Welcome to Tesla Motors Club
Discuss Tesla's Model S, Model 3, Model X, Model Y, Cybertruck, Roadster and More.
Register

Thoughts on CCS DC Fast Charging?

This site may earn commission on affiliate links.
Someone has done a 1000 miles trip from Minnesota to Colorado with his R1T on youtube, it seems the major problem is EA fast charging is not as robust and reliable as the Tesla SC network. so it depends on where your trip paths cross, I suspect the bay area west coast is probably more reliable than others.
 
I have a Kona EV and I've used a number of CCS chargers. Here's my list goes:

TLDR: I've never not been able to charge, even if things haven't always been smooth.
(Also, note that Flo has a network agreement with Chargepoint so you can use either app to start charging. I've had this be useful when charging my Volt at a destination Chargepoint and their app wasn't connecting. I keep my RFID in my Kona, so I didn't have it with me.)

6/2021 Skowhegan, ME: 1 x Chargepoint. RFID. First time I used it (didn't need to but wanted to test my DCFC) I plugged into a charger with the lights weird and it didn't work, so I moved my car to the other charger and it worked. Reported the issue. Went back the next week and the 1st charger worked 1st time
10/2021 Jackman, ME: 2 x Chargepoint. RFID. First time. No Verizon reception, but I have the RFID
10/2021 North Windham, ME: 2 x Chargepoint. RFID. Worked 2nd time.
(At this point I'm thinking my car is a bit fiddly for DCFC).
10/2021 West Lebanon, NH: ElectrifyAmerica. App. I believe messed up and selected the wrong charger. Changed chargers. It was hanging. Called support, fast response. Woman remotely rebooted charger (Linux or BSD OS) and set it on free vend. Due to inconvenience I wasn't charged. Another man with an ID.4 had also called customer support. Other cars were plugged in and charging. Delay, but at least I got a free charge, and we had lunch without concern about charging to a high percentage.
10/2021 Rutland, VT: 2 x EVGo. RFID. First charger didn't start. Moved chargers. Started 2nd time. (OK, so my car is fiddly and should probably not bother moving the car and try multiple times).
11/2021 West Gardiner (Service Plaza), ME. 2x (now 4x) ChargePoint. RFID. First time. It was my wife using the charger. She was with a friend. (I'm now thinking it's just me not plugging it in correctly.)
4/2022 Farmington, ME. 2 x ChargePoint. RFID. First time. (OK, I'm getting better). Just topping off. Had a chat with a curious man while it charged. Turned out we didn't need to charge, but we were driving on a day of questionable weather through an area with little to no CCS.
7/2022 St Stephen, NB. 1 x eChargeNetwork (NB Power).. RFID. First time. Lunch time. Returned to car to find it had stopped at 84%. Damn.
(I bought eChargeNetwork and Flo RFIDs so I didn't need smartphone coverage. Wasn't _totally_ sure we'd have data).
7/2022 Sussex, NB. 1 x eChargeNetwork. RFID. First time. (This stuff is easy). Walked and got Dairy Queen. Discovered I don't like them. Returned to car and found an e-Golf using the destination charger and a Tesla waiting.
7/2022 Shediac, NB. 1 x eChargeNetwork. RFID. First time. (Like a boss.)
(I've have probably preferred to charge at the Moncton, NB Petro Canada, which had faster chargers, but those had been broken for months).
7/2022 Charlottetown, NB. 1 x Flo. First time. Canadian Tire, late at night, well after supper time.
7/2022 Charlottetown, NB. 1 x Flo. First time. Same Canadian Tire location. Faster than AC. Just wanted a quicker top-off and then figured I"d try to complete the charging to 100% at a destination charger in the morning before we headed back.
7/2022 Sussex, NB. 1 x eChargeNetwork. RFID. First time. (Same charger we'd used on the way there.)
7/2022 Lepreau, NB. 1 x eChargeNetwork. RFID. First time. Charging rate dropped early. Was a hot day, we'd been traveling and we were sat in the car with AC on. Maybe was just the charger, or maybe the car.
7/2022 St Stephen, NB. 1 x eChargeNetwork. RFID. First time. Topping off. Had to wait half an hour and then unplugged a fully charged Kona once it stopped the charging. (Yes it was at 100%) Should have checked ahead and stayed at Lepreau and skipped this.
(In 12/2022 a pair of 62.5kW Chargepoint CCS opened at a Hyundai dealer in Bangor. Had it been open, I'd probably have charged to a higher percentage at Lepreau and skipped St Stephen entirely.)

In addition to the above CCS, I've charged at destination chargers and mostly they'd worked apart from 2 instances:
- White River Junction, VT I had charged at one of pair earlier in the day and when I came back later, that one wasn't connecting, but the other worked.
- Seaside, PE: plugged into a destination charger and discovered later that it hadn't charged. Ironically there was a charger closer to where we walked and had we charged, I'd not have had some later range anxiety.
 
Last edited:
Don't use credit card readers. If I had a $1 for every time someone on Plugshare said the CC reader didn't work, I could have a nice side income.
Without credit card option, it means that one must have an account with the charging service provider and:
- either an RFID fob. EA does not offer this option last I knew. Chargepoint, Blink, and EVgo do
- rely on using a miserable cellphone app - something there is little worse than doing when standing out in the rain, snow, and/or wind while or a sketchy location having to fuss with a phone and a huge, cold frankenplug with a long, clumsy, filthy cable. Gloves don't work very well with apps, even with e-tips. There needs to be cell service and I need to have downloaded the app.
I also planned to use free DC FCs as much as I could, not what ABRP, My Chevrolet, etc. suggested.
You didn't have to be a business wiz to know that plan wasn't going to last very long.
there's a crazy guy who recently did a road trip: Sacramento to San Diego and back using his i-MiEV (62 mile EPA range when new and has CHAdeMO).
I drove a 2012 Leaf from LA to San Jose and back once. I definitely proved it could be done. More importantly, I also proved it should NOT be done.
The funniest event was when the battery died as I was approaching one of the few CHAdeMO stations -at the point it died, I was so close to the station that I could hold the CHAdeMO connector in one hand and touch the charge port in my other hand. Had I not driven around the hotel that hosted the charger the wrong direction, I would have made it. After many tries, I managed to convince the Leaf to release the parking pawl so I could push it the last 5 feet. It took 2 days to go each way when with a Tesla or ICE, one can do the trip in less than 6 hours.
 
  • Like
Reactions: SalisburySam
Without credit card option, it means that one must have an account with the charging service provider and:
- either an RFID fob. EA does not offer this option last I knew. Chargepoint, Blink, and EVgo do
- rely on using a miserable cellphone app - something there is little worse than doing when standing out in the rain, snow, and/or wind while or a sketchy location having to fuss with a phone and a huge, cold frankenplug with a long, clumsy, filthy cable. Gloves don't work very well with apps, even with e-tips. There needs to be cell service and I need to have downloaded the app.
Yep. EA doesn't have any RFID fobs or cards. Yes, I have cards for ChargePoint, Blink and EVgo. I've never used the Blink card and have rarely used my EVgo card.

But yes, on on your point about the provider's cell phone app. Electrify America Talks Charging Network Problems, Has Solutions admits to credit card reader problems and tells people to use the app. Search for "about those credit card readers". Search Interview: Electrify America expects you to raise hell if chargers don’t work for financial session. I always tell people to DL then login to the apps of major charging providers before going on a road trip, possibly registering a method of payment ahead of time too. Some problems are somewhat mitigated in that some providers have partner roaming agreements. You can use EVgo's app to start Chargepoint stations and vice versa.

Hopefully over time, more and more vehicles and providers will support Plug and Charge and/or Autocharge | EVgo | Electric Vehicle (EV) Charging Stations - EV Fast Chargers.

Delano Maintenance Station | PlugShare was free (used before but was broken this time. I tried). So, I backtracked to Denny's Delano | PlugShare (which I figured I might need to) and that's super cheap at only $2 per hour for DC FC. Came out to under 5.7 cents per kWh and would've been cheaper if I didn't charge so high into my car's taper.
For the above, I had to use the EV Connect app. Fortunately, I had it and registered it long ago. I used a year ago for cheap L2 charging near a hotel I was staying at.
 
Last edited:
That's my experience as well.
I am in FL and the CCS network is fairly robust. I have a 2020 Chevy Bolt, and despite its slow charging 50kWh, I have not had any problems with EA chargers. When my battery capacity was limited to 80 because of the recall, I had to charge on relatively short trips(180 miles). With that being said, its still not up tyo Supercharger numbers. When I was in Cali I rented a Y for a week and drove LA to Sacramento and back, I was surprised how many alternative charges I could be routed to.
 
i7 is a first class EV that relies on a network of second rate chargers. The financial incentive isn’t there for CCS and thus the chargers are often poorly maintained.

Electrify America (95% of your charging with a CCS car) sucks all around. You’ll get to your destination, but not without frustration that makes you want to ditch the car.

My recommendation is not to rely on CCS for frequent long trips. It’s a novelty grade system.

If you don’t do many long trips and are willing to put up with occasional pain, go for it. There are not many ultra luxury EVs and i7 seems to be wonderful. I’ve driven the EQS but was not very impressed from a luxury standpoint. i7 reviews a lot better.
 
  • Like
Reactions: buckets0fun
Here's an observation from a UK perspective: All Teslas sold here* have CCS and all Tesla Superchargers here are CCS chargers ... and the system works entirely reliably. We also have independent chargers here that use CCS that have poor reliability. It seems to me that the problem isn't CCS per se ... it's the implementation by different providers using different hardware and software. (Though Superchargers are CCS they are mostly still locked into Tesla usage i.e. only Teslas can charge at them, though there are a few sites now that are open to all CCS cars.)

*some older Teslas have to use an adapter but all newer ones come with CCS
 
My Tesla CCS1 adapter is idling in the subtrunk. Initially I was very enthusiastic and proceeded to purposefully go to EA, ChargePoint, and EvGo. Now, after sometimes spending 10min just to establish handshake to find out that the so called 250kW station only pumps out 65kW (as confirmed by other EVs at that location), multiple broken bays, and SUPER LONG charge cables that tangle badly, I am quitting on these.

Who the xxxx decided to put the charge ports behind the front wheel? Did they not think about the cumbersome long cabling it takes to get there. Even the humble Leaf has the port at the front end of the car for short cable runs, but good luck with the current crop of non-Hyundai Motor Group EVs. It is almost like corporate at legacy auto want EVs to fail. Brushed motors BMW, like my Buran Soviet vacuum cleaner, and vestigial driveshaft tunnels? MB frunks only openable by service centers to hide the slap-on ugly mess under, etc.
 
  • Like
Reactions: NRVM3
I recently looked at the new i7 and my jaw hit the floor. I haven't been that impressed with a car in a long time.
Absolutely agree. They had my attention at the 39 speakers, almost 2000 watts of amplification, rear theater screen, all for the low, low price of $145,000 plus tax, registration, EV fee in North Carolina. And there’s one available in my color choice only 30 miles away. Tough to hold back the excitement. And it has 39 speakers. My cup oversloppeth. But for real: 39 speakers.
 
  • Funny
Reactions: theothertom
Here's an observation from a UK perspective: All Teslas sold here* have CCS and all Tesla Superchargers here are CCS chargers ... and the system works entirely reliably. We also have independent chargers here that use CCS that have poor reliability. It seems to me that the problem isn't CCS per se ... it's the implementation by different providers using different hardware and software. (Though Superchargers are CCS they are mostly still locked into Tesla usage i.e. only Teslas can charge at them, though there are a few sites now that are open to all CCS cars.)

The CCS1 connector we use here in North America is different, and worse, than the CCS2 connector used in the UK, EU, and everywhere else but China. So we get an extra layer of unreliability.
 
  • Informative
Reactions: Adopado
I did a 'long test drive' from local dealer with the Chevy Bolt EUV.
The charging around me (in NC) really soured me and pointed me back to Tesla. (about to open SECOND SC site here in town)
Even with the apps I pulled in, and it wasn't working. the app showed it as green, but one had VERY clearly been damaged, and probably for a while. I ended up going to the hospital, and plugging in for free, weirdly it just worked even though it SAID on the sign you had to login and pay. Tesla's showing the status of the chargers and if they are full is HUGE for me in the "usability" of this. Also the "wife sell" on an EV. Had she been with me as I drove to 5 different chargers trying to charge and failing, she'd have been done and never be willing.
 
  • Like
Reactions: theothertom
That's my experience as well.
Hwy 50 in Nevada has plenty of CCS. The last I checked, they have no Tesla Superchargers on Hwy 50 in NV across the entire state,

The big problem with CCS is that it is unreliable. And nobody fixes them. There are plenty of CCS stations in NV that have been down for more than a year. Such as the ONLY CCS in Fallon, NV and the only CCS in Hawthorne, NV. I have yet to hear of a problem with a Tesla Supercharger.

It seems to me most charging is grouped together in areas where not needed much. For an example, countless CCS chargers on I-80 in CA. Between my house here in Auburn, CA and my other house in Reno, NV, there are CCS stations almost every exit between here and Truckee. CA. I rarely see any of them being used.

I am glad they are starting with Magic Dock, but they started at stupid and unnecessary locations. I had to wait to charge my 2023 Energica Experia motorcycle here. Every spot had a Tesla charging. And that was in a mall parking lot on a weekday. It will be busier there on a weekend. But I only wanted to see if it would work. With Magic Dock, it would only charge at 8KW. Less than a mile from there, I can charge at 25KW on any CCS station. So, I will never go to that Tesla Supercharger location again.

I wish they would start with Magic Dock in places such as Lake Topaz, NV where they have nothing else for miles, not even a J-1772, nothing but the Tesla Superchargers. I rarely see more than one Tesla charging there.

I ride mostly electric motorcycles when the weather is reasonable. I own six EVs. A 2018 Tesla M3 AWD, LR), a 2022 Chevy Bolt, two Zero motorcycles and two Energicas. I need the CCS for the Energicas. I rarely need to charge my Tesla or Bolt on the road, home charging works fine for 99% of my car trips. My motorcycle trips is where I need more chargers, because they have less range on a charge. Even the slow 8KW rate would be useful for me at Lake Topaz.


-Don- Auburn, CA
 
The big problem with CCS is that it is unreliable. And nobody fixes them.

UK and European Tesla Superchargers are CCS ... and they work great with excellent reliability. Other providers have rapid CCS also but they are generally unreliable and often broken ... so I don't reckon it's CCS that's the problem as it works excellently if done properly.
 
Here's an observation from a UK perspective: All Teslas sold here* have CCS and all Tesla Superchargers here are CCS chargers ... and the system works entirely reliably. We also have independent chargers here that use CCS that have poor reliability. It seems to me that the problem isn't CCS per se ... it's the implementation by different providers using different hardware and software. (Though Superchargers are CCS they are mostly still locked into Tesla usage i.e. only Teslas can charge at them, though there are a few sites now that are open to all CCS cars.)

*some older Teslas have to use an adapter but all newer ones come with CCS
Same concept here in the states, it really depends on the provider. There are many who only seems to be interested in installing the pedestal and walking away. And a relative few that actually cares about their network. It's the same with the J-1772 plugs. Many are "just installed" a few actually will fix one.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Adopado