You’d Have To Be Crazy To Buy a Non-Tesla EV in 2024 - The Weird Reason Why

As rediculous as this may sound, 28 years into the modern age of EVs, the industry has not yet standardized on an electric vehicle fast charging connection. In use right now in America are three different charging standards. The oldest running battery-electric model in America, the Nissan Leaf, uses the CHAdeMO standard. Tesla’s first vehicle, the Roadster, didn’t have DC fast charging capability at all. Newer Teslas since 2012 use what is now called the NACS connector, and every other battery-electric vehicle in America that can DC fast charge uses the CCS connector. What a mess. And it will only get worse before it gets better.

The Big Switch To NACS
The biggest news for 2023 is that all of the major brands who are making battery-electric vehicles, or who plan to, are going to abandon the CCS standard and switch to Tesla’s NACS standard with their new model year vehicles. In the future, this will make things a lot simpler. Wherever you go, the charger will use the Tesla-style NACS charger handle and protocol. However, EVs not made by Tesla today sitting on dealer lots still have the old CCS connectors. 

As Always, Big Government Is Behind
Hilariously, the Biden administration, along with Congress, passed a massive funding bill to help spur new charger infrastructure. In order to tap into this giant pool of taxpayer largess, the companies doing DC fast charger installs using your tax dollars were required to adopt or include the (now defunct) CCS-type connector. And going forward, nobody is going to be producing a CCS car anymore. What a knee-slapper. How did this happen? Well, President Biden was pretending that GM was the leader in EVs while Tesla was actually the leader. It had to do with unions and union financing of elections, but let’s not get too far off track here. 

All Major Brands Are Abandoning CCS
Ford was the first major automaker to break with the pack and decide to adopt Tesla’s NACS-style connector. Ford says on its webpage that “In 2025, Ford will offer next-generation electric vehicles with the North American Charging Standard (NACS) connector built-in…” So, why in the world would anyone buy one of the left-behind CCS-equipped Fords? It won’t be long before the ones with the newer, better charging connector will go on sale. 

Once Ford made the leap, GM quickly followed. On GM’s website, it says pretty much the same thing, “GM will begin to integrate the North American Charging Standard (NACS) in new EVs starting in 2025.” Could it be any more obvious why the Equinox is delayed and the Blazer, Hummer, Lyric, and Silverado are slow-rolling off the production lines?

Following GM and Ford, there was really only one automaker left to watch, and sure enough, the Hyundai/Kia/Genesis triplets all decided to jump on the bandwagon. Although Hyundai’s brands went last making the announcement, they are going to be among the first to ditch CCS. Hyundai says on its site, “In the United States, all-new or refreshed Hyundai EVs will come exclusively with a NACS port, beginning in Q4 2024.” That’s less than ten months from right now.

We could keep listing out the announcements, but why bother? Tesla, Ford, GM, and the Hyundai group make up nearly all of the battery-electric vehicles on sale today and likely tomorrow as well. Every major automaker has decided to switch from the connector the government mandated and instead jump on board with Tesla. 

More Than the Physical Connection Is About to Change
We are trying to make our story as simple to understand as possible so we are using the terms “connector, standard, and charger” loosely to explain this shift. In fact, the switch to NACS is more than just the plug and socket change. GM says it best. “GM will also integrate the Tesla Supercharger Network into its vehicle and mobile apps, helping drivers quickly and easily locate, pay for, and initiate charging at available Tesla Superchargers.” Who wants one of the old-style CCS cars that can’t do all that cool stuff?

In Case It Isn’ Clear - 2024 Is the Beginning of the End of CCS Charging
2024 is one of those weird years in the automotive industry when the products being sold by many top brands are already outdated and, in one sense, “obsolete.” During their usable life, the world will have abandoned the connector they are going to be burdened with. It won't happen immediately, but as time passes, the CCS standard will probably be like CHAdeMO. Hard to find, often broken, and replaced by the newer standard.

What Happens To the CCS-Equipped Electric Cars?
The last remaining CCS-equipped electric cars will see an even steeper decline in value than the ridiculously steep depreciation curve EVs already have. Why would a used vehicle shopper want to buy a car with a charging connector that has been kicked to the curb? Do you remember Scout? It was a navigation system that Toyota adopted just as everyone else on the planet was moving to Google Maps and Waze via Android and Apple phones. If you were shopping for a used car today, how thrilled would you be if it had Scout Nav instead of Google Maps or Waze? Would you perhaps just opt for a different model?

CCS-equipped cars will be just fine for the next year or two. Turning this ship around will be a process. However, eventually, an adapter will be the solution for those owners of the old-fashioned CCS-equipped cars. What a hassle that will be to lug around and use every time one needs to charge in public. Will the adapters allow for full-speed charging? Will they be compatible with all chargers? Will billing be smooth and automatic? Maybe. What if you drop your special adapter and it breaks while you are far from home trying to charge?

Honda will be hit hardest by this shift. The company has yet to sell a battery-electric vehicle in America and was just about to start. Here’s what Honda says on its website: “In 2025, Honda is planning to launch a new EV model in North America equipped with a NACS port. From that point forward, Honda will continue adopting NACS standards for its models."

Honda goes on to say, "EV models the company will launch in North America before 2025, which will be equipped with a Combined Charging System (CCS) port, are also being developed to be compatible with NACS through the use of a charging adaptor.” That’s a tough break. 2024 is about to start, and Honda hasn't yet launched its obsolete standard-equipped CCS cars. Who wants to bet they may just re-design them to use NACS and launch a bit later than planned?

Avoid Sunsetting Tech - Buy a Tesla or Wait
To avoid the old outgoing charger style, simply buy a Tesla. Most EV buyers already do. Tesla has been slashing prices, and at the same time, the value of the dollar has been conveniently dropping like a stone. Heck, buy two Teslas! It’s only money! Another option will be just to wait until Hyundai/Kia/Genesis starts to equip models with NACS connectors in Q4 of the coming year. Or you can wait for pretty much every new EV to come with a new-style NACS charger in 2025. Let’s face it: the new EVs on the way, like the Silverado and Equinox, look pretty snazzy, and they are still a ways off. 

If You Mostly Charge At Home - Buy CCS At a Discount
A future strategy for those who use their EV as a local-use car may be to buy a used CCS-equipped EV. If you charge at home, you can still use your old J-plug Level 2 charger and maybe save serious money. If you hardly ever use public chargers anyway, the old CCS EVs may be heavily discounted in a year or two. This will be a great time to grab an outdated but still perfectly useful battery-electric vehicle. 

Consider a PHEV
The switch to NACS charging away from the old CCS standard is primarily an issue for battery-electric vehicle owners who charge up in public on DCFCs. Plug-in hybrid-electric vehicle owners never need to use DCFCs, and nearly all are not equipped to do so anyway. They can always either drive on using the hybrid system without plugging in, or they can top off at Level 2 charging stations on the go or at home. PHEVs already sidestep the hassles of having to top off a battery in public. The Toyota Prime series and Hyundai/Kia offer some great PHEVs with AWD and costs of energy comparable with BEVs in many markets. 

Don’t Be the Last CCS EV Customer
Most states still have less than 10% of battery-electric vehicle new car sales. And Tesla still dominates the volume of EVs being sold today. If you own a vehicle today that runs adequately, think hard before you rush out to buy a vehicle that even the manufacturer admits will be old technology within a year. Tesla EVs, PHEVs, and even hybrids offer a great alternative. Why be the last buyer of an old-style EV?
 

Top of page image by John Goreham.  NACS charger image courtesy of Tesla, Inc.

John Goreham is an experienced New England Motor Press Association member and expert vehicle tester. John completed an engineering program with a focus on electric vehicles, followed by two decades of work in high-tech, biopharma, and the automotive supply chain before becoming a news contributor. In addition to his eleven years of work at Torque News, John has published thousands of articles and reviews at American news outlets. He is known for offering unfiltered opinions on vehicle topics. You can follow John on Twitter, and connect with him at Linkedin.