Charging Not at Home (Help Please!)

[mickeyme]

I'm sorry. This is a stupid newbie question, but... I just don't understand charging.

We've had a Tesla for years. Using the Tesla network is stupidly easy on the road, and we have a charger at home.

Now we also have a Rivian R1S - have had for 3 months. We use our Tesla charger with an adapter at home and otherwise, I'm lost. We'd like to do a road trip with the car in early September, but I don't understand how to plan this out. I've tried using A Better Routeplanner, but I like to plan redundencies, and I'm not sure what chargers I can use or not. I am pretty sure CCS works and, of course, I won't have an adapter until ???

UGH. We got literally a 20 minute walk around on the car when we picked it up (didn't do a test drive because that was 3 hours away), and half of that time was spent pairing my phone. So I REALLY feel lost here. Please tell me there is some magic thing to understand and it will all click. I'm pretty frustrated that I've spent this much on a car and can't take it anywhere. I could have paid for an Uber for my entire road trip for less, and it would have been less hassle.

Oh, and for those waiting on the NACS adapter - great news. According to the rep that I talked to a few minutes ago, the adapters will be FOR SALE on the gear shop shortly (within days, she seemed to think). So, having spent hundreds of thousands of dollars on a car, you will be able to spend hundreds more to buy the free adapter that they promised you but won't sent any time soon because "limited stock" (but not so limited that they can't make a buck).

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[RedRaiderRivian]

I'm sorry. This is a stupid newbie question, but... I just don't understand charging.

We've had a Tesla for years. Using the Tesla network is stupidly easy on the road, and we have a charger at home.

Now we also have a Rivian R1S - have had for 3 months. We use our Tesla charger with an adapter at home and otherwise, I'm lost. We'd like to do a road trip with the car in early September, but I don't understand how to plan this out. I've tried using A Better Routeplanner, but I like to plan redundencies, and I'm not sure what chargers I can use or not. I am pretty sure CCS works and, of course, I won't have an adapter until ???

Hi Mickeyme. It's not a stupid question as charging a CCS only vehicle shouldn't be this difficult but the charging infrastructure is a little behind. Take a look at this video

and then search the forum for other threads on route planning. There are some great explanations on how people approach trip planning.

 

[VandalSibs]

The route planner in the vehicle will help you in this regard, just like with your Tesla - but now with more charging networks to choose from!

There is some filtering you can play with (both in the vehicle or using the Rivian app), but it won't route you to a charger that isn't compatible unless you explicitly tell it to do so.

A Better Route Planner is also a good resource (I like the website better than the app, but that's just me), and will set filter out chargers that you can't use when you tell it what modelof vehicle you have.

 

[Revelation]

Now we also have a Rivian R1S - have had for 3 months. We use our Tesla charger with an adapter at home and otherwise, I'm lost. We'd like to do a road trip with the car in early September, but I don't understand how to plan this out. I've tried using A Better Routeplanner, but I like to plan redundencies, and I'm not sure what chargers I can use or not. I am pretty sure CCS works and, of course, I won't have an adapter until ???

You can pickup an A2Z adapter and use most of the Tesla Supercharging network right away. You can wait for the official adapter as well, it is all up to you.

The Rivian NAV does a decent job of route planning and selecting charging locations. Without Tesla Superchargers you will sometimes find the charging infrastructure mildly to down right infuriating at times. Now, don't get me wrong, I have had some good experiences as well, it's just no where near what you are used to with Teslas' network.

With a NACS adapter, if can be just as "easy" or pleasant. ABRP is a good tool, it will give you valid routes. You just need to filter for CCS for DCS fast charging or J1772 for AC charging. In the app, ABRP or Rivian's, you can also filter by charging speed. Some networks are better than others and everyone has networks they like and don't like. You can use Plugshare to look at the charger locations that ABRP or Rivian select to ensure they are actually going to give you what you need.

 

[RivAW]

Pick up an A2Z NACS adapter if you want to use Telsa superchargers.
I have had zero issues with EA, ChargePoint and EVGO.
i have found it best (read “easiest”) to use PlugShare to locate and compare available chargers, then navigate directly to them. I have not yet tried navigating with ABRP because I find it more confusing ….
The Guides are sometimes helpful but sometimes spread misinformation. Take anything you got from the guide/cs with a grain of salt. It is very unlikely they will be stocking the gear shop with the hard to come by adapters anytime soon. Those that simply “can’t wait” have already purchased one of the available alternatives which leaves probably very few that are risk-averse enough to have a “real reason” to just wait for the approved adapter.

 

[Taco Corp]

The Rivian app route planner works pretty well for this purpose, just filters to hide any charging stations that are incompatible or require an adapter. Plan out your trip, be sure to update the charge % you'll be starting with, it defaults to the current vehicle charge level when you create the plan, and send it to your vehicle. Mileage will vary by location, but I can usually get up and down the West Coast using Rivian or EA chargers with the occasional free but slow overnight charge at a hotel. On my last trip I had the A2Z adapter and used a couple of Tesla chargers without any issues other than the price being $.20-.30 cents higher than Rivian or EA stations.

If your route will have a bunch of EA chargers definitely get their app installed and create an account before you hit the road, same for any of the others. The EA membership is $4 I think and the discounted rate on charging that comes with it is well worth it for a month if you'll be charging a few times.

I always double-check charging stops in PlugShare as well to get more real-time information on stations that may not be working, are running slowly, etc..

 

[Mathme]

ABRP and Plugshare will be your friends. One nice thing is the Rivian Nav will only select/show chargers that have good charge history. Note that this functionality just started a few months ago and is crowd-sourced from your other Rivian owners so the data is sparse.

Here's some general suggestions:

1. Use ABRP and Plugshare to plan your route and charge stops. ABRP is nice because you can enter the vehicle and your charge parameters and it'll suggest the appropriate stops for you. You can then use Plugshare to check "how good" those recommended stations are.
2. When I drove from CA to WA last fall, I used the dash nav and only entered my next stop as my final destination. This way I'm setting where my next stop will be. Others on this forum have been taken a long ways off the beaten path only to find a 50kWh charger the Nav wanted them to use (rather than a faster one along the route).
3. When you enter your next destination into the Nav, the Rivian Nav is pretty accurate as far as range at your destination. Ignore the miles to empty on the driver screen as that's a total guess-o-meter.
4. Get the App for other charging companies and get your cc in there before you go. I also recommend you try a charge session locally as well. There's no reason to be fussing with it when on your road trip.
5. Some companies have direct billing through Rivian and some don't. Know the price differences for each company you plan to use and see what's most economical.
6. Some companies -- EA for example -- have multiple ways you start and pay for a charge. Some of these ways work better than others. For example, I've always fussed with using Apple Wallet at an EA Station...it never seems to work. However, if I open the EA app once I'm at the station and plugged in and initiate the session from the App...it constantly works for me.
7. Know that sometimes you'll just have issues and may need to move to another station. Last week I tried to use a RAN and the entire station was off-line. You could plug in, start the charge, then it'd immediately stop the session. It happens to all. I then moved to an EA Station a few miles away and charged there and got a consistent 150kWh.

Enjoy!

 

[Dave Cundiff]

@mickeyme, you've gotten a lot of good advice above. Here's mine, for what it's worth:

PlugShare (either the PlugShare app or www.plugshare.com) is the go-to application for all public chargers, at least in North America. (Coverage outside North America may be less complete, but they try....) PlugShare's extensive database makes it our go-to for road-trip planning.

PlugShare's database searches are rich with options. Best to search for chargers with compatible connectors, whose charging speed, charging cost, and reliability score/reliability comments will meet your needs at that time.

Your needs will vary during the course of your trip. For instance, at a charging stop where you want only a bathroom break, charging speed is pretty important. At a mealtime stop, charging speed is less important, but proximity to a place you want to eat matters. (We generally prefer to charge within a safe walk of the restaurant, but sometimes we buy takeout food if the charger we want isn't as close as we want.). For an overnight hotel stay, Level 2 charging is usually fast enough, so reliability and cost are the most important.

Our road-trip planning steps, in which each step really is manageable, are these. If it's daunting, take a deep breath between sentences:

(1) When preparing for road trips, we got a TeslaTap adapter (our favorite is http://www.umc-j1772.com/index.php?route=product/product&product_id=100, made in USA and shipped promptly from California). This adapter, like other NACS-to-J1772 AC adapters, does not work in Tesla Superchargers! However, because it works at Tesla Destination chargers, it more than doubles our options for Level 2 charging at hotels.

(2) Figure out your proposed road trip's best route, including any stops to see people or other attractions, assuming that charging won't be a problem. (The subsequent steps will show you if that assumption was correct or not. You usually won't need any big detours from your best route, but there are still a few exceptions in very rural areas.)

(3) Figure out your daily mileage goal, taking into account who's driving and the purpose(s) of the trip. Don't plan a trip where you might feel rushed -- you want to make good memories, not anxious ones. For "getting from one place to another" over long distances with just two adults, my wife and I were happy with 550-600 miles per day. If we charged overnight from 20% to nearly 100% at each hotel, we could cover 550-600 miles in 11-14 hours on the road (including charging stops). Remember your days will be a little shorter or longer if you're crossing time zones.

(4) Find charger-friendly hotels about the right distance apart. Reliability and cost are crucial for hotel chargers -- you don't have much ability to change hotels, so a bad charger means the time and expense of an extra charge during your daily "road time." Our primary means of finding hotel chargers is PlugShare, filtered for the "Lodging" amenity and instructing PlugShare to also show you "Restricted" chargers. (PlugShare's standard is that a "Hotel Guests Only" charger should be marked "Guests Only" and not "Restricted," but many PlugShare users erroneously mark hotel listings as "Restricted" anyway.) Our secondary means of finding hotel chargers is to filter a hotel database -- we prefer www.aaa.com -- for the amenity of "Electric Vehicle Charging Station." That sometimes locates chargers that were there all along in PlugShare, but missed my attention in the primary search. One other tip about hotels -- sometimes the best charging is a few miles off the main highway, especially at resort hotels [e.g., The Lodge at Deadwood (SD)] rather than near a highway exit.

(5) Now you have the route for each day, mostly starting at a hotel and ending at a hotel. Now filter PlugShare for high-speed DC Fast chargers, maybe 70-100 kW or higher, close to that route. You need chargers with CCS-1 plugs (that's the North American version, sometimes called just "CCS") or Tesla "Magic Dock" chargers, in order to charge rapidly without an NACS-to-CCS DC adapter. If it's your first road trip, this may not be the time to learn which Tesla chargers will fit your Rivian, with or without a third-party NACS-to-CCS adapter. You'll mostly do fine with CCS -- there's almost no route where you need a Tesla Supercharger to get there comfortably.

(6) This is an optional step, but it fits with your emphasis on "redundancies." I take 20-30 minutes to make a paper notesheet for each day using PlugShare, with these columns: (A) Miles from the starting hotel (which, since they're all near the route, also shows me roughly how many miles apart they are from each other). (B) Very short description of the charger location, such as "Papik Motors, Luverne MN," and what network. (C) Maximum rated charger speed. (D) PlugScore reliability score. (E) Charging cost, if known. (For networked chargers, I often have to install and consult the app for the charging network to find the cost. When I leave a PlugShare "check in," I try to note the cost for others' benefit.) (F) Comments (perhaps about something to see or do within walking distance of the charger).

(7) Especially if two high-speed chargers are more than 80-100 miles apart, consider charging at each charger so you have enough charge to comfortably get to the charger beyond the next one. (All else being equal, you'll charge faster in the lower part of your battery's range. But that charging-speed difference won't matter if you get stranded, or have to slow to 50 mph on the interstate to get to a working charger, or have to re-route to a Level 2 because you were counting on a fast charger that failed you. This is where your insistence on "redundancies" will save you trouble, @mickeyme.)

(8) Try to make all your stops do "double duty" if you can. Many attractions now have Level 2 charging within walking distance. Most fast chargers are a short and safe walk from restrooms and dining. You don't need enough range to get from morning to night. You just need enough range to get from stop to stop, with a safety margin. Another forum participant, when asked about "range and charging speed," says, "The Rivian has enough range so we have to stop before it does. And it charges fast enough so by the time we're out of the store, it's usually got all the charge it needs to take us till we need to stop again."

(9) As @Mathme pointed out, the "miles remaining" in the lower corner of the driver's screen refers to EPA-rated mileage estimates under ideal conditions. Those estimates are too optimistic! The "state of charge at next stop" in the Rivian Nav software takes a lot more variables into account and is a lot more realistic. Usually your arrival state of charge will be a little higher than the Rivian Nav estimated. However, literally, "your mileage may vary" depending on load, speed, braking, and especially towing.

(10) Once underway, to precondition the battery for faster charging, use the Rivian Nav to find the CHARGER ICON (not just the charger's address) on the Nav's map. Enter the charger via the charger icon as a destination or waypoint, and it should heat or cool the battery (sometimes an hour or more before the stop) to optimize initial charging rates and prevent heat-related slowdowns during the charge itself. We only did this sometimes in June, and it didn't seem to matter much whether we did it or not, but it could matter a lot in really cold or really hot weather.

(11) Once you're well prepared, remember that the PURPOSE of all this preparation was so you could enjoy the trip -- so now enjoy it! Our Rivians are superb road trip vehicles, with great safety and great views, and they're better for the environment than any fossil fuel vehicle. We love it!

 

[MidnightRivian]

Ford said they plan to sell the adapter for $230.

I wonder what price Rivian will sell it at.

@mickeyme You can wait to see what price point and availability Rivian will offer you or like other members on the forum, you can pick up a 3rd party adapter sooner.

This adapter will work on superchargers that are open to vehicle with NACS adapter.

A2Z is a popular Tesla Supercharger adapter used by many folks who own a Rivian R1T / R1S or Ford lightning / Mach-E.

You can save 10% and get free shipping on A2Z website by using the forum discount code “RIV”.

They recently updated the adapter to make it a little more user friendly. I have one on order too.

You can bundle the A2Z Stellar AC Tesla to J-1772 for $68 additional after discount by using the drop down on the Typhoon Pro page to get both adapters. This is probably what you use at home on your Tesla home charger.

A2Z EV Tesla Supercharger Adapter for Rivian - Save 10% + FREE shipping with discount code "RIV". 12 Months Warranty

 

[Treebeard]

I'm sorry. This is a stupid newbie question, but... I just don't understand charging.

We've had a Tesla for years. Using the Tesla network is stupidly easy on the road, and we have a charger at home.

Now we also have a Rivian R1S - have had for 3 months. We use our Tesla charger with an adapter at home and otherwise, I'm lost. We'd like to do a road trip with the car in early September, but I don't understand how to plan this out. I've tried using A Better Routeplanner, but I like to plan redundencies, and I'm not sure what chargers I can use or not. I am pretty sure CCS works and, of course, I won't have an adapter until ???

UGH. We got literally a 20 minute walk around on the car when we picked it up (didn't do a test drive because that was 3 hours away), and half of that time was spent pairing my phone. So I REALLY feel lost here. Please tell me there is some magic thing to understand and it will all click. I'm pretty frustrated that I've spent this much on a car and can't take it anywhere. I could have paid for an Uber for my entire road trip for less, and it would have been less hassle.

Oh, and for those waiting on the NACS adapter - great news. According to the rep that I talked to a few minutes ago, the adapters will be FOR SALE on the gear shop shortly (within days, she seemed to think). So, having spent hundreds of thousands of dollars on a car, you will be able to spend hundreds more to buy the free adapter that they promised you but won't sent any time soon because "limited stock" (but not so limited that they can't make a buck).

I just did VT to FL and back using only the planner in the Rivian. No issues, nice and easy. Down load all the charging apps you can and set up accounts. For instance, Mercedes chargers at Bucees use ChargePoint to pay. In FL, FPL-the power company has there own app to use their chargers, also the cheapest charger I have found. Your Rivian wont send you to a charger it can’t plug into. It may not always send you on the most logical route, so look at the map, see where chargers are and plan. Sometimes I drive point to point, because my route changes through out the day.

 

[SwampNut]

Plugshare will give you an overview of where chargers are. Filter by CCS and high speed or whatever you want.

ABRP is a good planner, besides the one in the Rivian app itself.

Electrify America has the worst charging network and you have to always have a backup plan if you need to use them.

RAN chargers cost a LOT less than Superchargers, but the SCs tend to be in better places, at least in my area of the Southwest.

Buy the SC adapter unless you find a lot of good compatible stations in your travel area.

 

[DCFC]

https://insideevs.com/news/728585/ford-nacs-adapter-rollout-delayed-again/

" According to Bloomberg, Tesla is manufacturing the NACS-to-CCS adapters at its facility in Buffalo, New York and shipping them to partnering automakers. Tesla fired its entire 500-member Supercharger team early this year as it pivots to AI and robotaxis. Thousands of workers at its Buffalo factory were impacted by the layoffs as well, Reuters reported. Since then, Tesla rehired many of those who were fired. "

 

[LNL_HUTZ]

According to the rep that I talked to a few minutes ago, the adapters will be FOR SALE on the gear shop shortly (within days, she seemed to think).

I have serious doubts about this part, based on everything I have read and been told. But if Rivian does start selling the adapters in the Gear Shop before they provide them to every owner, I certainly wouldn’t consider buying one, returning it within the 90-day return window, then repeating until I get my free adapter...

 

[carsly]

Unfortunately, CCS is a dead-end standard like Betamax, HD-DVD or ChaDemo - at least here in North America. Expect to see fewer and fewer chargers as time goes on and the industry rolls existing CCS outlets over to NACS.

That said, the CCS network is serviceable, but painful. No real information on charger crowding, availability, uptime, charging rate delivered, etc. Crowdsourcing via ABRP and Plugshare works, but it isn't as good as centrally collected and monitored data that integrates with the vehicle nav a la Tesla. Long story short, it can be managed but definitely requires some work unlike Tesla where you're like to find a Supercharger just about anywhere you go and the worst case is it's only a v2 at 150 kw. Many CCS charge points are 50kw or lower and EA stations are, in my experience, often derated to 72 kw or less (30-40 kw is not unusual). I'd expect CCS service levels, already quite poor, to drop as they shift to NACS.

You can manage with an adapter, it's okay. I had a Polestar 2 and it was fine, but not great. Three Teslas later and I can't see going back to CCS. I like the RIvians, and rarely need Supercharging, but when you need it, you need it. Full stop. I'd just offer to plan your route and have 1st, 2nd and 3rd options laid our for your charging stops and try not to run below 20% so that you have some margin for error. IMHO, the only value of the Max pack as a non-tow person, is having more room for error in relation to the CCS charging network.

 

[Aardvark]

A lot of great advice already posted. I'll add a few more points-
1. Where can you charge right now?: With just the gear that came with your car you can charge at any CCS charger for Level 3, high speed charging (think Supercharger). You can charge at Level 2 speeds at any J1772 charger. You have adapters to charge on a NEMA 14-50 socket (50 amp chargers at campgrounds). And you can trickle charge on a standard 120 volt wall outlet.

2. There are 2 types of Tesla adapters...don't confuse them.
The NACS-to-CCS adapter mentioned by others can only be used at certain Superchargers (v3 and v4), and can only be used for DC fast charging, even though a Tesla AC plug (destination charger) will fit in the adapter. We use the A2Z mentioned by others.

A Tesla-to-J1772 adapter will allow you to use Tesla Destination Chargers at hotels and elsewhere for Level 2 charging only. We use the Tesla Tap Mini for this and really like it. It's expensive but very well made. It allows the use of a small padlock to secure the adapter to the car, even if someone disconnects the Tesla plug.

3. We have 8000+ miles of cross country travel all done without the NACS-CCS adapter, and had no issues with charging. The key, as stated earlier in the thread, is to use PlugShare with the filters set to show the CCS and J1772 plugs only. Unless you get an adapter, make sure the filters in the car are set to ignore NACS (Tesla) chargers, and blocks "requires adapter" stations from showing up.

4. We found it helpful to have preloaded the apps for Electrify America, EVGo, ChargePoint, and Shell Recharge before our first trip, and created accounts. We saw a lot of chargers where the credit card readers did not work, but our apps did.

Oh, and enjoy your trip. And thank you for asking a question that many others probably had. You likely helped a bunch of folks.

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