It has been a yr since Ford’s EVs unlocked third-party entry to Tesla’s Supercharger community utilizing complimentary NACS Quick Charging Adapters. This week, the automaker doubled down on its dedication to the North American Charging System, including NACS Quick Charger Routing through Apple Maps in CarPlay and a second-gen NACS Quick Charging Adapter adapter for its F-150 Lighting electrical pickup and Mustang Mach-E SUV. The brand new adapter guarantees to be simpler and extra dependable to make use of.
In 2023, Ford was the first of a deluge of automakers to announce assist for the Tesla-pioneered North American Charging System. A yr later, it was the primary to make good on the pledge by supplying a free NACS charging adapter to any proprietor who requested one between February and June of 2024. At this time, one yr later, Ford has fulfilled that preliminary dedication, transport round 140,000 complementary adapters to reservation holders throughout the US. In accordance with the automaker, its drivers make intensive use of these adapters. Practically 20% of Ford EV charging visits away from house occur at Tesla Supercharger stations.
NACS and Tesla Supercharger stations now seem as solutions when planning massive journeys through Apple CarPlay.
The addition of Tesla’s V3 Superchargers grows the BlueOval Cost Community — Ford’s database of appropriate charging stations — to an estimated 44,000 DC quick charging factors throughout North America. Drivers can discover and navigate to these stations through their car’s on-board navigation, the FordPass app and, now, Apple Maps EV Routing.
Simply yesterday, Ford Mustang Mach-E and F-150 Lightning drivers gained the flexibility to incorporate NACS quick charging stations into journeys calculated through Apple Maps EV Routing in CarPlay. Apple Maps can now detect the host EV’s state of cost to calculate whenever you’ll must plug in and may counsel charging stops alongside the route, together with Tesla Superchargers, when planning longer journeys. Urged stops at NACS stations embrace a warning reminding you to deliver the Quick Charging Adapter. Nevertheless, as a result of Apple CarPlay is separate from the core EV programs, battery preconditioning isn’t supported alongside Apple Maps EV routing.
To check the brand new adapter, Ford and Lectron subjected it to snow, water, impression and even a crush take a look at beneath an F-150 Lightning EV.
At this time, Ford additionally introduced the second-gen NACS adapter. Co-developed with EV charging accent producer Lectron, the brand new Ford Quick Charging Adapter is claimed to be extra sturdy and dependable, capable of stand as much as all kinds of climates, situations and abuses that homeowners might topic it to over the car’s lifetime — from snow to water submersion to being run over by an F-150 Lightning electrical truck. The adapter has an built-in deal with that is extra ergonomic and simpler to grip than the stubby earlier technology, in addition to new car interlock that forestalls unintentionally unplugging the adapter throughout charging.
At $200 when ordered from Ford’s web site or service facilities, the brand new Ford Quick Charging Adapter can be barely cheaper than its $230 predecessor — and given Lectron’s expertise constructing and transport its personal adapter, I would wager it is also extra prone to be in inventory.