Tesla Supercharger Upgrades Introduced – CleanTechnica

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The Tesla Supercharger group — what’s left of it — has introduced 4 enhancements to the charging expertise. Among the many enhancements are the places, the size of the charging cables, and upgrades to the charging software program in Tesla automobiles. In its Q3 earnings report, Tesla mentioned it had put in 6,706 Supercharger charging factors for a complete of 62,421 around the globe. That’s 20 p.c extra Supercharger places and 22 p.c extra charging factors than in Q3 of 2023. Tesla Superchargers are thought of the gold customary within the trade due to their confirmed reliability. In comparison with the charging factors obtainable from different charging networks, Tesla Superchargers are likely to work as anticipated the overwhelming majority of the time, and when one does fail, it’s repaired or changed rapidly by competent restore personnel.

Nevertheless, there have been some points which have arisen because the Supercharger community was opened as much as different drivers and automotive firms. Electrical vehicles from different producers don’t all the time have the charging port on the left rear nook, and so these non-Tesla automobiles typically block charging stations as a result of the brief Supercharger cables gained’t attain the charging ports of these vehicles. Though the brand new V4 technology already has longer cables, these charging factors are nonetheless uncommon. That’s set to vary quickly, the Supercharger group says. “Longer cables imply that V4 posts can serve all port places. Within the subsequent 18 months we can have extra lengthy cable than brief cable Superchargers,” it wrote in a put up on social media.

As a substitute, the group states that the places will probably be tailored — or have already been tailored in some circumstances — to keep away from or scale back the variety of instances an obtainable Supercharger charging level is blocked. “We now have modified over 1,500 websites in order that drivers by no means have to make use of greater than 2 charging areas to cost, growing stall availability for all.” One other measure is meant to enhance the charging expertise. Though, its affect is difficult to evaluate, because it relies on what different automotive producers do. “Since opening up the Supercharger community in Europe in 2021, we’ve inspired automotive producers to transition cost port places to rear left or entrance proper,” says Tesla. “This gives seamless compatibility with 30,000+ brief cable Superchargers obtainable to different EVs globally.”

Improved Charging Expertise At Tesla Supercharger Places

Charging planning may even be improved, particularly in reference to third celebration manufacturers. With the newest software program replace, Tesla says it might “detect when one other EV with a cost port positioned someplace aside from the rear left or entrance proper, is plugged into a brief cable Supercharger stall.” Meaning the automotive can not cost on the Supercharger column supposed for the parking area, thus successfully blocking two charging columns. One instance can be the MEB electrical vehicles from VW, which have the charging connection on the rear proper. They’ll solely use the Superchargers with a brief cable that truly belongs to the adjoining parking area, which signifies that two Superchargers are in truth occupied however one is displayed on the Tesla app as being obtainable. “This replace ensures no extra over-promising of stall availability, so you’ll be able to journey with confidence,” Tesla says. “We are going to constantly refine this algorithm to be as correct as attainable, together with actual web site mapping and quicker refreshing of stall availability.”

One other enchancment that Tesla has launched in latest weeks isn’t talked about within the present announcement. V4 Superchargers are actually additionally obtainable with V4 cupboards which allow charging at as much as 500 kW of energy — equal to probably the most highly effective DC charging tools presently obtainable. The primary V4 Superchargers have been in operation since final spring in Harderwijk within the Netherlands. The V4 technology is characterised by the upper charging columns and an extended charging cable, which — in a primary for Tesla —  is connected to the skin of the charging column. The longer cable ought to make it simpler for third celebration EVs which have a standardized charging port on the rear left to plug in. The cost terminal that non-Tesla drivers will use to pay for his or her charging session may even be simply accessible.

Nevertheless, as with the V3 Superchargers, the utmost charging energy will stay at 250 kW, as a result of the V4 Posts, as Tesla calls its charging factors, are nonetheless mixed with change cupboards (or cupboards, as Tesla calls them) from the V3 technology. The bottleneck is due to this fact not the charger however the management cupboard within the background. That shouldn’t be a lot of a problem, since there are few electrical vehicles available on the market that may settle for 500 kW of energy. The most recent EVs from GM — the Chevy Equinox EV and Blazer EV — are solely able to accepting round 175 kW — a giant enchancment from the Chevy Bolt however far beneath what many EVs from different producers are able to.

Charging Energy Varies By Automobile

The Tesla Semi electrical Class 8 tractor will have the ability to settle for as much as 1.2 MW of  energy, Malte Kendel, the approved consultant and supervisor for EV Charging at Tesla, wrote on LinkedIn just lately. The Cybertruck, the primary Tesla constructed on an 800-volt platform, is predicted to attain 30 p.c shorter charging instances with a V4 charging level in comparison with a V3 or decrease spec unit. The opposite Tesla passenger vehicles — Mannequin S, Mannequin X, Mannequin 3, and Mannequin Y — are solely capable of settle for a most of 250 kW of charging energy.

A V4 cupboard provides as much as eight stalls with energy, in comparison with 4 stalls per management cupboard for the V3 technology. Tesla will thus want fewer management cupboards for a charging park of the identical measurement sooner or later. In accordance with Kendel, the V4 cupboards require much less area and are much less advanced, which can assist the corporate to finish new charging parks extra rapidly. They may even have thrice the power density, and the ability electronics will probably be “designed to be probably the most dependable on the planet” and can allow the next throughput at decrease prices.

Nevertheless, it is not going to be attainable to cost eight automobiles concurrently with 500 kW. Tesla has set the linked load decrease for financial causes. “Posts can peak as much as 500 kW for vehicles, however we’d like lower than 1MW throughout 8 posts to ship most energy to vehicles 99% of the time,” writes Max de Zegher, who has been a part of Tesla’s Supercharger group nearly constantly since 2014, in a put up on social media. In different phrases, solely in a single per cent of circumstances does a automotive obtain much less charging energy than it might use itself.

In his put up, De Zegher additionally mentions the “small incremental enhancements” that needs to be noticeable. “The V4 Cupboard has a 2% effectivity enchancment. Superchargers already ship over 5 TWh/12 months; 100 GWh/12 months in waste warmth that may be saved.” In accordance with Kendel, the primary Supercharger websites with V4 cupboards are because of open in 2025.