Supercharger station cord length needs to be longer for Cybertruck

[CybrTrkWdWk]

This just occured to me...Tesla needs a longer charging station cord option for CT since the 24' long gen2 is being discontinued and gen3 charging station cord maxes out at 18'. It looks like the charge port for CT is about 17' back. Many will be driveway parking and most exterior chargers are installed close to the house, so unless you back into the driveway everytime you charge, 18' isn't going to work for a lot of people. I know other brands offer longer ones, but it seems like Tesla needs a longer gen3 option. I really think a charge port somewhere near the front of the CT would make more sense with it being so long.

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[OverlandCT]

yeah i completely agree with having the charging port in the front, this would especially help people who are towing a trailer, and it would be more practical as its closer to the drivers seat

 

[ajdelange]

The title indicates that the post is about SC cord length but the text is all about Level 2 chargers. Doesn't matter really. The cables on both are too short under some circumstances. Clearly the problem is easily solvable with an extension cord of some sort and we wonder why nobody (that I am aware of anyway) makes one. The answer very probably is that it would have to be heavy enough to handle a 250 kW SC which would make it, at any reasonable length, very heavy and quite expensive.

 

[Frank W]

Personally I am not going to worry about it as I’m sure the folks at Tesla will engineer something suitable.

 

[Ehninger1212]

The title indicates that the post is about SC cord length but the text is all about Level 2 chargers. Doesn't matter really. The cables on both are too short under some circumstances. Clearly the problem is easily solvable with an extension cord of some sort and we wonder why nobody (that I am aware of anyway) makes one. The answer very probably is that it would have to be heavy enough to handle a 250 kW SC which would make it, at any reasonable length, very heavy and quite expensive.

They are quite a few extensions chords for Level 2 chargers. ZERO for superchargers. I think the new V3 charger has liquid cooled lines so that would probably be difficult to create an extension chord that meets those specs.

 

[Ehninger1212]

I think we will begin to see more pull through style superchargers. Like gas station pumps. I know they exist in some places already but around me they are all standard parking spaces. This would be annoying with a trailer but not impossible.

 

[TyPope]

Wait... People don't back into their driveways? How do you unload groceries?

 

[ajdelange]

They are quite a few extensions chords for Level 2 chargers. ZERO for superchargers. I think the new V3 charger has liquid cooled lines so that would probably be difficult to create an extension chord that meets those specs.

If I do a search on Tesla Charger Extension I find several offerings but none is really a Tesla charger cable extension. Most of the are just camper extension cords which will allow one to plug in his UMC further away from an outlet than he otherwise would. The thing that comes closest is a J1772 extension cord which one could plug into a Tesla Tap. He would then have to use the J1772 adapter at the end of the J1772 extension cord to get back to the Tesla connector format. This sounds like a kludge for sure but it does work, at least HPWC --> TeslaTap -->J1772 Adapter --> car does but I've never tried it with the J1772 extension cord as I don't have one. When I spoke of a Tesla extension cord I meant one with a female Tesla receptacle at one end and a Tesla male receptacle at the other. If you've found one of those please post the link (but only if it's easy to find - don't waste hours looking for it).

The V3 SC's don't use liquid cooled cables AFAIK but that's the kernel of the problem. If an extension cord mates with Tesla connectors at both ends it has to be able to carry the current of any Tesla power supply. The TeslaTap, if connectes to an SC senses that and shuts down. Obviously they could put a longer cord and a Tesla connector male on the other end instead of J1772 if they wanted to make and sell something like that and such a product would solve the problem of those who want to use their HPWC with the car out in the driveway but would not help someone at an ICEd SC.

 

[ajdelange]

I think we will begin to see more pull through style superchargers. Like gas station pumps. I know they exist in some places already but around me they are all standard parking spaces. This would be annoying with a trailer but not impossible.

I wonder about that. It turns out there is a reason why most SC require backing in. The terminals are relatively out of the way of traffic. I was delighted when I pulled into the Strasburg (VA) station and noted that all the stalls were pull forward. My delight was dampened when I found that 2 out of the 6 terminals had been damaged by vehicle strikes.

Obviously if they can install gas pumps protected by bollards or whatever they can do the same with SC terminals. It's doubtless less expensive with the back in arrangement though.

 

[Ehninger1212]

If I do a search on Tesla Charger Extension I find several offerings but none is really a Tesla charger cable extension. Most of the are just camper extension cords which will allow one to plug in his UMC further away from an outlet than he otherwise would. The thing that comes closest is a J1772 extension cord which one could plug into a Tesla Tap. He would then have to use the J1772 adapter at the end of the J1772 extension cord to get back to the Tesla connector format. This sounds like a kludge for sure but it does work, at least TeslaTap -->J1772 Adapter -->car does but I've never tried it with the J1772 extension cord as I don't have one. When I spoke of a Tesla extension cord I meant one with a female Tesla receptacle at one end and a Tesla male receptacle at the other. If you've found one of those please post the link (but only if it's easy to find - don't waste hours looking for it).

The V3 SC's don't use liquid cooled cables AFAIK but that's the kernel of the problem. If an extension cord mates with Tesla connectors at both ends it has to be able to carry the current of any Tesla power supply. The TeslaTap, if connectes to an SC senses that and shuts down. Obviously they could put a longer cord and a Tesla connector male on the other end instead of J1772 if they wanted to make and sell something like that and such a product would solve the problem of those who want to use their HPWC with the car out in the driveway but would not help someone at an ICEd SC.

Good point, i have not seen an extension for Female Tesla to male Tesla extension. But it is possible to get extensions for NEMA outlets thats for sure.

Also the V3 is certainly liquid cooled cable:
"Tesla announced that new Supercharger is able to deliver a new 250 kW of peak power thanks to an “all-new liquid cooled cable design.” The video below shows it going even higher to 256kW. "
-Electrek.co
https://electrek.co/2019/03/06/tesla-supercharger-v3-kw-capacity-efficiency/

 

[Ehninger1212]

I wonder about that. It turns out there is a reason why most SC require backing in. The terminals are relatively out of the way or traffic. I was delighted when I pulled into the Strasburg (VA) station and noted that all the stalls were pull forward. My delight was dampened when I found that 2 out of the 6 terminals had been damaged by vehicle strikes.

Obviously if they can install gas pumps protected by bollards or whatever they can do the same with SC terminals. It's doubtless less expensive with the back in arrangement though.

Yeah.. bollards are easy. I design a lot of dealerships and we put them EVERYWHERE! otherwise people WILL run into things. One dealer specifically made us remove the bollards from the plans.. 1st week the building was open a sales guy drove a car right into the front of the showroom SMH..

True the back in is easier/faster to install just anywhere.

 

[CyberCop]

I also was wondering how I would be able to charge while towing a trailer whether it would be utility or RV.
I can’t imagine this isn’t something that the engineers in Tesla are not looking at.
and if it’s something that they are not addressing I am sure this will be a great opportunity for a third-party manufacturer.

 

[Sandy38618]

Wait... People don't back into their driveways? How do you unload groceries?

I would rather back into my drive! I like to pull out when ready to leave, since I am thinking what I need to do and often not paying as much attention when leaving!

 

[ajdelange]

Teslas come with a backup camera that displays a big picture on the main display. The picture includes lines that show the path of the car given the steering wheel position. Backing is not much of a challenge.

 

[CyberCop]

I wonder if you will be able to drive this from the key fob like the model X