New owner as of yesterday and have a couple questions

Has anyone else noticed a rattling/squeaking noise coming from the top of the driver's side dash? If so, has anyone found a way to fix it?

Secondly, is there any way to directly tune radio/sat stations? Or is it only possible to "scan" and stop the scan when you find something you like? I read this forum's complaints about the radio, but I had no idea just how awful the UI was on it. It is unbelievable that anyone could mess up 50 year old technology this badly.

Finally, before buying the car I found a post by someone, I think it was GlennD, assembling and selling openEVSE kits. Now I can't seem to find those posts even after searching. Can someone post a link to it? I'm still debating a JuiceBox, ClipperCreek HCS-40P, and the one he is selling. I have a short commute (14 miles round trip), so I don't have a need for more than a 30A EVSE (I will probably be OK with 120V for most of my driving, but it will be nice to have the option).

Also, my VIN is 3318... not many left out there.

boarder said:

Has anyone else noticed a rattling/squeaking noise coming from the top of the driver's side dash? If so, has anyone found a way to fix it?

Click to expand...

I've noticed that. It almost sounds like a noise your keyring would make when it swings around in the ignition switch/bumps into the dash. But it's on the left side, and obviously there's no key ring hanging from the ignition switch in this car. I haven't had a chance to further investigate.

For GlennD, go over to the mynissanleaf forums. He's active there. He doesn't build to order, as far as I know. He builds when he feels like it and then sells what he doesn't want to keep. You have to get kind of lucky with timing. Dsinned loves his juicebox, and GlennD says they are a robust machine, too. I don't think you'd go wrong getting one of those. The nice thing about the juicebox is that it's fully portable, so you could use it on camping trips, etc, where you'd have access to a 14-50R outlet.

boarder said:

Has anyone else noticed a rattling/squeaking noise coming from the top of the driver's side dash? If so, has anyone found a way to fix it?

Click to expand...

If the sound is repeatable the dealer should be able to fix it. I had an intermittent rattle in the dash right above the speedometer. It eventually went away on its own after several months.

riderbike37 said:

Dsinned loves his juicebox, and GlennD says they are a robust machine, too. I don't think you'd go wrong getting one of those. The nice thing about the juicebox is that it's fully portable, so you could use it on camping trips, etc, where you'd have access to a 14-50R outlet.

Click to expand...

The "competition" for home built charge stations is the http://www.OPENEVSE.com

If you are only driving 14 miles per day, use the stock 12 amp plug and save your money.

Just to clarify, I purchased my JB "pre-assembled" from EMW and picked it up in person from their production facility in San Carlos, CA. Before delivery, I had made a previous arrangement with EMW to have them "swap" my existing 7.7kW Leviton EVSE's black, J1772 output cable with an orange cable purchased from EMW. Although both cables are 25' long, Leviton rates its cable at 240V and 40A, while EMW cable has a rating of 32A. This swapping of output cables gave my JB more overall flexibility. I subsequently nstalled the EMW cable on my Leviton EVSE since that unit is only rated for 32A anyway. Also, I wanted to make sure the Leviton cable was compatible with the JB in a completed assembly, as that cable is slightly bigger in diameter.

In the end, this arrangement worked out perfectly at no additional cost to me.

I think most EMW customers buy the JB as a "DIY" kit, which is also an open source design based on an Arduino architecture. I paid a little extra to have mine fully pre-assembled by EMW. I am NOT a programmer by any means, but I have already been able to successfully modify the Arduino code to fine tune the voltage sensing circuitry and incorporate a more recently added JB feature for internal temperature monitoring of the Arduino MCU. I have been working on further modifications to customize the JB's LCD display. This has been a fun and interesting project. Besides that, my JB has a truly kickass optional Remote Key Fob feature, and I really do LOVE it! :mrgreen:

http://emotorwerks.com/products/onl...ireless-remote-for-juicebox-or-other-projects

I purchased the Juicebox premium unit already assembled as well with all the options. What sold me on it was the digital display that gives one all kinds of useful info but I also really like the web based interface that shows the rate the car is charging at, the amount of charge delivered, as well as the lifetime amount of charge the unit has supplied to my Rav. It's a well designed and constructed unit that seems to work well as a permanent wall fixture in my garage or something I can take with me should I decide I want level 2 charging ability on the road.

I am curious though how to get into it's software. I have no idea how to access the firmware. If anyone has any info on that I'd appreciate it.

***NOTE: This will be copied into a new subject for further discussion if anybody is interested***

The software side is fairly "technical". If you know anything about C programming you should be able to understand it. I am NOT a programmer, so I find it difficult to understand, but there are enough "comments" in the JB's firmware source code to help figure it out. In fact, minor modifications are not overly difficult to make yourself, although there is most definitely a "learning curve".

The Arduino platform and application programming for it is generally used by DIY "hobbyist" and in educational areas, so it is not meant to be overly difficult to learn. But, if you have no software programming experience whatsoever, it can be formidable. I had a few Basic programming classes in college, but never learned a high level language like "C++". I did, however, dabble in 8 bit microprocessor machine code programming at one time, which taught me about "source code" and compiling to create "executable" code. I guess I learned enough to modify an existing program such as for Arduino projects, provided the original source code is well documented. I believe the JB code was written with the virtues of "open source" in mind, so it is indeed well commented in the source code. But, sometimes, the original programmer "assumes" too much for the sake of others who may find it desirable to understand the code to make custom modifications for themselves.

Did your JB come with FTDI Programming Cable? If not, you'll need to buy one from the eMW Online Store. An Arduino I/O interface board comes with it and both sell for $13. Your "Premium" JB may already have included this, but you need to check with eMW to make sure, since all pre-assembled JBs are preprogrammed by eMW, so the FTDI Programming Cable is now considered an "option".

http://emotorwerks.com/products/onl...8-ftdi-programming-cable-for-arduino-juicebox

Next, download the Arduino "IDE" (V1.05 or greater) from the following website.

http://arduino.cc/en/main/software

Then, download the JB firmware Arduino source code from the eMW website's "public" webpage that corresponds to your hardware version of the JuiceBox (where 8.9 is the latest version just released about 1 to 2 months ago). My JB is based on V8.7, which I purchased with firmware version V8.7.9, and then modified myself to be V8.7.11, so note that there are specific "version no." directories to choose from for your hardware version of the JB. The higher the version no. the more updated the firmware version no. to go with it.

http://emotorwerks.com/JuiceBox_Public/

The rest will entail many hours of studying the code, doing the mods you desire, correcting your programming mistakes, and recompiling for upload into the JB hardware via the FTDI Programming Cable. The compiler pin points all invalid programming before you can attempt to upload any changes to the code. The source code editor and compiler are included in the Arduino "IDE" download.

Have fun and GOOD LUCK!

Wow, thanks for the intel.

I feel like crying uncle already. :?

boarder said:

Secondly, is there any way to directly tune radio/sat stations? Or is it only possible to "scan" and stop the scan when you find something you like? I read this forum's complaints about the radio, but I had no idea just how awful the UI was on it. It is unbelievable that anyone could mess up 50 year old technology this badly.

Click to expand...

To tune the radio or adjust volume, touch the little musical note icon in the upper right of the screen. This icon appears on the radio screen and some others (the map I believe). It opens a drop down window that allows you to adjust a volume slider, tune manually up or down, or scan up or down.

dstjohn99 said:

boarder said:

Secondly, is there any way to directly tune radio/sat stations? Or is it only possible to "scan" and stop the scan when you find something you like? I read this forum's complaints about the radio, but I had no idea just how awful the UI was on it. It is unbelievable that anyone could mess up 50 year old technology this badly.

Click to expand...

To tune the radio or adjust volume, touch the little musical note icon in the upper right of the screen. This icon appears on the radio screen and some others (the map I believe). It opens a drop down window that allows you to adjust a volume slider, tune manually up or down, or scan up or down.

Click to expand...

In Satellite radio mode I believe the >| button advances by category, so that's the fastest way to move around in the Sat channels.

Thanks for the fast replies everyone. I found the page in the owner's manual about tuning stations, so that question got answered (I've never before had to use a manual to figure out something so simple).

The noise from the top of the driver's side dash has already started going away, so it was probably just a plastic piece settling into place after manufacturing.

The new annoyance I'm dealing with is my phone keeps disconnecting and reconnecting by bluetooth every 10-20 seconds. I have an HTC One M8 that worked perfectly in my Ford Escape, delivering phone, audio and text messages to the radio. Now I can't use it for anything, since it endlessly loops connecting/disconnecting, and it also keeps popping up the disconnect/reconnect screen. Has anyone else seen/fixed this?

boarder said:

The new annoyance I'm dealing with is my phone keeps disconnecting and reconnecting by bluetooth every 10-20 seconds. I have an HTC One M8 that worked perfectly in my Ford Escape, delivering phone, audio and text messages to the radio. Now I can't use it for anything, since it endlessly loops connecting/disconnecting, and it also keeps popping up the disconnect/reconnect screen. Has anyone else seen/fixed this?

Click to expand...

No, but I stumbled across a "phone compatibility" document for Entune / Rav4 EV. I'll see if I can find it again and post the link. It was pretty accurate for my Galaxy S3 - everything is compatible except text messaging and that is exactly what does not work with my phone.

I found the source of my clicking noise, it's the plastic piece of trim below the panel with the electric door locks. I'm pretty tall, so my knee rests against that piece from time to time. It makes an audible click when light pressure is applied.

Here is the Entune page that allows you to look up your carrier, phone & model and review compatibility and pairing instructions.

http://www.toyota.com/connect/

Here is a carrier/phone compatibility list document

http://www.toyota.com/content/entune/pdf/Phone_Compatibility_List_RAV4EV2.PDF

It says my phone is not supported and only partially worked under testing. Awesome. Glad I have a fancy, flagship phone that doesn't work.