EVgo reportedly adding Tesla plugs to their DC fast chargers

[srs5694]

Here's a news story that may be of interest to some:

https://ww.electrek.co/2019/12/19/evgo-tesla-connector-nationwide-charging-network/

In brief, EVgo is adding Tesla plugs to some or all of their DC fast chargers. (It's not clear if all EVgo stations will be upgraded or just some of them.) The rollout is starting in San Francisco, apparently this month, with upgrades nationwide beginning next year.

I've seen similar reports on several EV-centric news sites, but they're a bit sparse on details. My impression is that most EVgo stations max out at 50kW (or less), so these won't be competing with Superchargers in speed unless and until EVgo upgrades to faster hardware. (I seem to recall seeing reports that EVgo has deployed at least a few 100kW units, but even that's slower than all but Urban Superchargers.) There's also no word on convenience -- in particular, will you still need to activate the unit as you would for CCS or CHAdeMO charging, or will plugging in initiate an authentication and charge your credit card, if you register your car and credit card with EVgo? There's also no mention of whether these units will show up in Tesla's in-car navigation. (The reports do say that EVgo has collaborated with Tesla on this project, so such integration is not inconceivable.)

Despite the unanswered questions and caveats, this is good news, since it increases charging options without requiring owners to buy the $450 CHAdeMO adapter.

 

[1NatsFan]

Very interesting. Thanks for sharing.

 

[SageBrush]

Excellent.
I look forward to EA doing the same, albeit screaming all the way.

80% Tesla marketshare (or more if DC use is considered) is just too much to ignore forever. Thinking of you, CARB

 

[wws]

Great idea. Looks like most of their stations are 50 kW, though they do show a couple at 100 kW. It would be neat if, working with Tesla, they can eventually do CHAdeMO->Tesla at the 100 kW (or more) level.

I've always thought EA was being short-sighted by only providing a single CHAdeMO per site. (Yes, I realize they have a not-so-hidden agenda to support VAG cars.)

 

[miimura]

Great idea. Looks like most of their stations are 50 kW, though they do show a couple at 100 kW. It would be neat if, working with Tesla, they can eventually do CHAdeMO->Tesla at the 100 kW (or more) level.

I've always thought EA was being short-sighted by only providing a single CHAdeMO per site. (Yes, I realize they have a not-so-hidden agenda to support VAG cars.)

The EVgo solution is just a repackaged Tesla CHAdeMO adapter bolted to the side of an ABB charger. All the ABB chargers deployed by EVgo so far are 50kW 125A Max units. EVgo have deployed higher power chargers made by BTC, but EVgo have not settled on the Tesla adapter mounting for those yet. In any case, you will still be limited by the 125A max rating of the Tesla CHAdeMO adapter, even if the charger can do more.

You can see in the picture below that the CHAdeMO cable must be plugged in at the front of the accessory box and the Tesla cable comes out of the back of that box.

Plugshare - Whole Foods Market St. SF

 

[SageBrush]

^ Ohh ...

 

[wws]

The EVgo solution is just a repackaged Tesla CHAdeMO adapter bolted to the side of an ABB charger. All the ABB chargers deployed by EVgo so far are 50kW 125A Max units. EVgo have deployed higher power chargers made by BTC, but EVgo have not settled on the Tesla adapter mounting for those yet. In any case, you will still be limited by the 125A max rating of the Tesla CHAdeMO adapter, even if the charger can do more.

You can see in the picture below that the CHAdeMO cable must be plugged in at the front of the accessory box and the Tesla cable comes out of the back of that box.

Thing is that the circuitry that does the handshaking translation between the charger and car would be the same regardless of power level. For a fixed installation such as this one, EVgo could easily spec a heavier duty DC power pathway than the regular portable off-the-shelf CHAdeMO adapter offers. As can be seen in the photo, the EVgo CHAdeMO receptacle and Tesla-side cabling/plug are already different than the portable CHAdeMO adapter - no doubt with Teslas help. So for the BTC chargers you mention, it would be neat if they could get them to the 100 kW level. Might only require a minor firmware mod to change max power level.

 

[miimura]

Thing is that the circuitry that does the handshaking translation between the charger and car would be the same regardless of power level. For a fixed installation such as this one, EVgo could easily spec a heavier duty DC power pathway than the regular portable off-the-shelf CHAdeMO adapter offers. As can be seen in the photo, the EVgo CHAdeMO receptacle and Tesla-side cabling/plug are already different than the portable CHAdeMO adapter - no doubt with Teslas help. So for the BTC chargers you mention, it would be neat if they could get them to the 100 kW level. Might only require a minor firmware mod to change max power level.

Other pictures show the red molding color of the Tesla adapter present in the EVgo CHAdeMO receptacle. So, I'm sure most of the guts are the same.

There was a rumor that Tesla was testing high power CHAdeMO in Japan. The rumor came from someone that was at a CHAdeMO interoperability event where prototype chargers and vehicles are tested. I would imagine that any EVgo program to support higher power through CHAdeMO for Tesla vehicles would leverage that effort. At some point, actively cooled CHAdeMO connectors will be a thing, but until then, 200A (80kW) should be possible. I have to wonder whether Tesla has any motivation to help charger manufacturers like ABB, BTC, and ChargePoint provide native Tesla DC charging in North America without this kind of adapter kludge. It was reported that the new ChargePoint Express 250 units can support a third cable. It would be interesting to see SC V2 speeds on Tesla vehicles from these new ChargePoint units that can be paired or even the Plus system that can be arrayed with the Power Cube.

 

[sdoorex]

EVgo Further Extends Nation’s Largest Fast Charging Network to Tesla Drivers - EVgo

February 11, 2021 – EVgo, the nation’s largest public fast charging network for electric vehicles (EVs), is expanding its offering for Tesla (NASDAQ: TSLA) drivers to charge at more EVgo stations across the country, upgrading hundreds of its stations with integrated Tesla connectors. This will further EVgo’s reach as the only EV charging platform that is both 100% renewable electricity powered and capable of charging all three fast charging standards (CHAdeMO, SAE Combo or CCS, and Tesla) without the need of a separate adaptor. This, combined with EVgo’s industry leading uptime of 98%, will further extend the benefits of EVs to more U.S. drivers and reduce greenhouse gas emissions from the transportation sector.

EVgo will deploy more than 400 integrated Tesla connectors at existing EVgo stations, with an additional 200 connectors reserved for new stations planned for 2021 in key cities including San Francisco, Los Angeles, San Diego, Seattle, Denver, Dallas, Austin, Washington D.C., Salt Lake City, and Miami.

 

[Enginerd]

This is great, but... why is it that there isn't a Tesla/CCS adapter yet?

 

[theothertom]

This is great, but... why is it that there isn't a Tesla/CCS adapter yet?

You mean one made by Tesla? I think Elon said 1Q21. Then there's the third party one by Setec.

 

[Enginerd]

You mean one made by Tesla? I think Elon said 1Q21. Then there's the third party one by Setec.

Thanks, I hadn't seen that. But at $1000, I'm not interested.

In my opinion, it's great that one charging network is accommodating Tesla's connector. But there are many others that aren't, and it would be good to see Tesla bend a little more towards the other USA mainstream alternatives. Hopefully (1) Tesla will offer a CCS, and (2) it will be affordable. A $40 adapter (e.g. 14-50) would be a no-brainer. I could also convince myself to spend $95 (e.g. J1772). But $400 (e.g. CHAdeMO) is only justified if you have a special use case... not something one would just toss in the equipment bag just in case. Hopefully the CCS will strike the right balance, but I fear it will not.

 

[cwerdna]

EVgo seems to be installing more of these. As I posted over on MyNissanLeaf:
From Plugshare's activity feed, someone submitted a bunch of new pics of various Bay Area stations with the CHAdeMO adapter attached to the side, thus adding Tesla connectors. It's possible they were added by EVgo.

Examples:

PlugShare - Find Electric Vehicle Charging Locations Near You

PlugShare - Find Electric Vehicle Charging Locations Near You - I've used these in the past 6 months or so when they were part of DrivetheARC. They definitely didn't have the CHAdeMO adapters bolted to side back then.

PlugShare - Find Electric Vehicle Charging Locations Near You

PlugShare - Find Electric Vehicle Charging Locations Near You

PlugShare - Find Electric Vehicle Charging Locations Near You

Tesla - San Francisco includes numerous locations outside the city of SF now. And, there's Tesla - Los Angeles.

 

[wws]

EVgo seems to be installing more of these...

EVgo seems to be adding these onto plugshare under the Tesla Destination charger category. So to find them on plugshare, select the "Tesla" plug. Toggle off all the charging networks, and just turn EVgo back on.

 

[cwerdna]

PlugShare - Find Electric Vehicle Charging Locations Near You had pics added today. One of the pics shows a CHAdeMO adapter inside the box attached to the side.

 

[miimura]

PlugShare - Find Electric Vehicle Charging Locations Near You had pics added today. One of the pics shows a CHAdeMO adapter inside the box attached to the side.

That is the original implementation on the ABB chargers. This site has the new implementation on the BTC higher power chargers. The Tesla CHAdeMO adapter still has the same 125A limit though.

Plugshare - Whole Foods, The Alameda, San Jose, CA