The BYD Atto 3 is currently not compatible with Charge HQ. This is due to a limitation of the software on the vehicle. Once the vehicle goes to sleep, it fails to wake and start charging in response to the charger offering power to the car.
The same constraint has previously existed with other EV makes & models and was rectified via over-the-air software updates. We hope that the same will be the case for the Atto 3.
Home EV charging can be initiated in two ways. The EV can request power from the wall charger using its own internal scheduler. In such cases, the wall charger is configured to always offer power to the car. This method works in the BYD Atto 3.
The second method relies on the wall charger deciding when to offer power to the EV and the EV starting to charge any time that power is made available. A local schedule, or solar monitoring is configured on the charger which decides when it should offer power to the EV. For this method, the EV must constantly listen to a signal from the EV charger to detect when power is being offered.
The Atto 3, like all EVs contains onboard computers which, after a period of inactivity (whilst parked) go into sleep mode to reduce power consumption. It appears that whilst the Atto 3 is in sleep mode, it does not listen for a signal of power availability from the wall charger.
Once the Atto 3 is in sleep mode, it will not start charging in response to a schedule or solar charging configured on the wall charger.
This limitation impacts all makes and models of smart chargers and wall chargers that offer charging from excess solar.
The only charger we’re aware of to offer a workaround is from EV Nex which relies on periodic pulsing of the car to permanently keep it awake whilst plugged into the charger.
If you have an Atto 3 and are determined to charge from solar, you may still be able to use Charge HQ with the following workaround and a healthy amount of diligence:
