Isn't it about time for Tesla to release an SAE Combo (CCS) adapter?

[scaesare]

It's been stated the CCS spec prohibits adapters. I recall actually seeing that in an official doc some time back, but I no longer have the reference.

While it could probably be done anyway, Tesla is a member of the CCS consortium, so they may not want to rock the boat by breaking the rules...

 

[jbcarioca]

It's been stated the CCS spec prohibits adapters. I recall actually seeing that in an official doc some time back, but I no longer have the reference.

While it could probably be done anyway, Tesla is a member of the CCS consortium, so they may not want to rock the boat by breaking the rules...

If anybody actually wants to know the details, CharIN (the organization that establishes CCS regulations and standards) provides all their information publicly.
Position Papers & Regulation

The regulations are constantly being updated so look at "inductive charging" to gain perspective. Connector standards are also different for different geographies but CharIN is striving for harmonization, as shown in the linked information above. Thus far adapters have not been permitted because the electric utility members fear high amperage non-controlled connections. It is logical to expect some sort of permanent connector solutions similar to that deployed for China-market Model S and X. Probably something similar will happen for high-amperage CHAdeMO connectors, with present Tesla adapters amperage-limited as they are already. In theory something similar could happen for CCS but I doubt it. Despite being a member of the CHAdeMO association it took Tesla almost two years to get approval for the present adapter.

Despite the foregoing I still think it is quite likely that the present Tesla CHAdeMO adapter will soon be enabled for the Model 3. Even though it is limited it is vastly better than typical L2 connections or even a full 80Amp HPWC.

 

[ChrisC]

In theory something similar could happen for CCS but I doubt it.

Thank you JB for the good insight and resource link. Just to be sure that I'm correctly parsing what you said, in the sentence above are you saying that you doubt that Tesla is making a CCS adapter? Or you doubt something else? I wasn't sure.

 

[jbcarioca]

Thank you JB for the good insight and resource link. Just to be sure that I'm correctly parsing what you said, in the sentence above are you saying that you doubt that Tesla is making a CCS adapter? Or you doubt something else? I wasn't sure.

I tend to doubt they'll make an adapter, but I am confident they'll have onboard CCS ports for some markets. If there will be an adapter I expect it to be quite large, similar in size to teh CHAdeMO, but it will also certainly, if it happens, be limited in amperage similar to the CHAdeMO adapter is limited. Because all this is changing quickly I would not say anything definitively, even if I had inside knowledge, which I certainly do not have.

 

[RDoc]

If anybody actually wants to know the details, CharIN (the organization that establishes CCS regulations and standards) provides all their information publicly.
Position Papers & Regulation

The regulations are constantly being updated so look at "inductive charging" to gain perspective. Connector standards are also different for different geographies but CharIN is striving for harmonization, as shown in the linked information above. Thus far adapters have not been permitted because the electric utility members fear high amperage non-controlled connections. It is logical to expect some sort of permanent connector solutions similar to that deployed for China-market Model S and X. Probably something similar will happen for high-amperage CHAdeMO connectors, with present Tesla adapters amperage-limited as they are already. In theory something similar could happen for CCS but I doubt it. Despite being a member of the CHAdeMO association it took Tesla almost two years to get approval for the present adapter.

Despite the foregoing I still think it is quite likely that the present Tesla CHAdeMO adapter will soon be enabled for the Model 3. Even though it is limited it is vastly better than typical L2 connections or even a full 80Amp HPWC.

Could you specify exactly where CharIn says adapters are not permitted? I've seen recommendations that they not be used, but nothing like an actual prohibition. This is the only statement I've seen on adapters from the Charging Interface Initiative e.V. paper:

"Adapters would cause high safety risks with potential quality issues and do not support a customer friendly charging interface. CharIN therefore recommends a harmonized CCS connector approach per geographical region as outlined in the below map:"

 

[EfficientWatts]

I am interested to see how this plays out in one market - South Korea. They are using CCS1, but Tesla is using Type2 there. Long term I wonder what's going to happen, as Tesla can't just add the DC pins and be done with it. Could that mean a CCS1 to Type2 (Tesla) adapter, or a CCS1 to CCS 2 adapter?

(this all makes me wish we could have gotten our standards straight and somehow have a common CCS dc standard and a ac portion that allow for 1ph with 3ph added on in a way that DC charging could have been common across regions)...

 

[ChrisC]

Well, I've got a bummer of an update. Eventually it occurred to me that the person I talked to (not an EV expert) may have seen the regular Level 2 adapter, the little J1772 to Tesla adapter. As you all in this thread will know, the upper part of the SAE Combo plug looks the same as a Level 2 plug, and someone could think "oh cool this little doohickey plugs into there".

I ran into that person again today, and asked him if it was a little thing that he saw, or a big thing. It was little. I then showed him pictures of Tesla's Level 2 adapter, and he confirmed that's what he had seen.

Dang it.

I do still think that Tesla will make an adapter for SAE Combo, for the reasons I discussed at the end of my original post:

I think Tesla is testing prototypes. They certainly will want to be able to use these new EA sites, since they will offer far higher power levels than any Chademo site.

In fact, higher power than Tesla's own sites. Until Supercharger v3 is released, at least

For now, though, we're back to such an adapter just being conjecture.