Why I Do not (& Will not) Name Tesla’s Charging Plug “NACS”

By Staff Last updated Feb 1, 2023

For the final couple of months, one thing has actually been grinding my gears, however I figured it was a fad that was going to go away. When Tesla renamed its charging connector and referred to as it the “North American Charging Customary,” Tesla followers adopted the NACS acronym in a single day. My preliminary response was that it was a nasty concept to simply change the phrase for one thing as a result of it will confuse individuals who don’t observe the EV house that carefully. Not everyone follows the Tesla weblog like a non secular textual content, and if I simply modified the phrase with out warning, folks may not even know what I used to be speaking about.

However, as I thought of it extra, I spotted that language is a robust factor. Certain, you possibly can translate a phrase from one language to a different, however you possibly can’t all the time carry over the entire that means. All you’re doing with translation is discovering the phrase that’s closest in that means. Typically, yow will discover a phrase that’s nearly precisely the identical in that means as a phrase in one other language. Different instances, the that means is both barely completely different or far sufficient off to lead to misunderstandings.

What I spotted is that when anyone says “Tesla plug,” they’re solely referring to the plug that Tesla’s automobiles have. It means nothing roughly. However, the time period “NACS” carries a completely completely different that means. It’s not solely Tesla’s plug, nevertheless it’s THE plug that every one automobiles may and possibly ought to have. It additionally means that it’s a time period larger than the US, like NAFTA. It means that some supranational entity has chosen it to be the plug for North America.

However that couldn’t be farther from the reality. I gained’t attempt to let you know that CCS occupies such a lofty seat, both. There’s no North American entity that may even dictate such issues. In truth, the concept of a North American Union has been a preferred conspiracy idea for fairly some time, particularly within the right-wing circles Elon Musk is now pleasant with, however whereas “globalists” may wish to implement such a union, it doesn’t exist right this moment and will by no means exist. So, there’s actually no person to make it official.

I don’t convey this up out of any animosity towards Tesla or Elon Musk. I actually suppose that CCS and Tesla’s plug are actually on equal footing. CCS is most well-liked by most different automakers, and thus is most well-liked by CharIN (an business entity, not a authorities entity). However, alternatively, Tesla is the most important EV automaker by far, and has mainly the very best quick charging community, so its alternative is simply as necessary.

Nevertheless, does it even matter that there’s no customary? The heading on the following part has my reply to that.

We Don’t Even Want A Customary Plug

Finally, we don’t even want a charging customary! Not like prior format wars, it’s potential to easily adapt. A VHS-to-Betamax adapter wouldn’t have labored. The identical was true for 8-tracks and cassettes, and for Blu-Ray vs HD-DVD. These requirements have been incompatible sufficient with one another that you just had to decide on one or the opposite. However the CCS, CHAdeMO, and Tesla plugs are simply electrical. There are already adapters between all of them.

Maybe extra importantly, Tesla is already planning to construct CCS adapters into its Supercharger stations within the type of “Magic Docks.”

So that is how Tesla will assist CCS at US Superchargers.

The Magic Dock. You pull out the Tesla connector in case you simply want that, or the bigger dock in case you want CCS.

Ought to make retrofits a chunk of cake — low capex. https://t.co/P91XOIRlH0 pic.twitter.com/3DgJpH932h

— Entire Mars Catalog (@WholeMarsBlog) January 23, 2023

So, even Tesla is aware of that different producers aren’t going to undertake the Tesla plug. It doesn’t even suppose it’s the “North American Charging Customary”, so why ought to I name it that? Why ought to any of us?

The one affordable argument I can consider for the “NACS” title is that it’s Tesla’s North American customary plug. On that rely, it completely is. In Europe, Tesla has been pressured to undertake the CCS2 plug. In China, it’s been pressured to make use of the GB/T connector, which is even much less elegant as a result of it makes use of two plugs as an alternative of only one just like the CCS connector. North America is the one place the place we are inclined to worth free markets over regulation to the purpose the place governments didn’t mandate a plug by authorities fiat.

However, necessity is the mom of invention. If the federal government gained’t dictate an ordinary, adapters are right here to make it fully pointless. Finally, all automobiles will be capable of cost in any respect stations, even when it means the station wants a built-in Magic Dock, or in any other case builds within the adapter like EVgo does for Tesla’s automobiles.

An EVgo station with built-in CHAdeMO-to-Tesla adapter. Picture supplied by EVgo.

I’m Not Certain A Future Unified Customary Will Occur, Both

We hold seeing the demand for energy in charging rise and rise and rise, however there comes some extent the place that’s a nasty concept. Making our autos vitality hogs as an alternative of specializing in effectivity makes them not solely much less environmentally pleasant, however dearer to construct, cost, and function. Whereas folks want to see electrical autos that cost in solely 5 minutes, it’s actually not going to be price what that may price to combine into gentle autos.

The place extra energy will likely be helpful is in heavier autos, and that’ll occur by way of the MCS connector. Semi vans, and presumably future medium and one-ton vans, will in all probability have an MCS plug to get the upper ranges of energy that will likely be wanted to cost their actually huge battery packs in an inexpensive timeframe. However will there be a Tesla automobile with charging over a megawatt? Most likely not.

CCS can also be nice already, with the Kia EV6 going from 10–80% in simply 18 minutes on lower than 350 kW of energy. That’s over 200 miles of vary added to the pack within the time it takes to go pee, stretch your legs, and seize a soda. Anyone who wants quicker charging additionally wants a catheter and doubtless love-triangle astronaut diapers to go greater than 3 hours between charging stops.

So, absent some actual want for a brand new plug, we in all probability gained’t see one for fairly a very long time except a really international customary emerges that may be advantageous for corporations to undertake.

Featured picture by EVgo.