Ford Ditches CCS for Tesla Plug

[SageBrush]

https://electrek.co/2023/05/25/ford-wil ... sing-move/

The Tesla plug is obviously superior, and the Tesla Supercharger network is leaps and bounds superior to CCS. Still, I would have enjoyed being a fly on the wall inside Ford headquarters. I very much doubt Tesla paid Ford to switch, so my WAG is that Ford wants to differentiate itself from GM in the EV truck space.

If so, very smart move.

[DougWantsALeaf]

This is a sea change event for sure.

Any bet what GM does? Or Kia/Hyundai? (If anything).

[SageBrush]

This is a sea change event for sure.

Any bet what GM does? Or Kia/Hyundai? (If anything).

My guess (take with a Kg of salt) is that the the manufacturers with a large non-US market stick with CCS as long as they can. GM on the other hand will be interesting to watch.

There is a basic dynamic at play (at least in the US) that puts CCS at a severe disadvantage: Tesla builds for about 1/3 the cost compared to CCS, and maintains the network much, much better. The 3rd party installers have a very unenviable record of gouging on installation costs and then not providing high reliability upkeep and maintenance. Unless that changes, the gap between the Tesla and CCS networks is just going to widen, and at an accelerating pace. Tesla also has an immense advantage in being able to deploy charging with storage at costs that no one else can compete with. Not only because of their in-house expertise and battery manufacturing, but because of vertical integration. I was at a soon-to-be-opened Tesla facility yesterday and chatted with a Tesla electrician. He mentioned that his job is installation and maintenance of Tesla Superchargers AND Tesla battery storage. Tesla is efficient in ways that leave other companies in the dust.

I wrote years ago that I thought it more likely than not that when the VW consent decree ends, the EA network will be sold, and sold cheaply. This adoption by Ford of the Tesla plug makes that scenario even more likely.

So far as tech goes, the Tesla plug really is superior, and ever since Tesla invented the CCS adapter the competitive moat that CCS afforded the non Tesla EV competitors has vanished. So why stick with inferior CCS tech ? Only inertia for US companies, unless the Tesla licensing terms are prohibitively expensive. Ford has made it very difficult for GM to stick with CCS. I will not be surprised if we start seeing DCFC locations with a majority of Tesla plugs and an increasingly token number of CCS plugs, similar to what happened with CHAdeMO

[Stanton]

I'm not taking sides here (I still only use J1772), but any "plug wars" are bad for EVs in general. I used to blame Tesla for not conforming, but if the US companies who ditched CHADEMO now ditch CCS, it just makes it harder to manage charging infrastructure down the road. Just think of the mess we would be in without J1772!

[SageBrush]

if the US companies who ditched CHADEMO now ditch CCS, it just makes it harder to manage charging infrastructure down the road.

I view it exactly in reverse. This is early days, and a fast transition to a single superior, reliable, and consumer friendly network and tech benefits the EV transition. That was not possible while Tesla was proprietary but it is possible -- I'd say likely -- now

[WetEV]

So why stick with inferior CCS tech ? Only inertia for US companies, unless the Tesla licensing terms are prohibitively expensive.

The terms were prohibitive. Ford tried to get an agreement in 2012. Oh, not in money. In the fine print.

The first interesting question is does Elon try to gouge the other manufacturers? Oh not for money, but for fine print considerations. So the money comes later.

The second interesting question is will the Tesla charging network become a monopoly? You do realize of course that monopolies are great things for the owners, and horrible things for everyone else. And Elon Musk isn't doing this for fun or for improving the world.

The third interesting question is when does the Tesla Network upgrade to 800 Volts?


This might be the beginning of end of the charging standard war. It might be a good thing if other networks survive.

[SageBrush]

So why stick with inferior CCS tech ? Only inertia for US companies, unless the Tesla licensing terms are prohibitively expensive.

The terms were prohibitive.

What were the terms ? Reference, please

The second interesting question is will the Tesla charging network become a monopoly?

I'm not particularly interested in that question, but my opinion is that Tesla corners multiple markets out of sheer free market competitive advantage and eventually political pressure leads to an ATT style break-up. The more important point to my mind is that the NACS connector becomes the de-facto standard. That Tesla is very likely to be the predominant installer of NACS is fine by me, so long as they continue to play by free market rules (as opposed to CCS, which has been driven by political lobby.)

It is time for you to separate NACS from Tesla. They can grow in parallel, or not, as the installer companies compete.

[SageBrush]

Ford's Farley:

The CCS is a great standard, but it was pretty much done by kind of a committee, and I think GM and others are going to have a big choice to make, Farley told CNBC. Do they want to have fast charging for customers? Or do they want to stick to their standard and have less charging?

https://www.cnbc.com/2023/05/26/ford-te ... on-gm.html

[Toby]

The EV industry needs a uniform fast charging system and a uniform payment system. Farley is looking to make fast charging and payment simpler.

[wmcbrine]

This doesn't say anything about "ditching CCS", AFAICT, just adding so-called NACS.

I don't really see the point of this, with Tesla having already started to open up their network to CCS.