Ford will start shipping a new Tesla Supercharger NACS adapter to customers today, the company told Engadget in an email. The new adapters were co-developed with Lectron, a major manufacturer of EV chargers, adapters and cables for Tesla and others.
Ford drivers gained access to Tesla Superchargers earlier this year, but the CCS charging port on Ford EVs isn’t compatible with Tesla’s NACS port. To fix that, the automaker offered a free NACS adapter to owners of its Mach E, F-150 Lightning and other vehicles, with a deadline of June 2024.
Earlier this month, however, Ford sent a service bulletin to some customers telling them to stop using the adapter. The reason cited was a “potential issue” that could reduce charging speeds and even cause charging port damage. Ford extended its deadline and promised a replacement adapter in the coming weeks.
While some of the supply of the original adapter had potential issues, they don’t apply to all the adapters; in fact, Ford will provide both the old one and these new models. “To continue accelerating access to the Tesla Supercharger Network for Ford electric vehicle customers, Ford will start shipping a new Ford-branded complimentary adapter to customers as of October 31,” a company spokesperson wrote. “Customers who are awaiting a complimentary adapter may receive the new Ford-branded Fast Charging Adapter or the existing approved adapter.”
Other automakers including Nissan, GM and Subaru have also signed pacts with Tesla to use its Superchargers. Tesla’s network represents a large majority of DC fast chargers in the US, with 19,000 installed compared to 15,000 from all other operators. Globally, Tesla has installed over 62,000 supercharger connectors as of Q3 2024, up 23 percent over last year.
Correction, October 31 2024, 1:42PM ET: This story originally stated that Ford’s new adapters developed with Lectron were a replacement for other adapters that Ford had asked owners to return due to potential issues. That’s not the case. Ford is still provided EV owners with the older-style adapter as not all of the supply were having issues. The new adapter developed with Lectron is meant to augment and increase supply of adapters for customers rather than replace it. We apologize for the error.
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