Ford officially ended the 2023-2024 winter with the first official battery replenishment session at one of Tesla’s Supercharger stalls. It was the first legacy automaker to announce the move to NACS and access for its buyers to the now Texas-based EV maker’s high-power charging network. So, it wasn’t a surprise that the Blue Oval received this perk. But now it’s time for Rivian to shine. Here’s what you need to know.
There’s no clear timeline regarding the adapter shipments, but we expect Rivian to move fast because it has a planned factory downtime for the Normal factory during summer. We believe the brand wants to be done with sending adapters before it refocuses on improving the R1T and R1S.
If you’re an informed EV owner or simply like to keep up with what’s happening in the sector, this doesn’t feel like major news anymore because Tesla started fitting some of its pedestals with the “Magic Dock,” an in-house adapter for CCS-equipped EVs. Around 520 pedestals have it.
However, it still represents a great step forward for all-electric car owners. The brand may have originally wanted to tap some government funds by opening its charging network to other EVs. But in doing so, Tesla has also convinced its peers to stop spending money on coming up with charging alternatives or keeping the CCS connector alive.
The world’s most valuable automaker prides itself on being a pioneer in the fast-charging sector. Unlike some other competitors, it has been constantly praised for taking care of its electricity dispensers. Besides that, Tesla says that one stall is erected and turned on every hour in North America. That’s something!
Only Ford, Rivian, General Motors, Volvo, and Polestar owners will have access to more than 15,000 Supercharger pedestals until the end of spring.
Just make sure you’re checking the kWh price before plugging in. Some EV owners have discovered that fast charging can be quite expensive. We even had Rivian owners saying they won’t take the EV on road trips anymore because of unexpectedly high charging costs.
Finally, Rivian has a charging network of its own. The promising marque plans to allow other CCS-equipped EVs to use its high-power dispensers. The Level 2 Waypoints were accessible from the get-go.
Supercharger access is coming to Rivian – that’s 15,000 more fast chargers for Rivian owners across North America. In March we’ll be adding Supercharger sites to our vehicle and app trip planner with adapter shipments to owners starting soon after. Start planning your road trips!
— Rivian (@Rivian) February 29, 2024
