Shortly after it signed a deal granting its EV owners access to the Tesla Supercharger network, Ford announced that those same owners would be able to order a free adapter that enables its Combined Charging Standard (CCS) equipped vehicles to utilize that company’s North American Charging Standard (NACS) chargers. There were a few snags in that process, ranging from supply chain issues to a problem with select units that required a replacement – which later came in the form of a new fast charging adapter. Now, that part is officially available to purchase.
Now that Ford has officially fulfilled all of its requests for free fast charging adapters, the new OEM unit developed in conjunction with Lectron has made its debut in the Blue Oval catalog. The Ford fast charging adapter retails for $200 and gives EV owners access not only to the Tesla Supercharger network, but also, other charging stations that utilize NACS ports across the U.S. and Canada. It’s an OEM certified part that’s rated for up to 500 amps and 1,000 volts, and it’s designed to fit neatly in places such as the glovebox.
The new Ford OEM fast charging adapter is compatible with a host of the automaker’s EVs including the 2022-2025 Ford F-150 Lightning, 2021-2025 Ford Mustang Mach-E, and 2022-2025 Ford E-Transit. However, since Ford’s plug-in hybrids and the Focus Electric don’t have access to the BlueOval Charging Network – and in some cases, aren’t able to utilize DC fast charging – the adapter won’t work in with those models. Additionally, the adapter isn’t compatible with Level 1 and Level 1 AC chargers, including home chargers with NACS connectors and Tesla Destination Chargers.
Thus far, this new Ford fast charging adapter has performed well in real-world testing, and compares favorably to the similar Voltrex unit sold by Lectron. However, the external shape is slightly different, it has a thicker locking pin, and there’s also a tab in the DC pins of the new unit that prevents the NACS connector from being released while the vehicle is plugged in. Overall, it’s pretty clear that the new Ford/Lectron unit is designed to be a bit beefier than the existing Voltrex piece, giving owners a tighter connection, which could have been designed to prevent potential issues down the road.
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