Tesla owners have noticed longer wait times than usual to use a Supercharger stall at some busier stations, particularly during peak travel periods like vacations. In an effort to assist, Tesla has been implementing a system that provides free or reduced charging during off-peak hours during periods of heavy travel demand.
And in the Tesla 2022.16 update there is a s a new feature that will redirect you to another Supercharger site if the one you were planning to arrive at is suddenly too busy. Tesla drivers will can adjust their route to cut down on their overall travel time when a Supercharge station is busy. Tesla is also completely aware of the number of vehicles charging at each station. Additionally, it is capable of estimating the wait time for a Supercharger based on the number of Teslas around that are in low states of charge and the charge level of each vehicle.
Tesla can provide recommendations about the optimal location to charge to shorten your overall trip time based on all of this information. The Tesla Supercharger rerouting feature will come in handy, especially if the company begins allowing non-Tesla vehicles to utilise its Supercharger locations.
Over the past few years, the CCS (Combined Charging System) has established itself as the industry norm for charging electric vehicles. The CCS charging port wasn't available when Tesla first unveiled the 2012 Model S. In reality, Tesla created its unique Tesla connector because there was nothing else available that could perform fast DC charging. The CCS connector can now accommodate charging rates of 350kW.
Contrastingly, Tesla's most recent v3 Superchargers can presently only enable charging at speeds of up to 250kW, while the company aims to update the v3 Superchargers later this year to support up to 324kW. Tesla was compelled to upgrade CCS connectors to all Superchargers last year after the Taiwan EV Charger Equipment Supplier and Manufacturer Advancement Alliance ruled that CCS should be the nation's charging standard.
A few months following the choice, Tesla upgraded Superchargers with CCS connectors in addition to their proprietary connectors. Tesla already provides Superchargers with CCS hookups in a number of locations, but they will soon start doing so in the United States as well. Along with its own connector, Tesla will also incorporate the CCS connector. Non-Tesla owners will now have access to the vast charging network.
Since November of last year, non-Tesla electric vehicles have been permitted to charge at a few Tesla Supercharger facilities in France, the Netherlands, and Norway.
Siemens and Volkswagen contribute $450 million to the US charging network
Volkswagen, a German automobile manufacturer, has teamed up with Siemens AG, another German multinational, to invest $US450 million in Electrify America, Volkswagen's EV charging venture in the United States. Siemens will purchase a small minority stake in Electrify America from Volkswagen, and the two businesses will invest a combined total of US$450 million, giving the project a US$2.45 billion valuation.
The two firms did not disclose any additional information. Siemens will pay at least $US100 million for its minority investment and will become both the first outside investor and a significant strategic technology partner in the US charging industry. Thoughts on how to more than double Electrify America's charging infrastructure are at the core of this new venture.
Giving e-mobility in North America a further boost and continually expanding our charging and energy business, according to Volkswagen. By 2026, Electrify America's charging infrastructure will have more than doubled to 1,800 stations and 10,000 fast chargers. This strategic relationship with Electrify America intends to develop a collaborative ecosystem that accelerates EV adoption across the United States and Canada. It represents one of Siemens' greatest investments in electrified transportation.
Electrify America, which was established in 2016, has invested $US800 million in California and $US1.2 billion in the rest of the country, with the goal of increasing the state's charging infrastructure. The Electrify America network included 799 ultra-fast charging stations around the nation as of the end of 2021, including 214 in California. Over 90 of these stations also had energy storage systems.
