- Kia is considered one of many automakers that now use the Tesla Supercharger community, supplied you could have a NACS-to-CCS adapter.
- My Kia EV6 did not cost as rapidly as it will on quicker plugs, however the adapter nonetheless offers a remarkably handy expertise.
- However EV drivers ought to know that not all Tesla Superchargers are open to their vehicles.
I do not personal a Tesla. However each time I drive one, it happens to me that I do not actually take into consideration vary all that a lot.
It isn’t simply because Tesla automobiles are typically identified for having good vary in comparison with different electrical automobiles. It is also due to the Tesla Supercharger community: It affords greater than 30,000 locations to publicly cost in the US alone. Positive, there are some Tesla charging deserts right here and there on this nation, however typically, you do not have to look far to discover a place to juice up. Plus, the automobile will robotically plan your charging stops if you set a far-off vacation spot.
Photograph by: Patrick George
And the rattling issues simply work, too. I’ve had my share of Supercharger envy in my very own Kia EV6, staring longingly on the Tesla house owners throughout the road who cost with no care on the earth whereas I am on maintain with buyer help as a result of my charging station’s necessary smartphone app will not speak to the plug I would like to make use of.
However that’s beginning to change. Kia EVs now have entry to Tesla’s Supercharger community—with a couple of catches. You’ll want both a Kia with the brand new Tesla-style NACS port (that are simply hitting the market) or a NACS-to-CCS adapter, since Tesla’s plug differs from the standard fast-charging customary.
Photograph by: Patrick George
This isn’t only a Kia factor. Almost each main automaker within the U.S. is adopting Tesla’s plug and becoming a member of its community, principally by way of adapters for now. Whereas not all are totally onboard but, many are—which implies entry to hundreds extra dependable chargers for lots extra EV drivers.
So is an adapter a magic bullet to your subsequent electrical street journey? To seek out out, the great of us at Kia America despatched me a NACS-to-CCS adapter. (Full Disclosure: I am sending it again, not holding it.)
And after some trial and error, I am satisfied that an adapter like this one is a software EV drivers will need of their arsenal. But it surely’s not fairly the peerlessly seamless expertise Tesla house owners get pleasure from but, and a bit of homework could also be required. In fast-charging vehicles just like the EV6, too, drivers could have to reset their expectations with regards to charging speeds.
Photograph by: Patrick George
Not All Tesla Superchargers (But), However A Lot
The very first thing to know is that, opposite to well-liked opinion, an adapter—or perhaps a native NACS plug like on the up to date Kia EV6, EV9 and EV4—won’t robotically work with any Tesla Supercharger. Some stations, notably older ones, stay incompatible with non-Tesla automobiles.
All of this begins with the Tesla smartphone app, which you will have to entry the community. (I do know, I do know; one other charging app. However this one’s in all probability the most effective.) Get the app if you do not have it, arrange a cost account, then hit “Discover a Charger” on the primary display screen.
Photograph by: Tesla
That can show the Supercharger stations your EV has entry to, whether or not it is through an adapter or a local NACS plug. Use the app to search out out what’s accessible and what is not; for instance, a Supercharger station at a diner close to the place I dwell in upstate New York doesn’t seem on the listing, in order that’s sadly a no-go.
However there are nonetheless loads of different choices. Again in April, Kia introduced its vehicles would have entry to greater than 21,500 Tesla DC quick chargers, and that quantity has grown since. That is an enormous increase in charging choices for any EV driver on the market.
Photograph by: Patrick George
(It is also price noting that Tesla Superchargers natively seem on the navigation methods of some EVs, however not all of them; Ford, Rivian and others additionally supply plug-and-charge performance too. My barely older Kia will get neither, a minimum of for now.)
Will extra Tesla stations be open to non-Teslas finally? Tesla, a minimum of, says sure. As an increasing number of older stations get upgraded to make use of newer gear, they too ought to speak in confidence to different EVs.
How Tesla Charging Works On A Kia EV6
EV charging adapters are nothing new. However in addition to the occasional shady and not-especially-recommended third-party items, they’ve primarily been for Tesla house owners to make use of CCS or residence J1772 plugs. The NACS-to-CCS adapter does this in reverse. It takes in Tesla’s slimmer plug and makes it match into the bulkier CCS unit.
Photograph by: Patrick George
Kia’s adapter is a reasonably strong little piece of package, with a considerably ominous warning label—finest to do what the producer recommends right here.
Photograph by: Patrick George
I rolled as much as a Supercharger station I discovered through the app simply exterior of Binghamton, New York. I will admit that I had a little bit of hassle with plugging in at first, particularly as a result of this station was a Magic Dock station—which means it comes with a built-in CCS adapter for non-Tesla vehicles, making my very own adapter a bit redundant.
Then once more, many of the Tesla stations close to me have the Magic Dock, so I did not have a lot alternative. (Magic Dock stations are usually uncommon general, simply over-represented close to me.)
Photograph by: Patrick George
I activated the charging station and pulled out the Tesla plug, however not the Magic Dock itself. That concerned not pushing all the plug upward, which normally releases the dock. As soon as the Tesla NACS plug was out, I slid it into the Kia adapter (thoughts the tab on the backside obligatory for this to work) and plugged each into my automobile. Straightforward sufficient.
Tesla Charging A Kia EV6
Right here is the place I ought to observe that usually, my EV6 is a fast-charging beast.
On a 350-kilowatt charging station, it is rated to go from 10% to 80% in as little as 18 minutes. In my automobile’s case, that is about 200 miles of vary added in a fast-food lunch break. Its peak charging fee is generally about 235 kW, placing it among the many extra highly effective EVs you should buy proper now. That is largely as a result of the EV6, like many different Hyundai Motor Group E-GMP platform vehicles, makes use of an 800-volt structure.
Nevertheless, most of Tesla’s chargers (and its vehicles, save for the Cybertruck) are 400-volt. Which means my automobile and others prefer it will not cost as rapidly as I am used to on the Tesla community.
Photograph by: Patrick George
So how did the EV6 carry out? I plugged in at 4:15 p.m. whereas my automobile was at 26% with round 70 miles of vary remaining. I manually pre-conditioned my battery on the drive over, too. Virtually instantly, the automobile jumped to speeds of 97 kW.
And it stayed there. For some time. Just about the length of the charging expertise.
That is actually not the form of velocity I am used to with this automobile. And actually, for no matter purpose, it is decrease than occasions we have examined a native-NACS Hyundai Ioniq 5 or Ioniq 9 (which share a variety of widespread {hardware} with my EV6) on a Tesla station. On each vehicles, we have seen max speeds of about 126-127 kW.
Photograph by: Patrick George
However charging speeds and charging time aren’t at all times the identical factor. On a Tesla Mannequin Y, for instance, you’ll be able to count on Supercharging from low to 80% to take about 25 to half-hour. We have seen very related occasions for the Ioniq 5 and Ioniq 9, as a result of constant speeds all through—what you’d name a flat charging curve.
Whereas my EV6’s speeds had been decrease, the continuous 97 kW cost quoted me 29 minutes to hit 80%. Proper on the right track. And the automobile itself went to 41% by 9 minutes in, then 47% by 12 minutes in. I’ve actually had worse.
In order that was my expertise on the Tesla Supercharger with an adapter: a “low” battery to 80% in a bit of below half an hour.
About That Tesla Magic Dock…
However I could not resist working a bit of experiment. What if the Magic Dock someway yielded a distinct charging time than my Kia adapter? Briefly, I unplugged the automobile, swapped the adapter out, and restarted my session with the Magic Dock.
My Kia EV6 on a Magic Dock
Photograph by: Patrick George
Voila. The automobile jumped again to 97 kW once more, and returned to the identical quoted time to 80%. It stayed there by way of the length of the check.
So now I do know: the Magic Dock and a Kia-supplied adapter will see no distinction in charging efficiency. I did not count on that will be the case, and Hyundai Motor Group engineers have informed me as a lot, but it surely was good to do that myself.
Is A Tesla Supercharger Adapter Price It?
Kia’s official NACS Adapter is on the market from Kia sellers for about $249. I’ve seen them on-line at third-party shops for barely much less, and a few unofficial adapters are cheaper. However given the security points concerned with that a lot electrical energy, I don’t advocate something however the official adapter and from a licensed Kia retailer.
It’s true that the Tesla Supercharger expertise is not as fast for my automobile as, say, plugging right into a 350-kW Electrify America station. However a bit of below half-hour to cost is not dangerous, particularly if it is a road-trip increase and never one thing you’d rely upon the entire time.
Photograph by: Patrick George
What the Superchargers lack in velocity, although, they make up for in comfort. For $249, my automobile will get entry to greater than 20,000 plugs it could not use earlier than. Should you’re an everyday road-tripper, or drive in unfamiliar areas, or are simply planning an enormous summer time journey, getting one is form of a no brainer.
It beats watching these drama-free Tesla house owners as they cost up whilst you fumble with one other app that hardly works, I can inform you that.
Contact the writer: patrick.george@insideevs.com
