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GM electric vehicles can now access Tesla Superchargers

173 points by ivewonyoung 2y ago

darknavi 2y ago
Great step. NACS is so nice compared to CCS 1. Can't wait for this to standardize and EV charging stations to stop being so novel.
- PaulWaldman 2y ago
  This still feels a long way off. I have yet to encounter a charger, not made by Tesla, that has an NACS plug.
  - MBCook 2y ago
    Either EA or EVgo just deployed their first one in the last few weeks.
  - bluGill 2y ago
    Everyone in the US has committed to NACS in the next couple years. The others are aware of this and if they are not completely stupid making plans. They will probably support CCS for a while in some form, but they will be doing NACS in the near future. It might be like regular/premium/diesel fuels - pumps support more than one hose (though wire is more expensive than a hose).
    - peutetre 2y ago
      > They will probably support CCS for a while NACS is CCS with a different plug on the end. Tesla's charging standard is to die off, CCS will be the standard going forward. Here's a real world demonstration of a charger with J3400 plugs (aka Tesla's plug): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y3-0xRTduPI https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y3-0xRTduPI It works on a Chevy Bolt because it is CCS.
      - rconti 2y ago
        So what does this mean for a Tesla on an NACS charger? Do they already support CCS over that port, or is it a software update? I know Teslas were already CCS in Europe, so I wouldn't be surprised if the software is already basically there.
        bryanlarsen 2y ago
        Older Teslas (approx 2019 and older) need a hardware update.
        rconti 2y ago
        Damn, ouch. Seems crazy that they're now in the position of breaking supercharger compatibility with existing cars.
        theluketaylor 2y ago
        No compatibility break as far as I know. I believe V3 superchargers speak CCS to 2019 and newer cars and fallback to the older Tesla-proprietary communication if necessary.
        bryanlarsen 2y ago
        Sure, but some Tesla owners are going to be surprised when they pull up to a third party charger with a Tesla plug that doesn't work on their car even though it plugs in.
        maxerickson 2y ago
        Only ~once. A little bit of pain when there aren't that many vehicles is fine if it makes things quite a lot better going forward.
        matthewdgreen 2y ago
  - browningstreet 2y ago
    That is the definition of the current state. Fortunately for the future state, they can be changed.
  - _ea1k 2y ago
    There's a huge wave of chargers building over the next 24 months. Many will have NACS.
flurie 2y ago
I'd seen some rumors that Tesla has been trying to slow down onboarding of other automakers to their charging network, so it's good to see information to the contrary. I still struggle to see how this ends up favorable for Tesla in the long run. They did not charge licensing fees for the connector, and even if they charge a premium to charge non-Tesla vehicles, now owners of Tesla vehicles are going to run into situations where a Chevy Bolt has to double park to use a Tesla fast charger at <=50kW, doubly driving down utilization.
- tensor 2y ago
  Yeah, I can't see how it's great for Tesla other than I guess extra revenue from charging. But the infrastructure already is somewhat constrained, so yes there will be more lines now at superchargers. On the other hand, I'm happy we're not heading down the path of shitty walled gardens of charging, eventually Tesla owners will also benefit from being able to charge more easily at 3rd party chargers. For humanity this is a good thing, and increases overall efficiency of infrastructure greatly.
  - MBCook 2y ago
    They had to open their chargers to get some of the benefits from that big bill a year or two ago (build back better?). That may be why. In low use areas it may be a nice ROI. I’ve heard in high use areas things could already be bad from the increase in Teslas sold and piling Fords, GMs, and Rivians in isn’t going to lighten the load any.
    - jauntywundrkind 2y ago
      Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, https://driveelectric.gov/news/new-cfi-funding-released https://driveelectric.gov/news/new-cfi-funding-released > This funding opportunity is made possible by the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law’s signature EV charging investments: the $2.5 billion Charging and Fueling Infrastructure (CFI) Discretionary Grant Program and funds from the National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure (NEVI) Formula Program that are set aside for strategic grants to states and local governments to deploy EV chargers. It seems like Tesla's behavior has been much better in Europe, and I'm not sure what explains the discrepancy.
phkahler 2y ago
>> Future GM vehicles will come with Tesla’s charging port natively installed. This makes me happy. I worked on "standard" charging infrastructure for a while and those plugs are fv*king heavy and clunky by comparison. Also talked to an old Ford guy I worked with years ago who was involved in the standard development process - he seems content to "understand" what the politics and compromises were to the extent he couldn't look at the thing and say "this sucks". Going beyond the physical clunkiness: There is no reason to have a powerline PHY in there. None. It's stupid and costs extra and isn't even used on the high power conductors.
- gwbas1c 2y ago
  This just feels like VHS vs. Betamax. VHS won because it was the better format, but Betamax fans took a value out of context and kept whining about the loss for years. (VHS was better. Not only was it cheaper, Betamax's smaller cassette meant that feature length movies used a slower tape speed than VHS, negating claims of a better picture.)
  - actionfromafar 2y ago
    Must resist... nitpicking... no I can't. Betamax originally didn't sell tapes which could record more than 1 hour. So people couldn't tape movies onto a single tape, but had to use 2 tapes. What I really came to say is that the current reality is worse. In this analogy, not only did BetaMax win, neither BetaMax nor VHS came to Europe, but instead Philips 2000 won there. (US Teslas don't fast-charge in Europe.)
    - BobaFloutist 2y ago
      >US Teslas don't fast-charge in Europe This is going to be deeply frustrating when they finally build that tunnel across the Atlantic.
      - electronbeam 2y ago
        Or the bridge to russia
recursive 2y ago
I still haven't received my free Ford adapter. Delivery date keeps getting pushed back due to "supplier" issues. I'm pretty sure the supplier is Tesla, and they're slow-rolling it for some reason.
- placatedmayhem 2y ago
  While I have no information here, I'd bet/conspiracy theorize that Tesla is looking to maintain exclusivity/low-ish congestion of its Supercharger sites for as long as possible, and using its position as a supplier of NACS adapters to do that. Demand for and purchasing of Tesla cars has gone down considerably[1], and I'd assert that Superchargers, which have historically been a positive for Tesla, catching a reputation for being "busy" would hurt Tesla even more. There are already regularly lines for charging at some of the busier Supercharger sites. [1] https://www.coxautoinc.com/market-insights/q1-2024-ev-sales/ https://www.coxautoinc.com/market-insights/q1-2024-ev-sales/
  - LeoPanthera 2y ago
    Just like how the Hyperloop was a scheme to prevent development of trains. Tesla doesn't try to make the best product, they just try to hurt the competition.
    - robertlagrant 2y ago
      Supercharger is the best product, and without Tesla we wouldn't be half as far as we are with car electrification. I don't get the ludicrousness of statements such as yours.
      - LeoPanthera 2y ago
        Then I will try to defend myself. Superchargers were the best product, yes. But then Tesla fired its entire supercharger team, demonstrating how little they care about it right now. They've been simultaneously dragging their feet on allowing third parties access to the network, as originally promised. The Hyperloop was indeed intended to stop California extending its rail network - Elon himself admitted as such: https://x.com/parismarx/status/1571628269555826688 https://x.com/parismarx/status/1571628269555826688
jes5199 2y ago
I own a Chevy Bolt, and have no luck actually figuring out how to buy this adaptor
- sanj 2y ago
  this one? https://ev-lectron.com/products/lectron-vortex-plug-tesla-supercharger-nacs-to-ccs-adapter https://ev-lectron.com/products/lectron-vortex-plug-tesla-su...
  - jes5199 2y ago
    no, the GM-branded one that won't void my warrantee
    - evanelias 2y ago
      They made it ridiculously convoluted to order. You need to use the awful MyChevrolet app, and click your initials in the corner. From there, select "Public Charging". After it loads, there should be a Tesla-related option to click towards the top. (If it's missing, force-kill the app and relaunch and try again. I had to do that, even though I was already running the latest version of the app.) Next you'll need to enter a credit card, and then X out of the confirmation screen. Finally you'll get a link to order the adapter, which you can only access in a web view inside the MyChevrolet app. The web view will show multiple discount codes regarding parts, but none of the %-off ones do anything for this order, only the free shipping one works on this. Also don't click the outermost X during the order process, since this will close the web view and make you start over. At times you'll need to click an "inner" X below that. It's one of the worst order interfaces I've ever seen. Oh, and the first time I actually made it through the full checkout process, it gave me an error and said to try again later. But it wouldn't let me try again later (couldn't resubmit my order/cart) so I had to start from scratch for like the third time. Also the adapter is already on backorder, so there's no estimation of when this will actually ship. I think I'm never buying a GM car ever again.
      - cmrdporcupine 2y ago
asynchronous 2y ago
Most of the comments here seem to be suffering from amnesia as to why Tesla is even opening their charging network- remember, the Feds literally begged them to and paid them money to do so. As a Tesla owner, I see this as a straight up loss in nearly every category. I never have used a third party charger, so even if those chargers move to the NACS standard it won’t improve my life in any way. I’ve already had to deal with Rivian or Ford owners taking up several stalls at the Superchargers (because they weren’t designed to fit correctly, and Rivian drivers are incompetent) and taking over twice as long to charge as Teslas are able to.
- deleted 2y ago
  [deleted]
windexh8er 2y ago
Please... DO NOT BUY A LECTRON ADAPTER mentioned in this article. This company is shady and has absolutely horrendous customer service, along with products that do not work and are not authorized at Tesla Super Chargers. How do I know? I bought one. The first issue I had was they claimed the unit was available to ship when I purchased, but did not ship even though they sent me a tracking number that simply stated "package hasn't been dropped off at UPS" when looked up. When I inquired they said it would be shipping "this week" for 3 weeks. I had also paid for expedited shipping and the company refused to refund this. After collecting screenshots I told them I would be reversing the charge through my CC company. That same day the product was shipped. Then I experienced the design issues with the product first hand that everyone has now beaten to death on the Internet. Next I spent another two weeks trying to get the company to refund my money and take back their product. I ended up reversing the charge and only after I did that did they issue me an RMA to send the unit back, because now they wanted it back since my CC company reviewed all of my screenshots of their claims and reversed the charge. Do not waste your time with Lectron!
modeless 2y ago
I tried the reverse recently, charging my Model 3 at third party CCS chargers with adapter (and CCS compatibility retrofit). It is bleak out there. The chargers are few and far between, half of them are broken, and even the ones that aren't broken have compatibility issues so they may not work anyway. The required apps are unreliable and annoying. I remember 5+ years ago Superchargers were a lot less common and also frequently broken. But those days are long gone. Tesla has really figured out reliability and maintenance, and there are plenty of stations for all but peak times. And the charging experience couldn't be simpler, park and plug in, unplug and go. No tap, no app. Crazy how no one else could figure this out.
- tw04 2y ago
  >The chargers are few and far between Where are you that the CCS chargers are few and far between? While I agree it's annoying to have to potentially use multiple apps if you aren't in a car that has a consolidation play (like fordpass), there are far more CCS chargers in the states I've visited than Tesla counterparts. With gas station chains like Pilot, 7-eleven, Wawa, Circle-K, and others building out their own networks, and Tesla firing basically their entire charging network staff, non-Tesla chargers will only continue to grow at a faster pace than what Tesla has to offer. At least we've standardized on J3400 plugs so we can (hopefully) move away from the game of "do you have the right adapter"?
  - modeless 2y ago
    I guess it's more "few" than "far between". There are a decent number of locations in e.g. grocery store parking lots but they usually only have 2-4 fast chargers and one or two are broken. So you'll show up and someone got there before you and took the last one. Meanwhile I don't think I've ever seen a Supercharger with fewer than 8 stalls and many have 20+.
  - infecto 2y ago
    Non-Tesla charging locations can be hit or miss. As others have mentioned, many spots only have 2-4 stations, with at least one often out of order and others occupied by cars that have been sitting there for a while. If you manage to find a working charger, actually paying for it can be a hassle. I’ve had situations where I skipped the wait at Tesla chargers and tried another network, maybe EA. Despite having the app and using it before, it wouldn’t work. My credit card didn’t go through either, so I used my bank card, which worked for half the charge, but then stopped working for the rest.
moomoo11 2y ago
Hot take. Tesla supercharger network is better quality and an actual product compared to their rattle box cheap ass cars. Not worth it at the price I bought, and only good as leases imo now that they’re cheap. I am an OG in the sense that I had FSD at $2k and have seen the evolution of “full self driving”. It sucks. It’s a gimmick that I would not trust with the lives of my family. I trust myself enough to use it when it was just me driving. Good for highway driving in middle lane, but other cars do that as well.. Also in my friend group it was just me who had FSD nobody else had it. I sold my Tesla long ago when Elon start short circuiting his brain with brainrot. However the prevalence and reliability of supercharger is unmatched.
- Spivak 2y ago
  Would be an interesting pivot for Tesla to start as a car company, jumpstart the EV market in the US, sell the badge to another automaker and supply them batteries, and become the EV gas station It certainly makes more sense for the name.
  - rsynnott 2y ago
    It wouldn't be a pivot that would please investors. It's inherently a near-zero-margin business (if you are making a significant margin, then someone will open one down the road and undercut you); many actual fuel stations only really survive on the add-ons (convenience stores, 'premium' petrol, etc.)
talldatethrow 2y ago
I think as soon as thieves realize cars that are plugged in with drivers inside waiting are not able to drive away without unplugging, there will be a huge surge in crime against people charging their EVs. Then there will be a large surge in people going back to complaining about EVs having too many drawbacks. At least at a gas station I'm only there for 5 minutes, it's not at the back of some dark parking lot, and I can start the car and drive away if I had to.
- epistasis 2y ago
  I live in a fairly high crime area, but I can't imagine this being true in any way. What sort of crime are you thinking? Standard mugging? So many easier targets in other areas, plus the cars record everything, and there are usually lots of others charging. The worst experience I have had while charging late at night in a remote area was being accosted by an over-enthusiastic Tesla fan who just wanted to talk talk talk about the car and where it had gone. That was very unpleasant, but certainly not criminal.
  - talldatethrow 2y ago
    I said as soon as criminals figure it out. They don't know people sitting alone in the back of parking lots can't even drive away without getting out first. It also took them a few years to figure out they could steal the cables. At first they probably thought they were live.
- teitoklien 2y ago
  No Industry is already figuring out magsafe like solutions for Tesla Car chargers, it’s something else that Tesla is suing them for it lol. Also, considering car chargers are likely to have many cars being charged, thieves would rather find it easier to steal parked out in the open cars outside people’s homes, than car charging spots which can easily be targeted by police to catch thieves red handed. Not to mention, you’ll see more Magsafe charger implementations for Cars soon. [see this](https://www.theverge.com/2024/8/2/24212160/tesla-evject-lawsuit-escape-connector-dangerous-hot https://www.theverge.com/2024/8/2/24212160/tesla-evject-laws...)
- 2y ago
Animats 2y ago
Here's ChargePoint's interoperability lab.[1] They're not sure how the connectors and interfaces will end up, so their charging system is modular and field-upgradable. They bring in various cars and check out the charging process. [1] https://youtu.be/UbKigyNpNzo?t=1920 https://youtu.be/UbKigyNpNzo?t=1920
alkonaut 2y ago
Was the limitation of superchargers to specific brands a US thing? In Europe there is always cars of all makes and models charging at the Tesla chargers?
- boredpudding 2y ago
  In the EU, it is required to use a specific type of plug at chargers and in electric cars. This made everything compatible. So it not working wasn't a US thing. It working was an EU thing.
- pornel 2y ago
  Tesla's cars and Superchargers in the EU all use the CCS2 standard (similar to CCS1 in the US, but the plug doesn't have a latch sticking out). NACS is really only a North American thing.
vertnerd 2y ago
Eight years ago, when I bought my first Nissan Leaf, I was astonished to learn that the process of charging the car at a CHAdeMO station was entirely different from the process of filling a gasoline car. Eight years later, with a wallet full of different membership cards, and every charger with a different UI, the situation has actually gotten worse. I, for one, welcome our new Tesla charging overlords. Funny anecdote from two weeks ago: I had just finished a CHAdeMO session, stopped the charge, the UI said it was done (have a nice day!) but the charger refused to release the plug from the car. I spent ten minutes pulling and pulling, and talking to a clueless person on a customer service line, when the charger unlocked it all by itself. Imagine a system where a bug or glitch can lock the charging cable to your car for no reason whatsoever, completely immobilizing you in the middle of your trip!
Grubbo 2y ago
Batteries are becoming obsolete, scientists have discovered a new way to store energy, so the whole frame and body of the car is able to store energy. So we might see cars and laptops without batteries in the future.
- abenga 2y ago
  Which scientists? Can I go out and buy this tech, or is it imaginary?
  - Grubbo 2y ago
    https://www.chalmers.se/en/current/news/big-breakthrough-for-massless-energy-storage/ https://www.chalmers.se/en/current/news/big-breakthrough-for...
    - abenga 2y ago
      So just structural batteries. Like, batteries, but form part of the item they are powering?
      - Grubbo 2y ago
        Yes like the case around a laptop, or the body/fuselage and wings of a drone, saves weight. They showed it on the news recently. "Structural batteries are materials that not only store energy, but can also carry loads. In this way, the battery material can become part of the actual construction material of a product, which means that a much lower weight can be achieved in electric cars, drones, hand tools, laptops and mobile phones, for example." They claim to increase the range of an electric car up to 70% More recent article: https://www.electrive.com/2024/09/12/swedish-researchers-report-progress-with-structural-battery/ https://www.electrive.com/2024/09/12/swedish-researchers-rep...
deleted 2y ago
[deleted]

173 points by ivewonyoung 2y ago

Great step. NACS is so nice compared to CCS 1. Can't wait for this to standardize and EV charging stations to stop being so novel.

PaulWaldman 2y ago
This still feels a long way off. I have yet to encounter a charger, not made by Tesla, that has an NACS plug.
- MBCook 2y ago
  Either EA or EVgo just deployed their first one in the last few weeks.
- bluGill 2y ago
  Everyone in the US has committed to NACS in the next couple years. The others are aware of this and if they are not completely stupid making plans. They will probably support CCS for a while in some form, but they will be doing NACS in the near future. It might be like regular/premium/diesel fuels - pumps support more than one hose (though wire is more expensive than a hose).
  - peutetre 2y ago
    > They will probably support CCS for a while NACS is CCS with a different plug on the end. Tesla's charging standard is to die off, CCS will be the standard going forward. Here's a real world demonstration of a charger with J3400 plugs (aka Tesla's plug): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y3-0xRTduPI https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y3-0xRTduPI It works on a Chevy Bolt because it is CCS.
    - rconti 2y ago
      So what does this mean for a Tesla on an NACS charger? Do they already support CCS over that port, or is it a software update? I know Teslas were already CCS in Europe, so I wouldn't be surprised if the software is already basically there.
      - bryanlarsen 2y ago
        Older Teslas (approx 2019 and older) need a hardware update.
        rconti 2y ago
        Damn, ouch. Seems crazy that they're now in the position of breaking supercharger compatibility with existing cars.
        theluketaylor 2y ago
        No compatibility break as far as I know. I believe V3 superchargers speak CCS to 2019 and newer cars and fallback to the older Tesla-proprietary communication if necessary.
        bryanlarsen 2y ago
        Sure, but some Tesla owners are going to be surprised when they pull up to a third party charger with a Tesla plug that doesn't work on their car even though it plugs in.
        maxerickson 2y ago
        Only ~once. A little bit of pain when there aren't that many vehicles is fine if it makes things quite a lot better going forward.
        matthewdgreen 2y ago
- browningstreet 2y ago
  That is the definition of the current state. Fortunately for the future state, they can be changed.
- _ea1k 2y ago
  There's a huge wave of chargers building over the next 24 months. Many will have NACS.

flurie 2y ago

I'd seen some rumors that Tesla has been trying to slow down onboarding of other automakers to their charging network, so it's good to see information to the contrary. I still struggle to see how this ends up favorable for Tesla in the long run. They did not charge licensing fees for the connector, and even if they charge a premium to charge non-Tesla vehicles, now owners of Tesla vehicles are going to run into situations where a Chevy Bolt has to double park to use a Tesla fast charger at <=50kW, doubly driving down utilization.

tensor 2y ago
Yeah, I can't see how it's great for Tesla other than I guess extra revenue from charging. But the infrastructure already is somewhat constrained, so yes there will be more lines now at superchargers. On the other hand, I'm happy we're not heading down the path of shitty walled gardens of charging, eventually Tesla owners will also benefit from being able to charge more easily at 3rd party chargers. For humanity this is a good thing, and increases overall efficiency of infrastructure greatly.
- MBCook 2y ago
  They had to open their chargers to get some of the benefits from that big bill a year or two ago (build back better?). That may be why. In low use areas it may be a nice ROI. I’ve heard in high use areas things could already be bad from the increase in Teslas sold and piling Fords, GMs, and Rivians in isn’t going to lighten the load any.
  - jauntywundrkind 2y ago
    Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, https://driveelectric.gov/news/new-cfi-funding-released https://driveelectric.gov/news/new-cfi-funding-released > This funding opportunity is made possible by the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law’s signature EV charging investments: the $2.5 billion Charging and Fueling Infrastructure (CFI) Discretionary Grant Program and funds from the National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure (NEVI) Formula Program that are set aside for strategic grants to states and local governments to deploy EV chargers. It seems like Tesla's behavior has been much better in Europe, and I'm not sure what explains the discrepancy.

phkahler 2y ago

>> Future GM vehicles will come with Tesla’s charging port natively installed. This makes me happy. I worked on "standard" charging infrastructure for a while and those plugs are fv*king heavy and clunky by comparison. Also talked to an old Ford guy I worked with years ago who was involved in the standard development process - he seems content to "understand" what the politics and compromises were to the extent he couldn't look at the thing and say "this sucks". Going beyond the physical clunkiness: There is no reason to have a powerline PHY in there. None. It's stupid and costs extra and isn't even used on the high power conductors.

gwbas1c 2y ago
This just feels like VHS vs. Betamax. VHS won because it was the better format, but Betamax fans took a value out of context and kept whining about the loss for years. (VHS was better. Not only was it cheaper, Betamax's smaller cassette meant that feature length movies used a slower tape speed than VHS, negating claims of a better picture.)
- actionfromafar 2y ago
  Must resist... nitpicking... no I can't. Betamax originally didn't sell tapes which could record more than 1 hour. So people couldn't tape movies onto a single tape, but had to use 2 tapes. What I really came to say is that the current reality is worse. In this analogy, not only did BetaMax win, neither BetaMax nor VHS came to Europe, but instead Philips 2000 won there. (US Teslas don't fast-charge in Europe.)
  - BobaFloutist 2y ago
    >US Teslas don't fast-charge in Europe This is going to be deeply frustrating when they finally build that tunnel across the Atlantic.
    - electronbeam 2y ago
      Or the bridge to russia

recursive 2y ago

I still haven't received my free Ford adapter. Delivery date keeps getting pushed back due to "supplier" issues. I'm pretty sure the supplier is Tesla, and they're slow-rolling it for some reason.

placatedmayhem 2y ago
While I have no information here, I'd bet/conspiracy theorize that Tesla is looking to maintain exclusivity/low-ish congestion of its Supercharger sites for as long as possible, and using its position as a supplier of NACS adapters to do that. Demand for and purchasing of Tesla cars has gone down considerably[1], and I'd assert that Superchargers, which have historically been a positive for Tesla, catching a reputation for being "busy" would hurt Tesla even more. There are already regularly lines for charging at some of the busier Supercharger sites. [1] https://www.coxautoinc.com/market-insights/q1-2024-ev-sales/ https://www.coxautoinc.com/market-insights/q1-2024-ev-sales/
- LeoPanthera 2y ago
  Just like how the Hyperloop was a scheme to prevent development of trains. Tesla doesn't try to make the best product, they just try to hurt the competition.
  - robertlagrant 2y ago
    Supercharger is the best product, and without Tesla we wouldn't be half as far as we are with car electrification. I don't get the ludicrousness of statements such as yours.
    - LeoPanthera 2y ago
      Then I will try to defend myself. Superchargers were the best product, yes. But then Tesla fired its entire supercharger team, demonstrating how little they care about it right now. They've been simultaneously dragging their feet on allowing third parties access to the network, as originally promised. The Hyperloop was indeed intended to stop California extending its rail network - Elon himself admitted as such: https://x.com/parismarx/status/1571628269555826688 https://x.com/parismarx/status/1571628269555826688

jes5199 2y ago

I own a Chevy Bolt, and have no luck actually figuring out how to buy this adaptor

sanj 2y ago
this one? https://ev-lectron.com/products/lectron-vortex-plug-tesla-supercharger-nacs-to-ccs-adapter https://ev-lectron.com/products/lectron-vortex-plug-tesla-su...
- jes5199 2y ago
  no, the GM-branded one that won't void my warrantee
  - evanelias 2y ago
    They made it ridiculously convoluted to order. You need to use the awful MyChevrolet app, and click your initials in the corner. From there, select "Public Charging". After it loads, there should be a Tesla-related option to click towards the top. (If it's missing, force-kill the app and relaunch and try again. I had to do that, even though I was already running the latest version of the app.) Next you'll need to enter a credit card, and then X out of the confirmation screen. Finally you'll get a link to order the adapter, which you can only access in a web view inside the MyChevrolet app. The web view will show multiple discount codes regarding parts, but none of the %-off ones do anything for this order, only the free shipping one works on this. Also don't click the outermost X during the order process, since this will close the web view and make you start over. At times you'll need to click an "inner" X below that. It's one of the worst order interfaces I've ever seen. Oh, and the first time I actually made it through the full checkout process, it gave me an error and said to try again later. But it wouldn't let me try again later (couldn't resubmit my order/cart) so I had to start from scratch for like the third time. Also the adapter is already on backorder, so there's no estimation of when this will actually ship. I think I'm never buying a GM car ever again.
    - cmrdporcupine 2y ago

asynchronous 2y ago

Most of the comments here seem to be suffering from amnesia as to why Tesla is even opening their charging network- remember, the Feds literally begged them to and paid them money to do so. As a Tesla owner, I see this as a straight up loss in nearly every category. I never have used a third party charger, so even if those chargers move to the NACS standard it won’t improve my life in any way. I’ve already had to deal with Rivian or Ford owners taking up several stalls at the Superchargers (because they weren’t designed to fit correctly, and Rivian drivers are incompetent) and taking over twice as long to charge as Teslas are able to.

deleted 2y ago
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windexh8er 2y ago

Please... DO NOT BUY A LECTRON ADAPTER mentioned in this article. This company is shady and has absolutely horrendous customer service, along with products that do not work and are not authorized at Tesla Super Chargers. How do I know? I bought one. The first issue I had was they claimed the unit was available to ship when I purchased, but did not ship even though they sent me a tracking number that simply stated "package hasn't been dropped off at UPS" when looked up. When I inquired they said it would be shipping "this week" for 3 weeks. I had also paid for expedited shipping and the company refused to refund this. After collecting screenshots I told them I would be reversing the charge through my CC company. That same day the product was shipped. Then I experienced the design issues with the product first hand that everyone has now beaten to death on the Internet. Next I spent another two weeks trying to get the company to refund my money and take back their product. I ended up reversing the charge and only after I did that did they issue me an RMA to send the unit back, because now they wanted it back since my CC company reviewed all of my screenshots of their claims and reversed the charge. Do not waste your time with Lectron!

modeless 2y ago

I tried the reverse recently, charging my Model 3 at third party CCS chargers with adapter (and CCS compatibility retrofit). It is bleak out there. The chargers are few and far between, half of them are broken, and even the ones that aren't broken have compatibility issues so they may not work anyway. The required apps are unreliable and annoying. I remember 5+ years ago Superchargers were a lot less common and also frequently broken. But those days are long gone. Tesla has really figured out reliability and maintenance, and there are plenty of stations for all but peak times. And the charging experience couldn't be simpler, park and plug in, unplug and go. No tap, no app. Crazy how no one else could figure this out.

tw04 2y ago
>The chargers are few and far between Where are you that the CCS chargers are few and far between? While I agree it's annoying to have to potentially use multiple apps if you aren't in a car that has a consolidation play (like fordpass), there are far more CCS chargers in the states I've visited than Tesla counterparts. With gas station chains like Pilot, 7-eleven, Wawa, Circle-K, and others building out their own networks, and Tesla firing basically their entire charging network staff, non-Tesla chargers will only continue to grow at a faster pace than what Tesla has to offer. At least we've standardized on J3400 plugs so we can (hopefully) move away from the game of "do you have the right adapter"?
- modeless 2y ago
  I guess it's more "few" than "far between". There are a decent number of locations in e.g. grocery store parking lots but they usually only have 2-4 fast chargers and one or two are broken. So you'll show up and someone got there before you and took the last one. Meanwhile I don't think I've ever seen a Supercharger with fewer than 8 stalls and many have 20+.
- infecto 2y ago
  Non-Tesla charging locations can be hit or miss. As others have mentioned, many spots only have 2-4 stations, with at least one often out of order and others occupied by cars that have been sitting there for a while. If you manage to find a working charger, actually paying for it can be a hassle. I’ve had situations where I skipped the wait at Tesla chargers and tried another network, maybe EA. Despite having the app and using it before, it wouldn’t work. My credit card didn’t go through either, so I used my bank card, which worked for half the charge, but then stopped working for the rest.

moomoo11 2y ago

Hot take. Tesla supercharger network is better quality and an actual product compared to their rattle box cheap ass cars. Not worth it at the price I bought, and only good as leases imo now that they’re cheap. I am an OG in the sense that I had FSD at $2k and have seen the evolution of “full self driving”. It sucks. It’s a gimmick that I would not trust with the lives of my family. I trust myself enough to use it when it was just me driving. Good for highway driving in middle lane, but other cars do that as well.. Also in my friend group it was just me who had FSD nobody else had it. I sold my Tesla long ago when Elon start short circuiting his brain with brainrot. However the prevalence and reliability of supercharger is unmatched.

Spivak 2y ago
Would be an interesting pivot for Tesla to start as a car company, jumpstart the EV market in the US, sell the badge to another automaker and supply them batteries, and become the EV gas station It certainly makes more sense for the name.
- rsynnott 2y ago
  It wouldn't be a pivot that would please investors. It's inherently a near-zero-margin business (if you are making a significant margin, then someone will open one down the road and undercut you); many actual fuel stations only really survive on the add-ons (convenience stores, 'premium' petrol, etc.)

talldatethrow 2y ago

I think as soon as thieves realize cars that are plugged in with drivers inside waiting are not able to drive away without unplugging, there will be a huge surge in crime against people charging their EVs. Then there will be a large surge in people going back to complaining about EVs having too many drawbacks. At least at a gas station I'm only there for 5 minutes, it's not at the back of some dark parking lot, and I can start the car and drive away if I had to.

epistasis 2y ago
I live in a fairly high crime area, but I can't imagine this being true in any way. What sort of crime are you thinking? Standard mugging? So many easier targets in other areas, plus the cars record everything, and there are usually lots of others charging. The worst experience I have had while charging late at night in a remote area was being accosted by an over-enthusiastic Tesla fan who just wanted to talk talk talk about the car and where it had gone. That was very unpleasant, but certainly not criminal.
- talldatethrow 2y ago
  I said as soon as criminals figure it out. They don't know people sitting alone in the back of parking lots can't even drive away without getting out first. It also took them a few years to figure out they could steal the cables. At first they probably thought they were live.
teitoklien 2y ago
No Industry is already figuring out magsafe like solutions for Tesla Car chargers, it’s something else that Tesla is suing them for it lol. Also, considering car chargers are likely to have many cars being charged, thieves would rather find it easier to steal parked out in the open cars outside people’s homes, than car charging spots which can easily be targeted by police to catch thieves red handed. Not to mention, you’ll see more Magsafe charger implementations for Cars soon. [see this](https://www.theverge.com/2024/8/2/24212160/tesla-evject-lawsuit-escape-connector-dangerous-hot https://www.theverge.com/2024/8/2/24212160/tesla-evject-laws...)
2y ago

Animats 2y ago

Here's ChargePoint's interoperability lab.[1] They're not sure how the connectors and interfaces will end up, so their charging system is modular and field-upgradable. They bring in various cars and check out the charging process. [1] https://youtu.be/UbKigyNpNzo?t=1920 https://youtu.be/UbKigyNpNzo?t=1920

alkonaut 2y ago

Was the limitation of superchargers to specific brands a US thing? In Europe there is always cars of all makes and models charging at the Tesla chargers?

boredpudding 2y ago
In the EU, it is required to use a specific type of plug at chargers and in electric cars. This made everything compatible. So it not working wasn't a US thing. It working was an EU thing.
pornel 2y ago
Tesla's cars and Superchargers in the EU all use the CCS2 standard (similar to CCS1 in the US, but the plug doesn't have a latch sticking out). NACS is really only a North American thing.

vertnerd 2y ago

Eight years ago, when I bought my first Nissan Leaf, I was astonished to learn that the process of charging the car at a CHAdeMO station was entirely different from the process of filling a gasoline car. Eight years later, with a wallet full of different membership cards, and every charger with a different UI, the situation has actually gotten worse. I, for one, welcome our new Tesla charging overlords. Funny anecdote from two weeks ago: I had just finished a CHAdeMO session, stopped the charge, the UI said it was done (have a nice day!) but the charger refused to release the plug from the car. I spent ten minutes pulling and pulling, and talking to a clueless person on a customer service line, when the charger unlocked it all by itself. Imagine a system where a bug or glitch can lock the charging cable to your car for no reason whatsoever, completely immobilizing you in the middle of your trip!

Grubbo 2y ago

Batteries are becoming obsolete, scientists have discovered a new way to store energy, so the whole frame and body of the car is able to store energy. So we might see cars and laptops without batteries in the future.

abenga 2y ago
Which scientists? Can I go out and buy this tech, or is it imaginary?
- Grubbo 2y ago
  https://www.chalmers.se/en/current/news/big-breakthrough-for-massless-energy-storage/ https://www.chalmers.se/en/current/news/big-breakthrough-for...
  - abenga 2y ago
    So just structural batteries. Like, batteries, but form part of the item they are powering?
    - Grubbo 2y ago
      Yes like the case around a laptop, or the body/fuselage and wings of a drone, saves weight. They showed it on the news recently. "Structural batteries are materials that not only store energy, but can also carry loads. In this way, the battery material can become part of the actual construction material of a product, which means that a much lower weight can be achieved in electric cars, drones, hand tools, laptops and mobile phones, for example." They claim to increase the range of an electric car up to 70% More recent article: https://www.electrive.com/2024/09/12/swedish-researchers-report-progress-with-structural-battery/ https://www.electrive.com/2024/09/12/swedish-researchers-rep...

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