Tesla Supercharger Question

[21st Century Pony]

I want to thank everyone who responded to my post. I have had my Mach E for around 18 months and never used a public charging station. I had only used my 240V charging port at home so I was ignorant and very naive. I now have a much better understanding of the issues and when I eventually undertake my road trip from Maryland to Schroon Lake, I will be better prepared. FYI I did order the free Tesla adapter from Ford just in time (offer expires July 1), but it sounds like I probably don't need it. Once again, thanks for all the great info. It's a lot to digest, but all of it was very much appreciated.

PS: BTW, on a separate problem. My 12V battery recently died, which required the car to be towed to my local dealer to get it replaced. Everything is good, but another learning experience, which could have been avoided.

Best of Luck on the trip and have fun! All the planning seems overwhelming but actually it's not so bad once you try it.

HINT: three things eat battery charge in an electric car: 1). Speed. When in doubt about range in the Mach E, slow down to 60 / 65 MPH and your battery consumption will decrease to a surprising degree. 2). Cold weather... the colder, the more battery charge it will eat. There's nothing you can do about it but this is seasonal and with warm weather, it all comes back. 3). Elevation. Again, there's nothing you can do about this except that you can anticipate it, if you use the Ford NAV and check out its ELEVATION settings on the bottom bar and compare the car's climbing elevation against its kW/mile usage.

These new EV-related variables are actually easy to include in your in-the-head calculations once you have a trip or two under your belt. Enjoy!

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[deibumar]

You're using V4. It's impossible for a V3 cable to reach backing in. Tesla specifically has called out that we'll need 2 spots, so no one should be concerned about using it. Also, "stoking the ire" is the opposite of nearly everyone's experience so far.

I was clueless about the shorter cables in earlier SC versions. Yeah, I must have been using V4. But even with V4 the cable didn't seem long enough to nose in and only use one parking space, which is why I backed in. I saw a couple of articles mentioning it's OK to double or even triple park if necessary (but don't park diagonally):

https://insideevs.com/news/710789/tesla-ford-multiple-supercharger-stalls/
https://www.forbes.com/sites/bradte...t-superchargers-using-up-two-or-three-spaces/

One article said Tesla had updated their SC FAQ but I couldn't find any mention in the FAQ on Tesla's site. Does anyone have a link?

 

[RickMachE]

https://www.tesla.com/support/supercharging-other-evs#cable

 

[67 Stang Convertible]

I want to thank everyone who responded to my post. I have had my Mach E for around 18 months and never used a public charging station. I had only used my 240V charging port at home so I was ignorant and very naive. I now have a much better understanding of the issues and when I eventually undertake my road trip from Maryland to Schroon Lake, I will be better prepared. FYI I did order the free Tesla adapter from Ford just in time (offer expires July 1), but it sounds like I probably don't need it. Once again, thanks for all the great info. It's a lot to digest, but all of it was very much appreciated.

PS: BTW, on a separate problem. My 12V battery recently died, which required the car to be towed to my local dealer to get it replaced. Everything is good, but another learning experience, which could have been avoided.

OP, Have a great trip and once you get the hang of planning these trips; it is no big deal. As your finding out the Forum is a Great Place to come for info. Some of us have been here since 2020/21. And some of these guys are super knowledgeable about the MME and EVs in general.

Tesla v. Electrify America..... not sure it matters BUT even though EA has improved; I just got a bad cord from EA in Midtown (Atlanta) on Thursday. I've been to 4 different Tesla DCFC are a recent trip and it was fantastic. And FAST, you are literally getting juice with in seconds. Not minutes like EA.

 

[Calledlisag]

Here's the answer to the next question you haven't asked yet....
Most likely, you'll need at least 2 adjacent spots to be free in order to charge your MachE at a Tesla SC.
This is because the MachE charge port is drivers-side front, whereas a Tesla charge port is drivers-side rear and they have to back in. The charger you use will block a Tesla from using the adjacent spot. (unless you are able to grab the end spot)
Also, because of cable length, you are going to have pull wayyy forward until your bumper is over the curb and almost touching the dispenser.

Tesla SC and EA are going to charge your car at similar speeds. People tend to prefer Tesla stations because they are more reliable than EA.

The taking 2 spots to charge is a little stressful! I just parked and had to take 2 spots; within a minute a Tesla driver confronted me and said a. That there are EA chargers on the level below (I replied “yes, but they’re all full) and b. “You’re taking up 2 spots.” ( I replied “I’m aware”). I don’t think he liked that, but nothing to do. I’m in south Florida and there aren’t nearly enough chargers to go around. My husband wants me to get rid of her but I love my MME.

 

[Calledlisag]

The taking 2 spots to charge is a little stressful! I just parked and had to take 2 spots; within a minute a Tesla driver confronted me and said a. That there are EA chargers on the level below (I replied “yes, but they’re all full) and b. “You’re taking up 2 spots.” ( I replied “I’m aware”). I don’t think he liked that, but nothing to do. I’m in south Florida and there aren’t nearly enough chargers to go around. My husband wants me to get rid of her but I love my MME.

On a positive note: another driver just pulled in to charge his tesla and said “how cool that you can use these chargers. It’s about time!” He was super nice and made me feel better!

 

[RickMachE]

The taking 2 spots to charge is a little stressful! I just parked and had to take 2 spots; within a minute a Tesla driver confronted me and said a. That there are EA chargers on the level below (I replied “yes, but they’re all full) and b. “You’re taking up 2 spots.” ( I replied “I’m aware”). I don’t think he liked that, but nothing to do. I’m in south Florida and there aren’t nearly enough chargers to go around. My husband wants me to get rid of her but I love my MME.

Here is the Tesla answer you give them:

Most Supercharger cables at NACS Supercharger sites should be able to reach your EV charge port, however, in some cases you might have to park over the line in order to charge comfortably. Avoid parking diagonally to reach the cable and try to obstruct as few charge posts as possible. Charge port locations vary by EV model, which requires cable sharing between adjacent stalls at many sites. Tesla is rapidly deploying our latest V4 Supercharger post which reaches all EVs in the same Supercharger stall. Additionally, we encourage all vehicle manufacturers to standardize charge port locations to the rear driver side or front passenger side.
We are working on an NACS to NACS extension cable, which will be available for purchase in the future.

https://www.tesla.com/support/supercharging-other-evs#cable

 

[Tampamike]

On a positive note: another driver just pulled in to charge his tesla and said “how cool that you can use these chargers. It’s about time!” He was super nice and made me feel better!

I had the same experience on my first Tesla charge. I was fiddling with the adapter and not really paying attention elsewhere when I heard a guy ask how the charge was working for me? It was a couple and they were very friendly and asked about the MME. We had a nice conversation.

 

[hack-e]

Do you have any evidence to support this claim?

If anything, I would suggest the A2Z ones are *lower quality* because people have reported the adapter is tight fitting and very difficult to get fully seated. Probably a manufacturing / quality control issue, and A2Z is no doubt trying to crank out as many units as possible right now.

I have used the A2Z at least 46 times now. The first time I used it there seemed to be a problem getting it to seat but it was the fact that that I didn't understand the NACS latching mechanism. I think the markings near the thumb slider are confusing and had me sliding it to the locked position before insertion. But different markings on the side of the adapter make it clear which direction to slide in order to lock it. Now that I understand that, there is zero fitment issue and it is super quick to use. Even easier than the Ford one.

The Ford one is definitely easier for first insertion since it is completely spring loaded. And removal has a learning curve.

I'll just say the Ford one is easier to attach but awkward to detach first few times and the A2Z has a learning curve on first attach but easy after that first time and is always easy to detach.

I can't say how they will hold up over time. But both seem to be good quality so far. I like the shape of the A2Z one better as it's easier to grip.

 

[Mickey52]

Can I use a Tesla supercharger and if so what do I need to hook it up to my 2023 Mach E? I'm planning a trip from my home in Maryland to the Adirondacks (Schroon Lake) and its 476 miles. I have the standard battery (approx 230 miles), so I'll need to stop around half way. But I don't want to include an overnight stay. So was wondering if I could use one of the Tesla supercharging stations, which would minimize my charging time to a few hours. Suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

Went to 2 different locations used the adapter and nothing!!!

 

[zvez]

Went to 2 different locations used the adapter and nothing!!!

don't know if it's the cause, but the adapters only work with Gen 3 and 4(?) superchargers. Is plug and charge enabled on your fordpass app? Have you tried the adapter using the tesla charging app?

 

[zvez]

Here is the Tesla answer you give them:

Most Supercharger cables at NACS Supercharger sites should be able to reach your EV charge port, however, in some cases you might have to park over the line in order to charge comfortably. Avoid parking diagonally to reach the cable and try to obstruct as few charge posts as possible. Charge port locations vary by EV model, which requires cable sharing between adjacent stalls at many sites. Tesla is rapidly deploying our latest V4 Supercharger post which reaches all EVs in the same Supercharger stall. Additionally, we encourage all vehicle manufacturers to standardize charge port locations to the rear driver side or front passenger side.
We are working on an NACS to NACS extension cable, which will be available for purchase in the future.

https://www.tesla.com/support/supercharging-other-evs#cable

so from looking at various pics of people using the adapter, is it best to try and get on either end of the charging terminals? ie the first one or the last one?

 

[HuntingPudel]

I have used the A2Z at least 46 times now.
<SNIP>

Hokey-smokes! I haven’t even used my L2 EVSE in my garage 46 times this year. ??

 

[RickMachE]

so from looking at various pics of people using the adapter, is it best to try and get on either end of the charging terminals? ie the first one or the last one?

The guidance is to go to the far right, unless there is a pull-through or sideways charger. For example, this is the far left space at one:

 

[ChehRob]

I took my two adapters (one my A2Z) over to Seattle to have my kid walk me through using them. He has two Teslas and their level 2 charger. The AC adapter was easy. There are no SCs in the city available at this time, but we went ahead to the banks of 150 amp SCs in Ballard. There we parked at an angle (lots of ports available), and he got the adapter fully coupled, and just barely reachable to my MME. It all fit. So while it wouldn't charge, he is confident I could hook up to an appropriate SC. There are some available SCs at the cassino near Poulsbo.

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