Toyota EV Charger Internet Connection

[PeteRav425]

I have had my RAV 4 GR Sport for 3 weeks now and my new wall charger. The problem is that currently my charger will not connect to the internet. It did last week but now the green light is flashing and I tried powering it down and re start but still wont connect. All my other appliances in my property are OK and I have not changed anything internet wise. I'm on full fibre and the router is only about 2 metres away from my charger on the other side of the wall of course. Cannot see any instructions how to re connect. Any ideas please.

 

[nlee]

I’m only replying generically because I don’t have the “Toyota” charge point. Most “smart” charge points need to be connected to a remote server somewhere and do it by one of two means. Some use a mobile network and contain what is basically a SIM, others use the owners WiFi. Both have their pros and cons but it’s important whichever system they use they have a decent and reliable signal. 
Many people complain of not being able to connect to WiFi, and often state the router is only just the other side of the wall. The problem is that WiFi doesn’t go through walls that well, particularly in modern buildings with foil back insulation, which is acting like a big Faraday cage. 5ghz WiFi is faster but far worse at getting through solid objects so worth making sure you are using 2.4ghz, it doesn’t need speed. Where WiFi signals do get outside it’s usually through windows and doors then reflects off outdoor structures, so although it sounds counterintuitive, moving the router further away from the adjoining wall can improve things because you’ll get a more disperse signal going through the window and it’ll increase the opportunity to bounce off something outside. 
Failing that, you’ll need to get strong WiFi outdoors. You could try an extender or mesh point positioned outside, or in an outbuilding where their is a reasonable signal already to “repeat” the signal, or if you have a garage, use a powerline WiFi extender in the garage. It might not be the fastest connection if it’s on a different circuit to where it’s plug in to the indoor socket but you don’t need it to be fast, you just need it to be stable.

 

[ernieb]

If you have an android phone you can download an app that will monitor all the local WiFi networks and display the signal strength. Based on where you say the router is positioned I doubt very much if it’s a signal strength issue. 

[philip42h]

2 hours ago, PeteRav425 said:

the router is only about 2 metres away from my charger on the other side of the wall

WiFi really isn't that good at getting through exterior walls - particularly ones that are close to electrical power systems or ones that get wet with rain. As @ernieb says, measure the level of the WiFi signal that you have at the charger. Also, what speed of connection does your 'phone get at that point?

Personally, I'd run an Ethernet cable through the wall and hardwire the charger to the router ...

Also, do you know whether the charger is supposed to be connecting via WiFi or 4G? (Just checking ...)

[Nick72]

6 hours ago, PeteRav425 said:

I have had my RAV 4 GR Sport for 3 weeks now and my new wall charger. The problem is that currently my charger will not connect to the internet. It did last week but now the green light is flashing and I tried powering it down and re start but still wont connect. All my other appliances in my property are OK and I have not changed anything internet wise. I'm on full fibre and the router is only about 2 metres away from my charger on the other side of the wall of course. Cannot see any instructions how to re connect. Any ideas please.

 

Tell me your router. Likely a 2.4GHz Vs 5GHz issue. 

[Nick72]

4 hours ago, philip42h said:

WiFi really isn't that good at getting through exterior walls - particularly ones that are close to electrical power systems or ones that get wet with rain. As @ernieb says, measure the level of the WiFi signal that you have at the charger. Also, what speed of connection does your 'phone get at that point?

Personally, I'd run an Ethernet cable through the wall and hardwire the charger to the router ...

Also, do you know whether the charger is supposed to be connecting via WiFi or 4G? (Just checking ...)

The nearest router to my Project EV router is 10m away through 3 internal walls and an external wall at an angle. Shouldn't be a problem at all for OPs situation even if it's a third of a metre cottage wall. This is likely a waveband issue with the router thinking it's smart moving to 5GHz when the wall box may not support it. 

[philip42h]

19 hours ago, PeteRav425 said:

The problem is that currently my charger will not connect to the internet. It did last week but now the green light is flashing

Nick's experience with Wi-Fi seems a little different to mine, but no matter ...

The first thing to do is determine how exactly the charger is expecting to connect to the Internet. I am assuming that it is a Toyota Home Charge unit and that you have it registered within the My Toyota app?

If you use the My Toyota app and My Garage > Chargers > Settings, it should show details of the Internet connection and Connection type. By default, I would expect it to be 4G since the offer includes a 10-year 4G data plan. I would 'hope' that you can also set-up the Internet connection from there, but I am still waiting for "hell to freeze over" so that mine can be installed ... 😉

[DavidinDerbyshire]

20 hours ago, philip42h said:

Also, do you know whether the charger is supposed to be connecting via WiFi or 4G? (Just checking ...)

Mine  (Ohme)  only works on 4G because it's too far from the house for wifi but I don't seem to have any problems.  

[Nick72]

3 hours ago, philip42h said:

Nick's experience with Wi-Fi seems a little different to mine, but no matter ...

The first thing to do is determine how exactly the charger is expecting to connect to the Internet. I am assuming that it is a Toyota Home Charge unit and that you have it registered within the My Toyota app?

If you use the My Toyota app and My Garage > Chargers > Settings, it should show details of the Internet connection and Connection type. By default, I would expect it to be 4G since the offer includes a 10-year 4G data plan. I would 'hope' that you can also set-up the Internet connection from there, but I am still waiting for "hell to freeze over" so that mine can be installed ... 😉

Done a lot of this. Seen a lot of this. Not saying this is the case but if the router is almost right next to the charger device and it's WiFi module then I would have thought that this wouldn't be the issue unless the internet router is from 2010. I've got a Nest web cam on a shed at the back of the garden and still get a good connection on the 2.4GHz channel. That's through 4 internal walls, an external wall, and about 10m to the shed across the garden. Remember, generally speaking, the higher the frequency the lower the range for the same power. 

If it is connecting but then dropping out this is more likely an 'intelligent' router problem. Especially if that connection drops after a roughly consistent period of time. I've had many devices over the years including past cars that would connect then drop out. Each and every time it was, looking through the router logs, initially connecting on the 2.4GHz channel (because it's the longest range and most widely used channel) but the router attempts to switch the connection to 5GHz because that's a faster option. Unfortunately, not all devices support 5GHz and or don't like the flipping between bands even if they are listed as dual band. Connection dropped at that point. 

Need to understand type of internet router and type of WiFi compatibility from the charger. Then we can diagnose the issue. 

In the extreme case, and this depends strongly on the router functionality, setting connectivity for a specific device to 2.4GHz only. You can do this on the high end systems I tend to use. On some routers you may be forced to use 2.4GHz OR 5GHz for everything. So that's trading out performance for other devices by having no 5GHz. C'est la vie. Not widely known either, is that on some routers you must give the 2.4GHz and 5GHz channels different SSIDs in the router options since if they are called the same name it can confuse the devil out of the device trying to connect as well as the router. But some routers are just dual band with the same SSID and you have no choice in the matter and in which case it's new router time or the highway.

[PeteRav425]

Thank you all for your constructive replies. Yes mine is the Toyota EV Charger using 4G. My router is an eero supplied by Talktalk. My phone that connects to the EV charger is android and 4G. The EV charger is registered with the My Toyota app.

One thing I have found out, is that your supply voltage to your property, can have an effect. I have now a voltage recording device connected as from yesterday, so we will see what this reveals in a few days.

 

[TaFo]

Hi, I have also started to have problems with the 4G connection dropping out, constantly flashing

This wasn't a problem when installed

Sometimes it is connected And other times flashing

I have installed the ABB charger app (charger sync) on my Phone

Easy to set up, all I needed was the pin number for the wall box which was supplied on installation

Using the ABB app allows you to switch the box to a WiFi connection

Hope this might help you

[philip42h]

45 minutes ago, TaFo said:

Using the ABB app allows you to switch the box to a WiFi connection

That is useful to know. I still haven't had the charger installed, but does the My Toyota app not enable this sort of configuration? Sad, but not entirely surprising, that we would need to double up on Apps just to control the charger ...

[TaFo]

No, the Toyota app doesn't let you change the settings, it's a Toyota thing

After installing my wall box the BG installer went back to fix a Lexus wall box that wasn't connecting to the internet 😢

[IG6]

On 10/21/2024 at 2:18 PM, PeteRav425 said:

I have had my RAV 4 GR Sport for 3 weeks now and my new wall charger. The problem is that currently my charger will not connect to the internet. It did last week but now the green light is flashing and I tried powering it down and re start but still wont connect. All my other appliances in my property are OK and I have not changed anything internet wise. I'm on full fibre and the router is only about 2 metres away from my charger on the other side of the wall of course. Cannot see any instructions how to re connect. Any ideas please.

 

I have the Toyota wall box, and it is a 4G connection, not Wi-Fi.

I am assuming you have it linked to your MyToyota app all okay and you can see it on the app?

If so, have a look in My Garage-Charger-Settings and look at the Internet connection details. If no joy, I would contact customer services and report it. You can’t manually connect the charger to Wi-Fi yourself.

[philip42h]

49 minutes ago, IG6 said:

I have the Toyota wall box, and it is a 4G connection, not Wi-Fi.

Yours may well be, but as advertised by Toyota:

Connectivity: 4G, WiFi, Ethernet, bluetooth

4G Dataplan: Yes, 10 years data plan included.

If I ever manage to get mine installed, it will be connected via WiFi or Ethernet - 'cos there's no worthwhile 4G signal in the garage (and a 10-year data plan will simply go to waste).

As our friend Terry @TaFo informs us, we can use the ABB ChargerSync App to access the set-up features that the My Toyota App [currently] denies us ... 😔

[Nick72]

I'm so glad I've got a dumb ***** f*** charger installed 5 years back for next to nothing (government grant). It just does whatever the car decides. Locks the port when the car is locked, unlocks it when the car is unlocked. Provides charge when the car draws on schedule or whatever.

[philip42h]

2 hours ago, Nick72 said:

I'm so glad I've got a dumb ***** f*** charger installed 5 years back for next to nothing (government grant). It just does whatever the car decides. Locks the port when the car is locked, unlocks it when the car is unlocked. Provides charge when the car draws on schedule or whatever.

I'm inclined to agree.

In practice, the ABB Terra / Toyota HomeCharge unit can be configured / used just as the older 'dumb' charger that you have. The owner does not have to agree to the prohibition on charging during peak hours. The owner can "Allow access to all" to avoid the authorisation stage. And then press and hold "Charge now" for two seconds to override the "Random delay" before charging starts. So, the net cost is two seconds ...

But what gets me is the lack of proper documentation, unnecessary complexity and bogus 'intelligence' ... 😉 

[Nick72]

9 hours ago, philip42h said:

I'm inclined to agree.

In practice, the ABB Terra / Toyota HomeCharge unit can be configured / used just as the older 'dumb' charger that you have. The owner does not have to agree to the prohibition on charging during peak hours. The owner can "Allow access to all" to avoid the authorisation stage. And then press and hold "Charge now" for two seconds to override the "Random delay" before charging starts. So, the net cost is two seconds ...

But what gets me is the lack of proper documentation, unnecessary complexity and bogus 'intelligence' ... 😉 

Feels like a drive to force (encourage) folk into off peak charging. But at least there are options to make it dumb and therefore give the consumer choice. Not a fan of the nannying.

[philip42h]

1 hour ago, Nick72 said:

Feels like a drive to force (encourage) folk into off peak charging.

Which is, of course, exactly what I'm aiming to do for two reasons:

• It's the right, socially responsible things to do
• It allows me to get the best financial benefit from owning an EV

And, to do that, I would want to be able to set-up the charger at home to supply charge aligned to the off-peak period provided by my domestic energy provider. So that by default, the charger provides power when it is off-peak and cheap[er] - and there needs to be an override to 'charge now' if that is ever needed.

The charger needs to be just smart enough to do that, and not much more - the charging schedule needs to be set-up on the charger rather than the car.

If, over time, 'they' want to get smarter and guarantee to give me an overnight minimum of the equivalent of 4 hours charging - i.e. 30 kWh - and my supplier can choose exactly how and when that happens, that would be fine too, but we are some way off having a universal solution for that.

[Nick72]

12 hours ago, philip42h said:

Which is, of course, exactly what I'm aiming to do for two reasons:

• It's the right, socially responsible things to do
• It allows me to get the best financial benefit from owning an EV

And, to do that, I would want to be able to set-up the charger at home to supply charge aligned to the off-peak period provided by my domestic energy provider. So that by default, the charger provides power when it is off-peak and cheap[er] - and there needs to be an override to 'charge now' if that is ever needed.

The charger needs to be just smart enough to do that, and not much more - the charging schedule needs to be set-up on the charger rather than the car.

If, over time, 'they' want to get smarter and guarantee to give me an overnight minimum of the equivalent of 4 hours charging - i.e. 30 kWh - and my supplier can choose exactly how and when that happens, that would be fine too, but we are some way off having a universal solution for that.

I can and do that already with a dumb charger. 

[philip42h]

3 minutes ago, Nick72 said:

I can and do that already with a dumb charger. 

Do you have the scheduling set-up on the car or the charger?

But yes, either way, you can get the effect we are looking for.

[Nick72]

3 minutes ago, philip42h said:

Do you have the scheduling set-up on the car or the charger?

But yes, either way, you can get the effect we are looking for.

Car, MyT App, or just remote switch on the charger. Charger has a simple App where you can suspend or enable charge. I personally like to be in control of these decisions especially if I'm out and about, back home with no charge left, and I'm going out again in an hour or two later. In which case it just gets plugged again. 

[PeteRav425]

On 11/10/2024 at 8:25 AM, TaFo said:

Hi, I have also started to have problems with the 4G connection dropping out, constantly flashing

This wasn't a problem when installed

Sometimes it is connected And other times flashing

I have installed the ABB charger app (charger sync) on my Phone

Easy to set up, all I needed was the pin number for the wall box which was supplied on installation

Using the ABB app allows you to switch the box to a WiFi connection

Hope this might help you

 

[PeteRav425]

Since my initial connection problems with and green light flashing, I have moved my Wi Fi extender approx 6ft (1800mm) nearer to the EV charger. Since then after cutting the EV chargers  power supply and re starting the connection is stable.

I am bit confused about the comments the charger does NOT use wi fi and only 4G. If that is the case why has moving the wi fi extender sorted out my issue?

I have installed the "charger sync" app but yet to connect, a bit apprehensive to be honest.

 

[philip42h]

13 minutes ago, PeteRav425 said:

Since my initial connection problems with and green light flashing, I have moved my Wi Fi extender approx 6ft (1800mm) nearer to the EV charger. Since then after cutting the EV chargers  power supply and re starting the connection is stable.

I am bit confused about the comments the charger does NOT use wi fi and only 4G. If that is the case why has moving the wi fi extender sorted out my issue?

I have installed the "charger sync" app but yet to connect, a bit apprehensive to be honest.

The Toyota HomeCharge / ABB Terra unit is capable of connecting to the Internet via 4G, Wi-Fi or Ethernet - but of using only one of these three unless reconfigured. Which one the three would normally be defined when the unit was originally installed.

My suspicion is that it would normally be installed to use 4G and the provided 10-year data plan. For the installer to have connected via Wi-Fi, he would have needed to know your Wi-Fi SSID and password at install time - you should know whether or not he did. If it were connected via Ethernet, you would be able to see the cable!

If it is connected via 4G, moving your WiFi extender will have made no difference at all, and it would simply be coincidence that a restart has resolved the problem.