America has finally sorted it out to align behind one standard — that of Tesla — when it comes to charging electric vehicles. That will carry big benefits — but also burden drivers with a confusing period of “adapter hell.” For as long as there have been electric vehicles, there’s been a VHS-vs.-Betamax-type battle over the technology used to plug it in. Tesla, whose cars represent the lion’s share of EV sales to date, has had one standard exclusive to its cars, while most other automakers opted for another suite called the Combined Charging System (CCS). Decisions this week by the Biden administration and an influential industry group made this national ascension nearly inevitable, writes David Ferris. SAE, a nonprofit that sets industry benchmarks for a wide range of products, published its first set of standards Monday for the Tesla system, which it now calls J3400. And Tuesday, the Biden administration moved to make it possible for the Tesla system to be eligible for $7.5 billion in federal EV charging funds. Tesla won this standards battle with astonishing speed. Since May, when Ford became the first competitor to adopt Tesla’s standard, a stampede of automakers and charging companies followed. On Tuesday, Volkswagen added its name — leaving Stellantis, maker of Dodge, Ram and Jeep vehicles, as the only holdout. This swift end to such a long standoff can be summed up in one word: reliability. Tesla Superchargers, used to refill an EV battery quickly, generate little user complaint. CCS chargers haven’t fared as well. As automakers that aren’t named Tesla pour new EV brands onto the roads, complaints of glitches at CCS stations have been legion, threatening to undermine future sales — and with it, the hundreds of billions of dollars that the auto industry and the Biden administration have collectively staked on the technology’s success. America’s charging "Kumbaya" moment is only marred by the prospect of many EV drivers spending the next few years fiddling with adapters. “Adapter hell” is what Loren McDonald, an EV charging consultant, called it. Automakers won’t build the new J3400 standard into their new cars until 2025. Until then, it is likely that the adapter itself will become a new source of complaint. Questions remain: Will automakers provide adapters? How much will they cost? Will drivers remember to bring them on trips? Amid wobbly demand, even such niggling questions may bend the curve on EV adoption.
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