Tesla Supercharger Testing, Video and Charge Curve (Using Rivian R1T)

[MountainPassPerformance]

Hi Everyone,

With Tesla's opening of supercharger access for Rivians opening up on the 18th, we were eager to get to a supercharger and experience the process. The pain here in Canada of Level 3 chargers is unberaable, and you'll see in the video we have some rather pointed words for the charge operators who we feel have done a massive disservice to EV adoption as a whole.

Our motto is "The only thing worse than no charging is bad charging." This couldn't be more true, because no one in their right mind would plan a road trip to somewhere without charging if it was beyond range, but when there are some Level 3 chargers along the way, we all trust them to work!

We arrived at the charger with around 25% battery, and with the battery preconditioned to 24 degrees C. In this video, we used the A2Z EV NACS adapter which worked great other than a little bit of fiddling with the "lock" latch which is required for the charger to work.

In Canada at the time of the video, we weren't able to just pull in and charge. Perhaps that is coming in the future, but we had to either use the Rivian app or Tesla app to select a stall and start charging. Overal the process isn't as seamless as charging a Tesla, but compared to other chargers it was so much better.

The video covers some of the other steps on how to get connected if it's your first time (it won't be your last!!)



Here is a coarse idea of the charge power we achieved during our first session. The data points are input every 5% SoC.

In the end, we have to say THANK YOU Tesla for opening up your network to others. No doubt losing a significant competitive edge as this is by far the most reliable and useful charging network on the planet at this time. Yes we understand government incentives were involved, but none the less it is a big move for Tesla.

Also a big thank you to Rivian for pushing for this and making it happen so quickly. We can now tow our racecars without worry, and charge together with our other Tesla friends!

On that note, here's a photo of our Rivian and our Featherlite 32' aluminum enclosed trailer, towing our EV swapped Lotus Evora to the Canadian International Autoshow. The truck did an incredible job towing. It is by far the best and smoothest towing experience I've had, specifically when it comes to reversing. No flaring torque converters and overheating transmissions - just smooth, seamless torque and smooth ultra quick steering. Never thought towing could bring so much joy!

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[jjswan33]

Thanks for sharing. Charging curve looks the same as RAN, EA and other high speed chargers, expected at this point but still great news.

Also thanks for sharing the info/explanation without making us watch the video

 

[MountainPassPerformance]

Thanks for sharing. Charging curve looks the same as RAN, EA and other high speed chargers, expected at this point but still great news.

Also thanks for sharing the info/explanation without making us watch the video

I think the fewer people who watch the video the better. The pain of having to look at my face for too long must be unbearable...

Next time we'll find someone a little bit easier on the eyes. At least Jesse makes up for it a little bit!

 

[NY_Rob]

Thanks for the write-up and video Sasha!

Hopefully Rivian will change their cell cooling strategy in the R2 from the current top and bottom plate cooling in the R1 vehicles to the Tesla wrap-around style cell cooling which is much more efficient so we can extend the higher amperage rates further into the full charge area. Tapering down at 40% is waaaay early.

 

[MidnightRivian]

Here is a thread on additional discussions regarding ordering times and availability.


https://www.rivianforums.com/forum/...-ccs-500a-1000v-adapter-youtube-review.25347/

I just ordered one using discount code "RIV" and will use it until the official one shows up.

A2Z EV Link - NACS (Tesla® Supercharger & NACS 3RD PARTY DC CHARGERS) to CCS1 Adapter | 500A | 1000V

Folks who ordered A2Z adapter 2 - 3 weeks ago are receiving it now. This is what the company has to say about availability.

Here we are!

Just wanted to drop in and say we’re here for you all, ready to chat and help out on the forum whenever you need.

Let's clarify something:
We have stock, we receive inventory almost everyday and we ship hundreds of orders daily since the 5th of January. Over a thousand Ford owners are already using our adapters on Tesla Superchargers since the 29th of February.

Now, about the wait time for this adapter—it's taking 2-3 weeks to ship because we've got a ton of orders to handle, we’re super strict about checking each adapter (yep, every single one gets inspected and tested in China and Canada), and our shipping team isn’t huge. But don’t worry, we’re on it! We’re thinking about bringing more folks on board to speed things up. Just hang tight, we’re getting there and improving how fast we can get these adapters out to you.

As a side note, we are the only company currently shipping NACS to CCS1 adapters, the only one...

- A2Z EV

 

[Gen(R3)Xer]

Hi Everyone,

With Tesla's opening of supercharger access for Rivians opening up on the 18th, we were eager to get to a supercharger and experience the process. The pain here in Canada of Level 3 chargers is unberaable, and you'll see in the video we have some rather pointed words for the charge operators who we feel have done a massive disservice to EV adoption as a whole.

Our motto is "The only thing worse than no charging is bad charging." This couldn't be more true, because no one in their right mind would plan a road trip to somewhere without charging if it was beyond range, but when there are some Level 3 chargers along the way, we all trust them to work!

We arrived at the charger with around 25% battery, and with the battery preconditioned to 24 degrees C. In this video, we used the A2Z EV NACS adapter which worked great other than a little bit of fiddling with the "lock" latch which is required for the charger to work.

In Canada at the time of the video, we weren't able to just pull in and charge. Perhaps that is coming in the future, but we had to either use the Rivian app or Tesla app to select a stall and start charging. Overal the process isn't as seamless as charging a Tesla, but compared to other chargers it was so much better.

The video covers some of the other steps on how to get connected if it's your first time (it won't be your last!!)



Here is a coarse idea of the charge power we achieved during our first session. The data points are input every 5% SoC.

In the end, we have to say THANK YOU Tesla for opening up your network to others. No doubt losing a significant competitive edge as this is by far the most reliable and useful charging network on the planet at this time. Yes we understand government incentives were involved, but none the less it is a big move for Tesla.

Also a big thank you to Rivian for pushing for this and making it happen so quickly. We can now tow our racecars without worry, and charge together with our other Tesla friends!

On that note, here's a photo of our Rivian and our Featherlite 32' aluminum enclosed trailer, towing our EV swapped Lotus Evora to the Canadian International Autoshow. The truck did an incredible job towing. It is by far the best and smoothest towing experience I've had, specifically when it comes to reversing. No flaring torque converters and overheating transmissions - just smooth, seamless torque and smooth ultra quick steering. Never thought towing could bring so much joy!

Glad you had a good experience. All EVs should be charging with each other. This is the future of mobility. Kudos to Tesla and Rivian working together to get it done for their customers.

 

[R1Sky Business]

Hi Everyone,

With Tesla's opening of supercharger access for Rivians opening up on the 18th, we were eager to get to a supercharger and experience the process. The pain here in Canada of Level 3 chargers is unberaable, and you'll see in the video we have some rather pointed words for the charge operators who we feel have done a massive disservice to EV adoption as a whole.

Our motto is "The only thing worse than no charging is bad charging." This couldn't be more true, because no one in their right mind would plan a road trip to somewhere without charging if it was beyond range, but when there are some Level 3 chargers along the way, we all trust them to work!

We arrived at the charger with around 25% battery, and with the battery preconditioned to 24 degrees C. In this video, we used the A2Z EV NACS adapter which worked great other than a little bit of fiddling with the "lock" latch which is required for the charger to work.

In Canada at the time of the video, we weren't able to just pull in and charge. Perhaps that is coming in the future, but we had to either use the Rivian app or Tesla app to select a stall and start charging. Overal the process isn't as seamless as charging a Tesla, but compared to other chargers it was so much better.

The video covers some of the other steps on how to get connected if it's your first time (it won't be your last!!)



Here is a coarse idea of the charge power we achieved during our first session. The data points are input every 5% SoC.

In the end, we have to say THANK YOU Tesla for opening up your network to others. No doubt losing a significant competitive edge as this is by far the most reliable and useful charging network on the planet at this time. Yes we understand government incentives were involved, but none the less it is a big move for Tesla.

Also a big thank you to Rivian for pushing for this and making it happen so quickly. We can now tow our racecars without worry, and charge together with our other Tesla friends!

On that note, here's a photo of our Rivian and our Featherlite 32' aluminum enclosed trailer, towing our EV swapped Lotus Evora to the Canadian International Autoshow. The truck did an incredible job towing. It is by far the best and smoothest towing experience I've had, specifically when it comes to reversing. No flaring torque converters and overheating transmissions - just smooth, seamless torque and smooth ultra quick steering. Never thought towing could bring so much joy!

Time to charge from 25% to 75%?

 

[TexasBob]

Now Rivian, since you have chargers that actually work... about that charging curve...

Sooo nice. Lectron on order. This is truly a game changer for me.

 

[Jiji]

​

Time to charge from 25% to 75%?

That is pretty much the typical charging curve, but the charger, battery and ambient temperatures, and vehicle all can influence this. A recent 20 minute charge from 21% to 59%:

I typically see a step at the start into the 160kW range followed by the peak in the 215-220kW range, followed by the ramp down the higher you let the SoC go (I stopped at 59% so you don’t see mine drop below 100kW).

If you don’t see over 200kW within 5 minutes of starting then something is holding it back.

 

[KootenayEV]

Interesting it didn't crest 200kW for quite a while, I would have thought it would have taken the full 500A right from plug-in.

Having said that, I've only used up to 150kW units so far in BC, and I've been able to get ~150kW from relatively low SOC starting at 20C up as high as about 60% SOC; I've used them a few dozen times and my average rate for an entire charge (usually around 20-30% SOC up to about 70% SOC) is ~140kW.

Thanks for posting Sasha. Very excited to have SC access out west, especially with several trips upcoming with our TT this spring & summer (Nelson to the Okanagan, Nelson to Whistler for Crankworx, Nelson -> Waterton -> AB Badlands tour -> Canmore).

 

[MountainPassPerformance]

Time to charge from 25% to 75%?

40 minutes - however getting 80kWh would take far less time if we arrived at 5 or 10%!

Interesting it didn't crest 200kW for quite a while, I would have thought it would have taken the full 500A right from plug-in.

Having said that, I've only used up to 150kW units so far in BC, and I've been able to get ~150kW from relatively low SOC starting at 20C up as high as about 60% SOC; I've used them a few dozen times and my average rate for an entire charge (usually around 20-30% SOC up to about 70% SOC) is ~140kW.

Thanks for posting Sasha. Very excited to have SC access out west, especially with several trips upcoming with our TT this spring & summer (Nelson to the Okanagan, Nelson to Whistler for Crankworx, Nelson -> Waterton -> AB Badlands tour -> Canmore).

Yes, it seems that Rivian introduces the power more slowly for a minutes to warm the battery gently. Even at 160kW that is just over 1C, so Rivian is being very gentle to these batteries compared to say a Standard Range Plus Model 3 Charging at 160kW (3C) right away.

Tesla also preheats their batteries to much higher temperatures from what we've seen.

I'm confident Rivian is playing it safe until they get more data on the long term degredation of the packs. Once they have more confidence, they could easily preheat to a higher temperature and charge at full power straight after charging.

As for the upper end tapering, without seeing the battery voltage I don't know. Hooking up a logger to this truck and capturing data would be really nice to understand.

It does seem that there should be more "in the tank" to charge at a higher rate, I highly doubt the battery is at the maximum cell voltage at 150kW at 50% state of charge.

Regardless - having chargers that can consistently work and output everything the Rivian is asking for is a massive massive step forward compared to the current state of affairs here. So we're very happy and any future improvements will be considered icing on the cake!

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