Ford to bring Tesla’s charging tech into its future EVs
Image Credits: Jeff Kowalsky/AFP via Getty Images / Maja Hitij/Getty Images [composite] / Getty Images
2:40 PM PDT · May 25, 2023
Ford has reached an agreement with rival Tesla that will give owners of Ford EVs access to more than 12,000 Superchargers across the U.S. and Canada.
However, this agreement reaches far beyond providing access to Tesla’s superchargers via an adapter. Ford said its next generations of EVs will be equipped with Tesla’s charge port called the North American Charging Standard (NACS) starting in 2025. Ford’s second-generation EV portfolio includes an electric truck and a three-row SUV. The surprising deal was announced Thursday during a Twitter Spaces between Tesla and Twitter CEO Elon Musk and Ford CEO Jim Farley.
Ford second-generation EVs with the NACS port will have the option of charging at CCS chargers via an adapter, according to Ford. The automaker said the adapter will be affordable, and Farley noted Ford will offer different kinds of payment options, like subscriptions. Musk said the adapter will be “in the hundred of dollars range.”
“We’re very happy to support Ford vehicles with the Tesla Supercharger network, and also provide API access,” Musk said Thursday. “So like a Ford vehicle can charge at a Tesla supercharger using a Ford app seamlessly. Essentially, the idea is that we don’t want the Tesla Supercharger network to be like a walled garden. We want it to be something that is supportive of electrification and sustainable transport in general.”
The charging connector in all Tesla vehicles offers AC charging and up to 1 MW DC charging. Its compact design and performance is considered superior to the Combined Charging System (CCS) connectors used by most EVs in North America. Last year, Tesla shared its EV charging connector design in an effort to encourage network operators and automakers to adopt the technology and help make it the new standard in North America.
Existing Ford EV customers will use a Tesla-developed adapter so their Ford F-150 Lightning, Mustang Mach-E and E-Transit vehicles fitted with the Combined Charging System port can access Tesla’s V3 Superchargers.
Ford customers will have access to twice as many fast-chargers starting in spring 2024 through the agreement with Tesla, according to the automakers.
During the Twitter Spaces, Farley praised the location of Tesla’s Superchargers, the reliability of the routing software and the ease of use of Tesla’s connector.
Ford customers already have access to its so-called BlueOval Charge Network, a public charging network with over 84,000 chargers, including access to over 10,000 public DC fast-chargers. Additionally, Ford dealers are adding roughly 1,800 public-facing fast-chargers and locations to the BlueOval Charge Network by early 2024.
Kirsten Korosec is a reporter and editor who has covered the future of transportation from EVs and autonomous vehicles to urban air mobility and in-car tech for more than a decade. She is currently the transportation editor at TechCrunch and co-host of TechCrunch’s Equity podcast. She is also co-founder and co-host of the podcast, “The Autonocast.” She previously wrote for Fortune, The Verge, Bloomberg, MIT Technology Review and CBS Interactive.
Rebecca Bellan is a senior reporter at TechCrunch, where she covers Tesla and Elon Musk’s broader empire, autonomy, AI, electrification, gig work platforms, Big Tech regulatory scrutiny, and more. She’s one of the co-hosts of the Equity podcast and writes the TechCrunch Daily morning newsletter. Previously, she covered social media for Forbes.com, and her work has appeared in Bloomberg CityLab, The Atlantic, The Daily Beast, Mother Jones, i-D (Vice) and more. Rebecca has invested in Ethereum.