Tesla Opens Superchargers to Other EVs

If you don't have a membership, Tesla superchargers are more expensive.

The Tesla Supercharger network is now open to other electric vehicles as well. Nevertheless, outsiders will have to pay an additional fee to use the service.

Tesla's industry-leading Supercharger network opened to non-Tesla drivers on Thursday, starting with Fords. Now we know how Supercharging will work for outsiders, including how much it will cost.?

Tesla charges other EV owners roughly 35% more per kilowatt-hour (kWh), according to its app. Charge rates vary widely by location and time of day (some stations charge less during off-peak hours), so that's just an estimate.

Tesla's Superchargers are known for being the best, but they were exclusive to Elon Musk's customers. By partnering with rival automakers, Tesla offers Supercharging to other EVs. I think it's great for EV adoption.

The premium at some locations was closer to 37%, while at others it was as low as 23% during off-peak hours. Tesla also offers a $12.99-per-month membership that gives other EV owners the same price. It might be worth it depending on how much you plan to Supercharge.?

Let's look at a real example. One Supercharger in the Los Angeles area charges 61 cents/kWh for non-members, but 45 cents/kWh for members. It would only take about 81 kWh of charging to recoup the $12.99 fee -- about 60% of the battery capacity of a Ford F-150 Lightning.?Last year, Tesla opened up a limited number of Superchargers to all EVs using Magic Dock adapters.

Up until now, Tesla customers had exclusive access to the vast majority of Superchargers; Magic Dock access has been limited so far. The Tesla charging network is regarded as superior, both in terms of convenience and number of stations, to rivals like Electrify America and EVgo.?

Nearly everyone in the auto industry has announced plans to switch to Tesla's charging port design, now called NACS, or North American Charging Standard. In the past, only Teslas had the NACS port, and Superchargers offered a plug to match. Tesla's charging system on the back was incompatible with other cars.?

That's changing now. The NACS port will be on future vehicles from both legacy automakers and EV startups. Also, they've partnered with Tesla to offer their customers access to 15,000 of the 27,000 Superchargers Tesla operates in North America.

It's a huge win for EV adoption. The biggest reason people don't ditch gasoline is charging anxiety. For vehicles with the old style of port (the CSS, or Combined Charging Standard), you'll need an adapter. Ford opened orders for its adapter on Thursday as Tesla switched on Supercharger access for its cars. The adapter seems to be working well, according to Tom Moloughney's tests.?

Rivian, a California startup, said on Thursday that its vehicles will get Supercharger access in March, followed by adapters. Tesla says GM, Volvo, and Polestar (Volvo's EV offshoot brand) should get Supercharger support this spring.?

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