A Tesla engineer is throwing chilly water on Supercharger extension cords – an concept that’s gaining traction to unravel the cost port location points as Tesla onboard different EVs on the Suercharger community.
The opening of the Supercharger community to non-Tesla electrical automobiles has created an issue the place a few of these EVs don’t have their cost port on the identical place as Tesla automobiles: again on the motive force’s aspect.
It leads to awkward parking positions.
Tesla’s new Supercharger V4 stalls clear up that with longer charging cables, however most Superchargers are nonetheless V3s, that are problematic and can lead to some EVs blocking one other charging station.
The thought of utilizing extension cords for Superchargers has been introduced up as a short lived resolution and Tesla even confirmed that it was engaged on it earlier this yr.
However now Wes Morrill, Tesla’s lead Cybertruck engineer, has thrown some chilly water on the concept. (through X):
I’d advocate AGAINST utilizing an extension twine on a supercharger (or any DC charging station with a liquid cooled cable). Have seen a number of situations of the cable overheated and shorting DC +/-.
To be truthful, he’s recommending in opposition to utilizing current extension cables for the Supercharger, that are made by third events.
He added about the issue with extension cables:
There’s a temperature measurement within the deal with and the supercharger derates primarily based on that temperature. With the extension cable that security goes away. On prime of including a further junction which generates warmth making issues worse.
Tesla might probably repair these issues with its personal resolution, particularly by including temperature measurements on the brand new deal with on the extension twine.
Morrill stated that he would talk about straight with a third-party Supercharger extension cable producer to clarify his issues.
Nonetheless, temperature administration would stay a problem as it’s onerous to think about how they might make the extension liquid-cooled just like the common cable.
Some did speculate {that a} Tesla extension twine would include cost price limitations to counter this problem. What do you suppose? Tell us within the remark part under.