All Tesla models in Europe either have a CCS or the older Type 2 charge ports instead of Tesla's proprietary port. This lets Tesla owners charge at a variety of charging locations. It also made it easier for Tesla to open up their Superchargers to other vehicles with the CCS standard without having to make any hardware changes.
Tesla to release a CCS adapter in the US soon
In the US, Tesla still releases cars with their own charge port. This could be a problem in the future as more third-party chargers become available and Tesla owners aren't able to use them.
Tesla recently created and released an adapter that goes from CCS to Tesla's connection, allowing you to use CCS-based chargers. The adapter is available now in South Korea and is said to be launching in North America soon.
Does Your Car Support It?
However, it looks like not all Tesla's will be able to support CCS charging due to hardware requirements.
In software update 2021.40, Tesla now shows additional information about your car. If you go to Controls > Software and tap Additional Vehicle Information, Tesla will now show you two additional details that weren't exposed before.
One is which cellular bands your car is capable of connecting to. Some cars before 2016 can only connect to 2G and 3G networks. With AT&T shutting down their 3G service early next year, these cars will be left without a cellular connection, unless owners opt for an upgrade.
The next new bit of information will show whether your car will support Tesla's CCS adapter. The screen shows ‘CCS adapter support' and then shows whether the hardware required for the adapter is installed in your vehicle or not.
Tesla displays whether your car supports its CCS adapter
Paul Quinnell/Facebook
In Europe or Model 3 vehicles already come standard with a CCS charge port so there's no adapter necessary for them. However, for Model S and Model X vehicles, Tesla states that they will support the CCS adapter if they were built after May 1, 2019.
According to Paul Quinnell who received the update and drives a 2018 Model 3 in Canada, his car does not have support for the adapter.
Adapter and Retrofit Costs
If your car isn't support then Tesla can upgrade your car for about $340 USD in Europe. Tesla is expected to offer a similar service in the US. The price includes the CCS adapter itself.
For vehicles that can support the CCS adapter directly, the adapter can be bought directly from Tesla in the future. It currently costs about $250 USD in South Korea and could be slightly cheaper when it's released in the US.
Future of Tesla Charging
It's not clear whether Tesla is planning to switch to an all CCS solution in the future, where future cars will come with CCS ports and Superchargers will have CCS cables, or whether Tesla is simply getting owners ready for non-Tesla charging solutions.
As more electric vehicles are released and become the norm rather than the exception in the future, there will be more charging locations and Tesla simply won't be able to be everywhere. Giving owners the ability to charge at any charging location with the common CCS adapter will make sure that Tesla owners are not at a disadvantage.
“We have updated our future vehicle line-up to accelerate the launch of new models ahead of our previously communicated start of production in the second half of 2025”. This was one of the key sentences that were part of Tesla’s deck shared on Tuesday directly before its financial results.
Since Reuters’ report a few weeks ago saying Tesla had “scrapped” the highly expected cheaper model— which Elon quickly denied on X —retail and institutional shareholders started asking for more details on Tesla’s product roadmap for 2024 and beyond.
In the earnings conference call, Elon Musk reiterated that Tesla expects to launch the next model in “early 2025, if not late this year”.
“We've updated our future vehicle lineup to accelerate the launch of new models ahead of previously mentioned start of production in the second half of 2025. So, we expect it to be more like the early 2025, if not late this year. “
Over concerns of temporary production halts to update the factories for these new models, Musk said that Tesla will produce new models with certain aspects from their next-generation platform and current models. This will reduce the number of changes needed on production lines and allow Tesla not only to ramp up production faster but also to get the vehicles to market quicker.
Model Y Redesign
Tesla appears to hit that their next-gen vehicle will be less “next-gen” than they were initially aiming for, but to get a new vehicle out the door by late 2024, the process would already have to be in motion. Tesla may likely be referring to the redesigned Model Y, which is expected to reuse many parts from the new Model 3. Earlier this year, Tesla said that the redesigned Model Y will not be released this year, so it makes sense that they’re looking to speed up that production.
Tesla CEO concluded by saying that these measures will allow Tesla to reach a capacity of over 3 million units. Tesla produced 1.84 million vehicles in 2023. However, this year they’re ramping up Cybertruck production and introduced the new Model 3 into new markets.
And we think this should allow us to get to over 3 million vehicles of capacity when realized to the full extent.
Tesla reported on Tuesday its earnings results followed by a conference call where it teased its upcoming Robotaxi and its next-generation platform saying its “purpose-built Robotaxi product will continue to pursue a revolutionary ‘unboxed’ manufacturing strategy”.
Earlier in the day, Tesla announced the new Performance variant of its sedan Model 3 with deliveries in the United States starting already next month. The new version starts at $45,490 (after applying the $7,500 Federal EV tax credit) and goes from 0 to 60mph in 2.9 seconds.
On Tuesday Tesla reported its earnings results followed by a conference call that brought several updates on the company’s roadmap for future vehicles, autonomous driving, Optimus and much more.
While answering a question from Goldman Sachs analyst Mark Delaney about updates on the licensing of Tesla’s Full Self-Driving (FSD) technology, Elon Musk said they’re talking to one major auto manufacturer and there’s “a good chance” the company signs the first deal before year-end. However, he went on to say that it would probably be three years before the necessary changes are integrated into the car.
I think we have a good chance we do sign a deal this year
Brings Benefits to Tesla
The technology would require other automakers to start using the same cameras and hardware as Tesla, meaning that Tesla may not only generate money from licensing FSD but also from selling the hardware itself. However, there would be other benefits as well. When licensing FSD, Tesla would likely own the data gathered with the system well, further helping them with data and edge cases that need to be solved to reach full autonomy.
people don't understand all cars will need to be smart cars… Once that becomes obvious, I think licensing becomes not optional.
Tesla’s Chief Financial Officer Vaibhav Taneja commented pointing out that future partners “take a lot of time in their product life cycle” resulting in a gap between the deal signing and the arrival in the market of Tesla’s FSD software.
Miles Driven With FSD
On the conference call, Musk added that Tesla now has over 300 million miles that have been driven with FSD v12 since it was launched just last month. He added that it's becoming “very clear that the vision-based approach with end-to-end neural networks is the right solution for scalable autonomy”.
Tesla said it will continue to increase its “core AI infrastructure capacity in the coming months” adding that in the first quarter, it completed the transition to hardware 4.0 with China now receiving the upgraded FSD computer and cameras.
Over the weekend, Tesla reduced the price of FSD dropping it from $12,000 to $8,000 for customers in the United States and from CA$16,000 to CA$11,000 in Canada.
Earlier this month, Tesla implemented a 50% price reduction for FSD subscriptions in the U.S. and introduced the subscription model in Canada at a great value of CA$99 per month.
TeslaFi logs your drives and charging sessions, letting you keep a log of your vehice's activity. We highly recommend checking them out if you use your car for business trips and would like to keep track of reimbursements, if you like to see how much you spend on charging or if you just love statistics. Visit their site and see everything they have to offer!
Tesla Android Project enables you to run Android apps in your Tesla. The platform is Open Source and you can deploy it on your own Raspberry Pi 4. Consider supporting the initiative by donating or purchasing the Compute Module 4 Bundle that delivers the best experience. Get $20 off by using the code: NotATeslaApp
The official Tesla app only notifies you if your car is broken into. By installing Sentry Pro on your phone, you will be notified for all Sentry Mode events. Stay connected and avoid potential surprises by receiving notifications. Stop constantly checking the cameras to ensure safety. Check only when necessary, save battery and get peace of mind. Get a 7 day free trial here!
Stay organized, connected, and stylish with Cyberbackpack — the #1 backpack, luggage & travel accessories for Tesla owners. We highly recommend checking them out if you commute or travel and would like a backpack or luggage that is sleek, secure and durable. View their products page and see everything they have to offer!