An EV Expert Thinks Fast Charging Is Overrated. Here's Why It's OK to Take Your Time Powering Back Up.
A look at recent automotive news will show you that EV manufacturers are slashing charging times in an effort to compete with the amount of time you would spend at a gas station. Andrew Cornelia, the CEO of Mercedes-Benz High-Power Charging, called this into question on a recent episode of Inside EV's Plugged-In podcast, claiming that many automakers could be overreaching.
And he may have a point.
We recently reported that BYD, a Chinese automaker, had laid out plans for a 1,000 kW charging solution that would effectively quadruple the amount of electricity that any Tesla model can currently accept. In theory, it sounds great. We always welcome new technology, and so does Cornelia, but he has some very interesting insight about how we should approach juicing up EVs.
Tesla's 3rd-generation Superchargers can supply up to 250 kW of power, able to add approximately 175-200 miles of range in 15 minutes. With Tesla and many other automakers continuing to steadily slash charging times, Cornelia says we could be closer to the Goldilocks zone than we think. He says that charge times of 10, even 12 minutes, would be perfectly acceptable given the time that motorists tend to 'dwell' at the gas station.
We car enthusiasts like to think we're pretty economical with our time at the gas station, but let's face it, we're actually not. While it may only take four minutes to fill up with fuel, that's only the amuse bouche of gas station amenities. Most of us might need to go inside and use the facilities, and maybe even snag a beverage and a snack if we're on an extended road trip. Some gas stations will even have more substantial food options like sandwiches or even fast food chains if you're especially lucky.
After all is said and done, it's pretty easy to find yourself at the gas station for longer than 10 minutes. Just whatever you do, don't park at the pump if you have to venture inside for any accoutrement. Nobody wants to wait for you to complete your weekly grocery shop when they're just looking to top up with fuel.
Cornelia noted that rather than going for outright speed, the charging experience should match the dwell time—adding that there are rarely scenarios where uber-fast charging makes sense. For this exact reason, Mercedes is laying plans to build its upcoming charging stations at points of interest like Starbucks and even Buc-ee's, a Southern chain of mega gas stations.
All this talk against ultra-fast charging doesn't mean that Mercedes-Benz isn't committed to optimizing fast charging for those who need it. Far from it. Many of us don't have access to a garage that would allow us to slowly add range overnight. Mercedes-Benz High-Power Charging still plans to offer 400 kW charging stations, with more than enough muscle to juice up almost any EV in mere moments. For context, Tesla's 4th-generation Superchargers won't be much better, quoting a 500 kW output.
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Tesla Is Launching Robotaxis in Austin. Safety Advocates Are Concerned
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Brett Schreiber, a partner at the San Diego law firm Singleton Schreiber who is currently pursuing multiple injury and wrongful death suits against Tesla over accidents involving its driver-assistance features, agrees that the company is backing down from the Cybercab concept Musk presented last year. 'It is a retreat on the idea that they are going to build out a new vehicle that is capable of autonomy,' he says, though 'a repeat of the continued lies and misrepresentations' from the CEO — namely, that existing Teslas can be turned into robotaxis. 'There is nothing about the vehicle today, whether you slap some lipstick on the pig of a Model Y, or any other vehicle in their production fleet, that [makes it] capable of level four or level five autonomy without driver intervention. They simply haven't gotten there, and just because they keep saying so doesn't make it true.' 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