CCS - buy now or wait?

[israndy]

Funny how many people SOUND like they don't use their CCS adapter yet I never see people offering to rent theirs out to people that say they need one for a single road trip.

Of course, now that they're under $60 (see link above) probably less than you would pay to rent one.

 

[DeepBlueMN]

It sounds like it won't be all that long before most of the CCS1 stations will have Tesla plugs on them as well. I'm just hoping they'll work on cars like mine that don't have CCS1 capability.

It very likely that when NACS cables are added to CCS chargers they will talk CCS protocols, not native Tesla protocols, so you won’t be able to use them until you upgrade your ECU.
I upgraded the ECU on my 2019 Model 3; it wasn‘t too hard to do.

 

[CMPT PAD]

I use my CC1 adapter frequently at the Florida FPL Evolution 350kWh chargers because they are usually cheaper than the Tesla 250kWh chargers. Well worth it in my opinion.

Yes, if U use frequently then it's worth it. I bought mine when on sales, for a peace of mind, never have to use it, not yet

 

[Darmie]

I guess we now know the answer to this question.

 

[davewill]

It very likely that when NACS cables are added to CCS chargers they will talk CCS protocols, not native Tesla protocols, so you won’t be able to use them until you upgrade your ECU.
I upgraded the ECU on my 2019 Model 3; it wasn‘t too hard to do.

You may be right. If so, it's going to cut out a lot of older Teslas.

 

[Rocky_H]

You may be right. If so, it's going to cut out a lot of older Teslas.

It's kind of a self compensating problem, though, right? On this forum, I see all the newcomers talk about fanatically avoiding V2 Superchargers like it's a pile of dog poop they want to not step in. Our old cars can't take more than the V2 Supercharger speeds anyway, so we'll have them all to ourselves!

 

[Rice&Curry]

for a 100+ $ investment, it will buy you the peace of mind incase you travel out of town and land in a situation where you need to charge and there are no viable alternate options nearby.

 

[spokey]

I read a couple days ago that one of the charging companies (forget which) was asked the question about CCS and the NACS plug and they indicated you did need CCS capability.

I have one of the CCS adapters from Korea. Just came back from an NJ->Denver->NJ trip and used it a couple times where there was a convenient EA charger that was better than the Tesla one.

 

[Darmie]

and used it a couple times where there was a convenient EA charger that was better than the Tesla one.

And probably cheaper. One thing I never really thought of until now, Tesla may hold all the charging cards but will they be more expensive to use. I know it's not much of a point but people fill up at Costco because they have cheaper gas. We were known to go across the street if exxon had cheaper gas then shell and so forth.

 

[spokey]

And probably cheaper. One thing I never really thought of until now, Tesla may hold all the charging cards but will they be more expensive to use. I know it's not much of a point but people fill up at Costco because they have cheaper gas. We were known to go across the street if exxon had cheaper gas then shell and so forth.

Yes;

Tesla was typically around 40/41 .36 although there was one spot in Denver near where we stayed that I used for the 4 days there that was .239* before 10am.

I bought the EA Pass+ (which reminds me I need to cancel that) and I think all those were .31

Back when I was at Rutgers in the 60s we went out to US 1 because we weren't gonna pay no stinkin' .32 / gallon in town when it was .29 / gallon 3 miles away.

-- - edit

Correction, just looked at the charging history and Tesla was not that expensive. Typically in the mid / upper 30s and that Denver one was .23/kwh

The EA - .29 + tax and the kwh delivered is 15 but the billing looks like 17 (the overhead?) so after tax actually delivered is .36 or so. So they were actually similar.

 

[Konicom04]

How can i tell if my MYP is CCS ready?
I have some rural driving coming up in July and August and while I have the "mobile charger" already Im weighing getting the adapter. ( already have accounts at most non tesla providers )

 

[spokey]

Bring up controls,
Software,
additional information (or something like that)
It will say something like CCS enabled or capable.

 

[avs007]

Bring up controls,
Software,
additional information (or something like that)
It will say something like CCS enabled or capable.

Yeah, it will either say CCS Enabled, or CCS Not Installed

 

[Konicom04]

THansk!
It does say CCS ENABLED. Im assuming thats enough for me to feel confident its going to work.

Is it generally recommended to get the tesla CCS adapter, or any other is just as good?

 

[Daekwan]

Funny how many people SOUND like they don't use their CCS adapter yet I never see people offering to rent theirs out to people that say they need one for a single road trip.

Of course, now that they're under $60 (see link above) probably less than you would pay to rent one.

I use the crap outta mine. Just rented a Model X Plaid over the weekend to drive about 600 miles and carry 6 passengers.. and stopped by an EA station to use that sweet, sweet DCFC that works free thanks to the promo code from my wife's ID.4. Went from 10% to 94% in 50mins (had to turn the car in, so wanted to fill it up as much as possible) and 76kWh cost me $0.00. Would have been $36 in charging fees if I had to pay for it with no promo code.

I know. I know. Not many people have access to such a code. That said the real reason I bought the CCS adapter was that it literally DOUBLES the amount of DC fast chargers my car can access. Even if I use it just once because my car is too far from a Supercharger.. or I don't have to wait in line to use a crowded Supercharger.. or I don't have to share a V2 150kW Supercharger.. or I want to use an EA/EVGO CCS charger at a Walmart/Target/etc because I have 30+ minutes of shopping to do anyways and would much rather knock that out than sit in the parking lot of WaWa gas station using a Supercharger: then its still worth every penny. The Supercharger situation will only get more challenging to use next year when Ford, GM, etc starts to use them.

You never know when a CCS charger is cheaper and/or closer than a Supercharger. And I gotta tell you whenever I check the Plugshare app for CCS chargers close by, I've been surprised by just how many times that has happened. I've even found a bunch of 50kW Volta CCS chargers that are free to use for the first 30mins in local shopping centers.

I consider it the best accessory I've bought for my Tesla. As it's the only one guaranteed to save me time/money/frustration every year I drive the car. I've easily saved enough already to pay for the adapter a few times over.

 

[spokey]

THansk!
It does say CCS ENABLED. Im assuming thats enough for me to feel confident its going to work.

Is it generally recommended to get the tesla CCS adapter, or any other is just as good?

given juice involved I'd still get the Tesla one.

 

[EdJack]

Now that all the dominos are falling, GM, Ford, Rivian, Volvo, I would say that Tesla will quickly become the standard in North America, and CCS will go the way of the Dodo bird. So unless you have a short-term need like you get free charging, probably not worth it at this point.

I bought a knock-off one that worked well, made by EVBase. Was $89 on Amazon. Heavy, nice build quality, didn't get hot. That I used on a Road Trip where CCS at rest stops was about 10 cents cheaper per kWh compared to Supercharger.

But what a hassle it was. First problem was so may of the CCS were basically dead. So had to back up to charger, line things up, go to charger, DEAD. So pulled out again, backed into another, get out of car, DEAD. Then when I did back up into a working one, have to deal with the app, log in, doesn't recognize it, then disconnect and start again. Added bonus is having to hear my family in the car complaining to "stop being cheap and just use a working Supercharger"

Then go to Superchargers, pull up, plug in, done. Never saw a dead Supercharger.

Totally not worth the aggravation. I'll pay the 10 cents more on the rare occasion of roundtripping that I need DC fast charge. If I lived somewhere that had free DC fast charging with CCS, that would be a different story and I'd deal with the aggravation for free power. But for a dime a kWh, not worth it.

If you want to go knock-off, I can recommend EVBase. The adapter was great, it is just that the infrastructure for it in North America is poor, and it will only get worse as everyone moves to Tesla standard. Nobody will want to put money into maintaining the CCS fast chargers along the roadway. So they will get more broken down as time goes on.

I would also say that in the coming months, the knock off CCS adapters will be sub-$50 all day long. Because nobody will be buying them anymore now that standard will change to Tesla, and third parties that have warehouses full of them will start to unload them on Amazon and ebay.

 

[chinney]

Now that all the dominos are falling, GM, Ford, Rivian, Volvo, I would say that Tesla will quickly become the standard in North America, and CCS will go the way of the Dodo bird. So unless you have a short-term need like you get free charging, probably not worth it at this point.

I bought a knock-off one that worked well, made by EVBase. Was $89 on Amazon. Heavy, nice build quality, didn't get hot. That I used on a Road Trip where CCS at rest stops was about 10 cents cheaper per kWh compared to Supercharger.

But what a hassle it was. First problem was so may of the CCS were basically dead. So had to back up to charger, line things up, go to charger, DEAD. So pulled out again, backed into another, get out of car, DEAD. Then when I did back up into a working one, have to deal with the app, log in, doesn't recognize it, then disconnect and start again. Added bonus is having to hear my family in the car complaining to "stop being cheap and just use a working Supercharger"

Then go to Superchargers, pull up, plug in, done. Never saw a dead Supercharger.

Totally not worth the aggravation. I'll pay the 10 cents more on the rare occasion of roundtripping that I need DC fast charge. If I lived somewhere that had free DC fast charging with CCS, that would be a different story and I'd deal with the aggravation for free power. But for a dime a kWh, not worth it.

If you want to go knock-off, I can recommend EVBase. The adapter was great, it is just that the infrastructure for it in North America is poor, and it will only get worse as everyone moves to Tesla standard. Nobody will want to put money into maintaining the CCS fast chargers along the roadway. So they will get more broken down as time goes on.

I would also say that in the coming months, the knock off CCS adapters will be sub-$50 all day long. Because nobody will be buying them anymore now that standard will change to Tesla, and third parties that have warehouses full of them will start to unload them on Amazon and ebay.

Good post and I agree, but there is a proviso for some of us. As indicated in certain posts above, it seems likely that for Tesla vehicles to use NACS from third party Level 3 chargers they are, in most cases, still have to have the CCS protocol enabled on their vehicle. And unless I am mistaken, the current Tesla service for enabling CCS on non-compliant vehicles (like mine, an early 2020 version) includes purchase of the CCS adapter as part of the package. So if I decide to go ahead with that, I am still going to end up with a CCS adapter.

 

[Konicom04]

That , and the fact that the adoption for NACS will be 2 years at best. Public charging providers have no real incentive to do so until lots of non-tesla cars with NACS appear on the road. That probably won't start happening till late 2025

 

[Darmie]

What is going to be the future of EA with all this NACS talk?