled converter. If you have that, I’d start there.
You should be able to search the national recall database with your VIN. That will tell you if there’s a recall and if it’s been applied
@dougl thats how it all started, man i wish i just had the main parts that may be the culprit and just swap it out. im not losing 12v power cause my lights work.
Brings me to another question, does the DC to DC converter need to be fully functional for my gem to have power? Can it be partially bad where it allows lights to work but not display or 72v?
I believe the recall on the converter was for pre-2004 cars. They had open board converters(components hanging out in the air and everything). These were not sealed and could get wet. Minor cases they would fail. Major event would catch fire!
I think slants said his car was 2005 and converter was black cased. Sounds like it is not one of those recalled units.
@slants - I guess it depends on how your stereo was hooked up. The converter has two outputs, a switched and unswitched. Maybe you are loosing one of the legs?
Also- when your display goes dark, Look real close and you might see the charging icon. In bright sunlight the little yellow light is real hard to see. If your interlock wire is loose and loses connection you car might be thinking it is plugged in and shuts down.
I still think the display would remain lit for 20 sec tho. That’s why I was trying to get you to confirm what happens normally to your display when you key off. It is possible in 2005 they did not hold power up with the timer.
If you want to bypass/test the key you need to split the cover on the dash pod. Locate the wires coming from the key switch. Mine had three wires coming from the key terminated in a plug. The car harness only uses two of them. unplug the harness and jump those two wires. You could probably figure out which wires on the key to test with a meter.
Oooo! Great! I didn’t want to send you down a road of work without checking the other stuff first. Because you report that you still have power on your accessories this doesn’t really even apply. This would be if your car went completely dead-dead.
Since you already have the dash off then this makes it an easy check.
All the power of the car goes through your PSDM. There are three connections. One B+ from your battery, and two Neg cables(one comes in from your pack B-, then exits and goes up to the B- on your controller). Make sure they are tight. Look real close at the plastic case on the PSDM to see if it is melted around the studs. All of these are studs that carry power into the circuit board inside. On the outside it looks like beefy lugs, but the inside is just a screw down to the pad. If these are not tight I could easily see these things heating up and melting things.
I’m not saying this is your issue, but either of these connections go spotty it would cause your power to go flaky as you describe.
The B+ power also goes through the main disconnect switch down at the bottom of the PSDM. Sometimes they go flaky. You may need to bypass that to get home next time you lose power.
Anthony I am thinking lose wire or controller. I just sold you the controller so if that is it, it will be replaced. Still thinking lose wire. Find your old t3 and install it
After checking wires, didn’t find anything loose but I started testing the psdm spade connectors (123456AB) and with ignition on, I didn’t pull 12v to anything except spade 6 with parking brake down otherwise all others(12345) are rather very low voltage to the ground.
Any ideas please? Thanks again everyone….glad to see the army on this one.
Very low? What were you using for your Gnd reference? 12 should be frame. Anything 72V should use B- to check.
Follow the wires coming out of your DC Converter. Black ones should go to frame connections. Measure on the ring terminal, then move your probe to the frame.
Any difference?
@AssyRequired Testing with ignition on and lights on (ironically I have a led display right now so that’s working). Grounding the voltmeter to the ring terminal where the dc converter grounds the black.
