How to keep radio/carplay music on while charging?

Discussion in 'Cooper SE' started by quietlyspinach, Jun 14, 2021.

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  1. quietlyspinach

    quietlyspinach Active Member

    I've been charging at a public DC fast charging station a few times now, and each time I start the charge, I wait in the car; it's a busy station and people expect you to leave as soon as you are finished, so it's considered rude to leave your car unattended.

    In any event, I like to sit in the car and listen to the radio while it's charging. This works fine, except that after about 10 minutes, the radio shuts off. I have to push the power button to turn the entertainment system back on again, while it boots up, and re-connects to my phone to resume my podcast or re-tune the radio station.

    Is there any way to prevent this from happening in the first place, or the equivalent of "wiggling the mouse" to keep the system from shutting itself off? I tried twiddling the volume knob slightly, and turning the controller, but it doesn't seem to matter what I do. After 10 minutes, the music shuts off and I have to start it up again.

    Thankfully if I turn on the AC to keep the car cool that keeps going. It's only the radio that keeps shutting off!
     
    Ray Barrios likes this.
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  3. GvilleGuy

    GvilleGuy Well-Known Member

    I disagree with the design of it, but radio ready state turns off automatically after 8 minutes (at least on the 2022). It would be better if operating the controls (like volume) would reset the timer.
     
    insightman likes this.
  4. chrunck

    chrunck Well-Known Member

    Dang, 8 minutes is really short. It's been 20 minutes on every other MINI I've owned.
     
    GvilleGuy likes this.
  5. GvilleGuy

    GvilleGuy Well-Known Member

    I have not timed it. That is just what's in the manual. But Spinach's experience seems to match up.
     
  6. Toi

    Toi Well-Known Member

    I just hit the start/stop button after plugging in (without foot on brake) and it will run the radio and AC while I charge.
     
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  8. quietlyspinach

    quietlyspinach Active Member

    Huh, okay I must have done something wrong because the last time I *think* I tried that it and it complained about the charging cable being connected. Maybe I actually hit the brake pedal. I'll give it a shot!
     
  9. Toi

    Toi Well-Known Member

    yes, it will complain bigly if the foot is on the brake pedal :D (thanks muscle memory)
     
    quietlyspinach likes this.
  10. GetOffYourGas

    GetOffYourGas Well-Known Member

    Interesting discussion. I have never tried this, so I don't know. I will typically hit the restroom and grab a coffee after I plug in my car. I have no issues leaving the car even if there was a line. I'll be back in 10 minutes, and I know the car won't be done yet.

    When I do get back, the car is off. I just sit down inside and hit the power button without touching the brakes (like Toi said).

    I think the root of the issue is that the car will turn itself off as soon as you open the driver's door. This is the first car I've owned that does that, and I wish it didn't.
     
  11. GvilleGuy

    GvilleGuy Well-Known Member

    This bothers me, as well. I wish that, at minimum, as long as you leave a fob in the car, it would stay in drive-ready state and let you exit the car. I frequently forget to grab something as I leave the house and would like my Carplay and everything to stay connected as I run back inside for a few seconds.
     
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  13. Puppethead

    Puppethead Well-Known Member

    I often jump out of my car to get the mail when I arrive at home, and the SE needs to be reactivated to finish driving up the driveway. This seemed wrong and frustrated me at first. But after thinking about it a lot I've come to the conclusion the SE's behavior is correct. It just takes some adjusting of expectations, not unlike buckling the seatbelt before starting the SE.

    There is no "idling" or "starting" of an engine, it's just an on/off mode for driving. When you exit the vehicle, turning off "drive ready" makes a lot of sense from a safety standpoint. If nobody is behind the wheel why should it be able to accelerate? It costs nothing from an electricity (fuel) standpoint to turn off and then turn on again when a driver returns. There's no turning over of a crankshaft, so it's an instantaneous start.

    I believe it's one of those EV changes from ICE vehicle behavior that people need to learn as normal, like one-pedal driving.
     
  14. GetOffYourGas

    GetOffYourGas Well-Known Member

    That makes sense, although it's not exactly an instantaneous start. There is definitely a delay between hitting that switch and the car being willing to go into drive. More so than in my Bolt. The Bolt takes longer to boot the infotainment, but can be driven as soon as you hit the power button.
     
  15. Puppethead

    Puppethead Well-Known Member

    I'll concede that. I was thinking about the actual motor being ready unlike an ICE engine that needs fluids flowing, but clearly there's some sort of system check going on.
     
  16. Puppethead

    Puppethead Well-Known Member

    I tested this today, and the SE is good to go as soon as you push start. I shifted into drive as quickly as I could and pushed the accelerator, driving off before the startup sound finished and center display was ready.
     
    GvilleGuy likes this.
  17. GetOffYourGas

    GetOffYourGas Well-Known Member

    Interesting. I wonder why the difference in behavior?
     

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