The shorts would have a field day if Tesla was sourcing parts and supplies from North Korea and Kim Jong Un!
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should I not get the South Korean CCS1 combo adapter?
- Thread starter steinbej
- Start date
Sounds right. Don't understand why Tesla doesn't want CCS1 to Tesla adapters being sold in the USA. We have an adapter on order from a company in Canada, A2Z EV. Appears to be similar to the Tesla brand CCS1 adapter. Only works on Tesla's that are CCS adapter enabled, generally 2020+ model 3 and Y.
norcalbowler94
Member
Mrbrock
Active Member
One day I am going to win the lottery and install one, just to have a CCS2 in the USA. (Ideally, I would purchase an appropriate lot in a decent location and have Tesla install Superchargers and someone else install a few CCS1 to go with it).
You may want to wait a bit. Some Chinese companies offered to send me some CSS adapters to test with my Model Y (for free, and I get to keep the adapters, they send them straight from China), I just finished my testing for them last week. All worked perfectly fine on Electrify America chargers (got 140kwh through them) which is near max for the cabinet (150kwh cabinet), meanwhile BMW and Ford next to me were charging at around 60Kwh.
What I am trying to say is that I think China is going to flood US market with adapters soon. Not sure how much they are going to charge but if market is flooded the prices ought to come down. It looks exactly like the official Tesla one from Korea.
I opted in to testing because Electrify America is cheaper for me than Superchargers by about 20%. Also gives me a chuckle when people look at me like an idiot trying to pull in to charge my Tesla on CSS, then see their jaws drop when I actually plug in and start charging.
What I am trying to say is that I think China is going to flood US market with adapters soon. Not sure how much they are going to charge but if market is flooded the prices ought to come down. It looks exactly like the official Tesla one from Korea.
I opted in to testing because Electrify America is cheaper for me than Superchargers by about 20%. Also gives me a chuckle when people look at me like an idiot trying to pull in to charge my Tesla on CSS, then see their jaws drop when I actually plug in and start charging.
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My worry with a 3rd party adapter is the safety. I know these adapters are probably safe but when we're talking about 150+ kW I get slightly nervous... I also don't know if they properly lock the latch so you can't unplug it while it's charging, maybe that's something you can test?You may want to wait a bit. Some Chinese companies offered to send me some CSS adapters to test with my Model Y (for free, and I get to keep the adapters, they send them straight from China), I just finished my testing for them last week. All worked perfectly fine on Electrify America chargers (got 140kwh through them) which is near max for the cabinet (150kwh cabinet), meanwhile BMW and Ford next to me were charging at around 60Kwh.
What I am trying to say is that I think China is going to flood US market with adapters soon. Not sure how much they are going to charge but if market is flooded the prices ought to come down. Size wise its same as J1772 that comes with tesla just bulkier due to the bigger socket size.
I opted in to testing because Electrify America is cheaper for me than Superchargers by about 20%. Also gives me a chuckle when people look at me like an idiot trying to pull in to charge my Tesla on CSS, then see their jaws drop when I actually plug in and start charging.
From what I could tell they are exact clones of official ones. They do lock just like J1772 one does. And safety wise, Car/cabinet will react if things heat up too much, same thing for overcurrent/overvoltage issues. Personally Im not too worried about them.
This is the first aftermarket company I'm aware of offering a CCS-1 adapter for Tesla. Like the one offered by Tesla in South Korea, requires being CCS adapter enabled. A little different design but same in function. Appears to be well made. They just started shipping. Have one coming for my Tesla model 3. I'd bet prices come down eventually, I simply want it now for upcoming trips.You may want to wait a bit. Some Chinese companies offered to send me some CSS adapters to test with my Model Y (for free, and I get to keep the adapters, they send them straight from China), I just finished my testing for them last week. All worked perfectly fine on Electrify America chargers (got 140kwh through them) which is near max for the cabinet (150kwh cabinet), meanwhile BMW and Ford next to me were charging at around 60Kwh.
What I am trying to say is that I think China is going to flood US market with adapters soon. Not sure how much they are going to charge but if market is flooded the prices ought to come down. It looks exactly like the official Tesla one from Korea.
I opted in to testing because Electrify America is cheaper for me than Superchargers by about 20%. Also gives me a chuckle when people look at me like an idiot trying to pull in to charge my Tesla on CSS, then see their jaws drop when I actually plug in and start charging.
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srs5694
Active Member
Chinese companies sometimes cut corners when cloning OEM products. For instance, in the 3D printer world, there are a series of 3D printer control boards from a UK company called Duet3D. These boards are expensive but very capable. As is common (but not universal) in the 3D printer world, designs were made available for free. Naturally, Chinese companies swooped in and began cloning them. These clones were very close to the originals; it'd be hard to tell them apart by visual inspection, except for text identifying who the manufacturer was. The Chinese clones, though, often used thinner conducting traces on the boards. This helped them keep costs down, but it also made the clones a bit less reliable than the original UK-made boards.
Of course, if you can buy a clone 3D printer board for $100 rather than $170 and the clone lasts three years rather than five years, you might consider that an acceptable trade-off; but if a Chinese manufacturer did something similar with a DC fast charging adapter and the result was that the thing overheated and turned into a melted hunk of plastic and metal that was fused with the car and/or the DC fast charging station, you probably wouldn't be too happy. I don't actually think this is a very likely outcome, since there are temperature sensors that should prevent it; but even if cost-cutting simply resulted in failed charging sessions (because of overheating, poor tolerances causing flaky data connections, etc.), that could be quite annoying.
Personally, I'd be willing to consider buying a Chinese clone of Tesla's CCS1 adapter, but only if I had some confidence that it was well-made. This confidence might come from knowing that the company selling it has experience making such products and a reputation for doing a good job; because of a tear-down review where a sample was sacrificed to determine that it was well-made; or by seeing multiple reviews by end-users who'd been using the product regularly for a long enough time that I'd expect problems would have emerged if the product was junk. A warranty would help, too; but all too often, buying stuff direct from China means you effectively have no warranty. If it's being sold through a well-established US distributor, then there might be a better warranty.
From everything I've seen and read, the A2Z EV CCS1 adapter is made to the same quality as the one sold by Tesla in South Korea. Check out there web site for all the specs. This Canadian company specializes in electrical components. They test each and every adapter before shipping to the customer. I've spoken with the company president and he seems to be a good guy. He answered all my questions when I was ordering. I can understand those wishing to wait on the adapter from Tesla, simply didn't want to wait until whatever that date is. Once I receive my CCS1 adapter from A2Z EV I'll be taking a road trip and posting my findings. Feel pretty lucky to have so many charging options available.
I've read through most of the replies to your post and I feel the need to apologize for some of them. IMHO, no one can know your situation and therefore no one has the right to criticize how you feel about it. My response is simply this - If you can afford it, buy it! The peace of mind that it will bring to your situation is well worth it.
Thank you. Hit the nail on the head. I'm buying for peace of mind. If it ever got me out of a charging jam it would be worth it. As you said, to each their own.
RayK
Active Member
Which is why I decided several years ago to go ahead and buy the ridiculously expensive Tesla CHAdeMO adapter, when I still had access to free L2 charging at work. Now, several years later, most (80%) of my DC charging is done with that CHAdeMO and not at a Supercharger. Day-to-day charging is done at a ChargePoint DCFC near my house; I don't have home charging and really don't need it. On two recent trips to Oregon (Brookings and Ashland, separately) I used the CHAdeMO while in town at free EVCS spots. Closest Superchargers were 26 and 13 miles away but there were free L2 stations in both towns. Having the CHAdeMO meant I didn't have to leave my car for hours, away from the motels. The Brookings motel did have a 50A outlet for EV charging but they used a CS8269 outlet that I didn't have an adapter for (at the time; I do now).
I've already purchased the South Korea Tesla CCS1 adapter, the Gen 4 ECU and sourced the parts for the "bundle of wires", needed to update my 2018 to be CCS enabled. The costs involved were acceptable to be able to have access to many more charging opportunities, both in town and on the road. It's the same reason why I've bought all of the 30A and 50A NEMA adapters for the UMC, even though I've never used them up to this point - "be prepared".
Brookings OR is my favorite place. Once owned a house their. Planning on a Brookings road trip next year. Would live in Brookings if wife approved, she thinks it's too boring.
You have the same philosophy I have. Better to be prepared. Have a good tire plugging kit and a good small cordless power tire pump. Have the 110 volt charging setup that came with the car. Would you recommend any additional NEMA plugs? Have the J1772 adapter with lock and soon to have CCS1 adapter.
Have the Tesla wall connector in my garage and really like it. So easy and convenient. Planning on owning our Tesla for a long time, the wall connector is the best option in my opinion. My local electric utility company gave me a rebate to cover the entire cost of the level two wall connector. I paid for the professional install. Included setting up the WiFi connection to Tesla for software updates.
RayK
Active Member
Which is opposite of me and my wife; she would probably move there in a heartbeat and I think it's on the dreary side (but does have better weather than most places in the Oregon coast). Although she told me she would like to retire up in Astoria. I hope we can stay here in San Jose for many more years but we'll see....
My inventory list says I have the 5-15, 10-30, 14-30, 6-50 and 14-50 NEMA adapters. I think that should be enough. The 5-20 might be useful if you already have the circuit (dedicated outlet) in your house but you're not getting that much of a MPH boost in the charging rate over the 5-15. Same goes for the 6-15 and 6-20; only get those if you already have, or know where you're going, has those outlets. If you visit RV parks or campgrounds, then a TT-30P --> 14-30R adapter can come in handy. I got one since my daughter has been living in an RV and drove cross-country in the last couple of years. That is basically the reason why I also have the CS8269P -->14-50R adapter; the motel in Harbor right across the street from her RV park had that marine outlet. Since I plan on visiting Brookings again in the future I figured that it would be useful to have. I would charge overnight at the motel rather than spend an hour at the CHAdeMO/CSS station in town. Again, I have all of these different adapters but haven't used them so far, except for the CHAdeMO and J1772. I just like to be prepared.
My home electricity rates are higher than what I can get at a local ChargePoint CHAdeMO station. I have rooftop solar; a 3.2kWh system, so I'm on an E-6 TOU rate. Cheapest PG&E rate on my plan right now (Tier 1 off-peak) is $0.297/kWh, versus the $0.19/kWh I get at the ChargePoint station, all-day, any day. I don't mind spending an hour there once a week to charge up the car when I'm off doing my shopping or other errands. I do have a Gen2 Wall Connector still in its box in my garage. I had planned to install it, along with a 14-50R and transfer switch but I don't see the need at the moment. Unless the electricity rates drastically go down (home) or up (ChargePoint), or the ChargePoint station is removed from public use, then my time spent outside the home DC charging is worth it to me.
My inventory list says I have the 5-15, 10-30, 14-30, 6-50 and 14-50 NEMA adapters. I think that should be enough. The 5-20 might be useful if you already have the circuit (dedicated outlet) in your house but you're not getting that much of a MPH boost in the charging rate over the 5-15. Same goes for the 6-15 and 6-20; only get those if you already have, or know where you're going, has those outlets. If you visit RV parks or campgrounds, then a TT-30P --> 14-30R adapter can come in handy. I got one since my daughter has been living in an RV and drove cross-country in the last couple of years. That is basically the reason why I also have the CS8269P -->14-50R adapter; the motel in Harbor right across the street from her RV park had that marine outlet. Since I plan on visiting Brookings again in the future I figured that it would be useful to have. I would charge overnight at the motel rather than spend an hour at the CHAdeMO/CSS station in town. Again, I have all of these different adapters but haven't used them so far, except for the CHAdeMO and J1772. I just like to be prepared.
My home electricity rates are higher than what I can get at a local ChargePoint CHAdeMO station. I have rooftop solar; a 3.2kWh system, so I'm on an E-6 TOU rate. Cheapest PG&E rate on my plan right now (Tier 1 off-peak) is $0.297/kWh, versus the $0.19/kWh I get at the ChargePoint station, all-day, any day. I don't mind spending an hour there once a week to charge up the car when I'm off doing my shopping or other errands. I do have a Gen2 Wall Connector still in its box in my garage. I had planned to install it, along with a 14-50R and transfer switch but I don't see the need at the moment. Unless the electricity rates drastically go down (home) or up (ChargePoint), or the ChargePoint station is removed from public use, then my time spent outside the home DC charging is worth it to me.
I think there are three issues at play with this in the US:
1) parts and supply chain issues for having the adapter available with the likelihood of quite a few customers wanting it,
2) that US consumers tend to not read, and since some cars will require a retrofit kit to use it (and the parts and availability issue of those parts for the kit) leads to upset customers - invariably many will not read they can’t use it or be upset they have to get the whole retrofit, and
3) most service centers are already swamped with repairs and they just are not ready to handle any influx of cars that would want a retrofit.
Just my guesswork, so who knows.
You could be right, makes sense. It will open up a lotta demand once Tesla owners understand the benefits. I'm thrilled that A2Z EV is offering an aftermarket option on par with the Tesla adapter.
srs5694
Active Member
I was referring to some as-yet-unreleased Chinese-made clones of Tesla's CCS1 adapter, as described by @Chrushev. The A2Z adapter is entirely different.
That said, the A2Z adapter, like the Ukrainian-made CCS1 adapter that's now impossible to obtain new because of the war, lacks a means to lock the CCS1 plug to the adapter. My understanding is that this is a violation of the CCS1 specification, and it's similar in that respect to the Setec CCS1 adapter, which Tesla has been in a whack-a-mole game with to disable the adapter; Tesla has done so two or three times, and Setec has updated their firmware to get around Tesla's blocking it. (Setec's adapter is active and spoof's Tesla's CHAdeMO adapter, which makes it vulnerable to Tesla disabling it. In the last round, Tesla didn't fully disable the adapter, just displayed a warning message on the car's screen, so the two companies may have settled into a sort of detente.) The ability to lock the adapter to the CCS1 plug is a safety feature, but I've seen differing opinions as to how important it is, since there are other safety features that should prevent problems even if the locking feature is broken or absent. As we're talking about very high voltages and currents, though, it's disappointing that A2Z didn't implement such a lock in their design. I can't speak to the quality of the design in terms of the build quality, conductor sizes, etc. Those are the hidden characteristics I'd be concerned with in the case of Chinese clones of Tesla's adapter. Based on @Chrushev's description, it sounds like the Chinese clone he's seen at least includes a Tesla-esque locking tab.
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