Featured Our big unanswered questions about the switch to Tesla-style EV plugs

i suspect there will be more shootings

 

How are you going to get efficient parking in public multi story garages if the plug is in the rear? I'm assuming a 20% EV penetration rate and only 5% want to charge as the higher those numbers get the worse the situation I'm imagining could get.

Ever been to a big event where everyone is trying to park in a multi level parking garage at the same time. Or even park for work at the same time. The parking decks aren't designed for you to back into them. The angles are all wrong. And think the driver behind you is going to let you pull up and do all the shenanigans to park? Even if it is automated, it takes lots longer and holds up all the vehicles who just want to nose in up ahead of you. Can see the confrontations now.

Location is not critical for single family homes with garages and supercharger lots where assuming 20 stalls and 20 minute charges mean not a lot of simultaneous demand. But lots of people park elsewhere and want charging there.

On street charging? How do you design the parking spaces for parallel parking and charging if there are multiple locations of the ports?

I buy a home and the previous owner's car had a port in the opposite end of the car from mine. Not like a extension cord will carry that juice.

Tesla has benefited from standardization. But is their port's location optimal for the day when 50% plus of the vehicles will want charging everywhere.

 

One could do worse than the ISO 7-layer communication approach.

Bob Wilson

 

The article does have valid points.

They'll do what they do now. Have long enough cords. It isn't like third party units are limited to Tesla's cord length.

For on street charging with Level 2, it is too bad we didn't go the route Europe did. The cord belongs to the car. Then you can stick the EVSE anywhere; on a lamp post, in the kurb, etc, and not have to worry about the cords when no one is charging.

 

You make some good points, but this isn't one of them.

I installed an L2 charger in my garage 6 years ago and it has worked for a PIP, Leaf, Model 3 and Volt.
Same cord any two of those can be charged one after each other without moving them, just moving the cord

Mike

 

The cords on the hard wired EVSE all seem to be something like 25ft. At least one company makes a boom system that makes moving the cord around the garage easy and out of the way.

Superchargers currently have short cords, but it isn't like that is an absolute requirement the NACS standard.

 

@mikefocke Tesla answered your concern from the very beginning. Tesla vehicles have charge ports in the rear but stations are setup so they have to back into the spots. If your new vehicle is in the front vs back, it’s right where the Tesla charger is.

 

I would say it’s premature to worry about the things mentioned in the article, but it makes good click bait

 

I put in an 14-50P L2 EVSE 8 years ago and the charging cord is 25 ft. I placed it between the garage door and a window. Not only can it cover my 24 ft garage, but any outside charging on the driveway or even through the window when I get the driveway sealed and have to park my car on the lawn next to the garage which has happened a few times.

 

For level 2 charging, if you're ICE'd or need a little more length, they make J1772 extension cords.
J1772 Extension Cords & Cables | Lectron — Lectron EV (ev-lectron.com)

 

The issue is that, as you face a supercharger stall the cable is on the front right (or back left as you back in). So if you drive in the cable matches up to the front right of the car where no one has a charging port. So to get close to a SC cable you have to park head in on the next spot to the right, thus taking up two parking spaces effectively. (unless another head in car arrives)

Mike

 

I predict adapters with a short, pig-tail, cable segment. I would also observe that each end of a string of SuperChargers have a 'free' parking spot or a mid-way charger head.

Bob Wilson

 

No - not all supercharger stations are created equal. Back in our Model S and X days, we used a few locations that were designed like this ....



When charge stalls are built at the outer end of the parking spot - you park head in. Some of the locations we used were all this way .... while other locations utilizing these - would stagger stalls - one at the outermost end of the stall & the next one at the innermost end of the stall. Seems like sticking them at the beginning of the parking lane might make them more likely to suffer damage. Not all drivers park well.
.

 

I have two Tesla Supercharger stations by me, one brand new one right in town and one in the next town over. Unfortunately, neither group has the "spacers" in between chargers, so it looks like Tesla will have to install longer cables to accommodate CCS cars.

 

Or "sell" extension cables for those who want/need them? i smell profit centers - for other manufacturers, tesla, &/or 3rd parties

.

 

My 4,600 mi vacation visit family trip, I saw many different Supercharger station styles from pull through to traditional, one pull along and others back in, and even all back in. There is one in Tennessee that has wheel guards too far from the charger so I had to park at an angle to get the cable to reach.

If I head that way again, I'll probably take a pry bar and do a little 'creative vandalism.'

Bob Wilson

 

Were those Supercharger set ups limited to places that don't see snow?

 

iirc no - the example above was mid west - while another was no snow area

 

If we are talking v4 which is up to 600 kw, those extension cables are either extremely expensive with liquid cooling or dangerous. It is much cheaper if you include liability costs to replace the cable with a longer one. Tesla is going to be supplying ccs1 adapters at some of their supperchargers, but these will not be able to have the same current as v4 NACS it will be reduced.