Ford EVs are set to adopt Tesla’s charging standard with its electric cars able to plug into more than 12,000 Tesla Superchargers with the help of an adapter from early next year.
And from 2025, the next generation of EVs manufactured by the American auto company will be equipped with the North American Charging Standard (NACS) port, Tesla’s standardised version of its proprietary charging system.
The information was revealed in a Twitter Spaces call between Ford boss Jim Farley and Tesla CEO Elon Musk last week, with Musk claiming that he doesn’t want Tesla superchargers to be a “walled garden”.
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According to Ford, Tesla will develop an adapter that will be provided to customers who buy any of Ford’s EVs, including the F-150 Lightning truck, Mustang Mach-E, and E-Transit delivery van. Like the vast majority of EVs in North America, Ford’s EVs are compatible with EV chargers with CCS (Combined Charging System) plugs.
The compatibility with Tesla Superchargers means drivers will have almost double the amount of charging stations available, with already over 10,000 DC fast-chargers part of the BlueOval Charge Network available for Ford owners.
Jim Farley said: “Widespread access to fast-charging is absolutely vital to our growth as an EV brand, and this breakthrough agreement comes as we are ramping up production of our popular Mustang Mach-E and F-150 Lightning, and preparing to launch a series of next-generation EVs starting in 2025.”
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Added Rebecca Tinucci, Tesla’s senior director of charging infrastructure: “We’ve spent the last 10 years building an industry-leading Charging Network that enables freedom to travel and provides charging confidence for our Tesla owners.
“We’re excited to deliver on our mission to accelerate the world’s transition to sustainable energy by welcoming Ford owners, and other electric vehicles who adopt NACS, to our thousands of Superchargers across North America.”
A Tesla-developed adapter will provide Ford F-150 Lightning, Mustang Mach-E and E-Transit vehicles fitted with the Combined Charging System (CCS) port access to Tesla’s V3 Superchargers. Ford will equip future EVs with the NACS charge port, removing the need for an adapter for direct access to Tesla Superchargers, starting in 2025.
There are also reports that Ford dealers are planning to add roughly 1,800 public-facing fast-chargers and locations to the BlueOval Charge Network by early 2024.
