Tesla's Elon Musk announced plans to open up its Supercharger network to allow others EVs to charge at its stations back in 2021. And while the company has slowly done just that outside the U.S., the charging connector is a bit of a problem here, but Tesla has an adapter in the works.
Supercharger networks quickly expanded in the Netherlands, select regions in Europe did the same, and that's because the CCS connector to charge vehicles is readily available around the globe. However, Tesla's proprietary connector in North America makes things more difficult.
Instead of simply opening up its Supercharger network to other EV makers, Tesla needs to develop an adapter. We've heard about Tesla's "magic dock" for a while, and now new reports are shedding light on how they might work.
While some electric vehicle manufacturers want Congress to make Tesla's plug the standard for EVs stateside, that will likely never happen. Especially with nearly every automaker building new EVs as fast as possible.
That aside, it looks like Tesla is getting ready to release its magic dock, making it simple for EV owners in the U.S. to use its Supercharger network. You can't have adapters sitting at stations, as people would steal them. Instead, it sounds like the magic dock will integrate into the charging station, and users get to choose which end to use. Either Tesla's proprietary charging plug or pull the entire device off the charger and use the dock adapter end.
The image above is nothing more than a quick mock-up, but the source claims it represents an actual product they've seen photos of. Rather than have a weird adapter, the entire contraption docks into the adapter to streamline the experience. It'll likely release the full dock after a non-Tesla driver selects the charging stall and pays through the mobile app, which will also prevent theft.
We've heard the term magic dock before, but how and when Tesla does things remains a mystery until further notice.