Yay, Tesla charging … July 31!

[illopp00]

Charging with my Lectron adapter. No problem. I used the Tesla app to connect and pay. I have charging rate plans so I don't use the Lucid Charging Service. Once the battery was warmed up it was chargingat 46 kW. Started at 35. So yep, it'll do in a pinch.
View attachment 31300

I just completed a 2350 mile roadtrip on pure CCS, I was looking for an opportunity to test this out but never found a true need for it. I am convinced the best way to use it is to top off above 55-60% SOC so that the speeds aren't really a massive issue relative to the charge curve.

 

[GT2022Owner]

Charging with my Lectron adapter. No problem. I used the Tesla app to connect and pay. I have charging rate plans so I don't use the Lucid Charging Service. Once the battery was warmed up it was chargingat 46 kW. Started at 35. So yep, it'll do in a pinch.
View attachment 31300

That’s a non-Magic Dock charger, right? I haven’t had a chance to test my lectron adapter yet

 

[borski]

Yup, but if you look at the link below you'll see the unit I got is clearly a 500A, 1000V unit.

Lectron NACS to CCS Adapter with Interlock | Vortex Plus | 500A | 1,000V | UL 2252 Certified | Compatible with Tesla Superchargers

Pre-sale: Ships in August ACCESS TESLA SUPERCHARGERS NATIONWIDE - Unlock 15,000+ V3 and V4 Tesla Superchargers. This NACS to CCS adapter enables non-Tesla EVs with Supercharger access to easily connect to the Tesla fast charging network FIRST UL 2252 CERTIFIED ADAPTER - The Vortex Plus is the...

ev-lectron.com

Here's a review done by Electrek. Thus far I've heard nothing but good things about the unit:

Right; I wasn’t disagreeing with you. My point was only that not all Lectron adapters are made equal, that’s all.

 

[SaratogaLefty]

Here is the Lucid NACS Adapter. Note the nice Eureka Gold Box.

 

[Worldwide Beagle]

Lectron seems to be more than that. Ford and Lectron collaborated closely:

But how much more?? "Collaborated closely" sounds like the ultimate marketing term. Like Jumbo shrimp. Full of sound and fury, but ... Watching the video, it looks like Ford engineered the adapter and Lectron was just the middleman/broker/China agent arranging the manufacturing and assembly in China. It states Ford owns and specified every part of the adapter: from circuits to the TOOLING. Lectron is Hong Kong operation and no where on its site does it mention actual manufacturing anything. That said, I am sure Lectron provided an important service: its existing contacts with shops in China to make the many components and then arrange to assemble, arrange custom packing and then pack them up. Much easier for a company to hire an experienced "broker" in China that reinvent the wheel. I have done that for the company I worked for.

I have noted that the Lectron SC adapters seem to get good reviews. Yet, the Lectron charging cables get dismal reviews.

 

[EVCar]

Just curious - does Lucid's adapter carry any UL/CSA/ETL marks? The one I bought from Volvo does not.

Just got mine, too.
No, it's not UL certified. whereas the Lectron adapter on Amazon is --"FIRST UL 2252 CERTIFIED ADAPTER The Vortex Plus is the first publicly available NACS to CCS adapter certified under UL 2252 by SGS (NRTL-Nationally Recognized Testing Laboratory). Market-leading safety, thermal and mechanical performance" -- and at a cheaper price.
Don't know what's under the hood, but spec-wise. I'd not mind having the UL stamp.
Also, the upper limit for operating temp is 122 F, and we're getting close to that this week at 116 F.
Looks like it does have the central pin mentioned in the interview with Ford and Lectron.
Would've been a nice touch if Lucid'd thrown in a plastic case for storage a la Tesla Tap.

 

[Worldwide Beagle]

@EVCar , this is a worm hole I have been down personally. getting electronics approved under CE for use in the EU. It costs MANY thousands of dollars to get a product certified under UL or ETL. And UL and ETL are themselves NRTLs!

Trust me but just saying so does not ALWAYS make it so. Amazon and eBay are littered with tens of thousands of items with phony UL certifications for China. Amz and Ebay do nothing to check if the UL or ETL stamps are legitimate. And its not easy at all to check if an item really has been UL or ETC or CSA approved. The Lectron adapter is not actually certified by UL, but was certified by a totally independent lab to the published UL standards. The UL 2252 JUST CAME OUT. SGS is a very old, quality EU testing firm. SGS certified that the unit complies with the newly published UL 2252 in March.

In light of the brand new UL 2252 standard, I would only be concerned about a UL or ETL from a Amazon product with a goofy name. And even then, the likely hood of a phone cert if great.

Many have been waiting for UL 2252 for a LONG TIME. A2Z claimed the first unit meeting the certification. If you really want to get into the weeds, look at this Redditt

Redditt Link UL 2252 discussion

I can easily see why Lectron, as a marketing firm out of China, would want a UL cert from a NRTL like SGS in Switzerland. Makes great marketing sense. A unique selling point -- for a time.

So, I agree, a UL or ETL is nice. But I put more trust in the electronic engineers at Lucid, with tons of experience in designing, testing building and using HV DC circuits, to properly review the circuits in an adapter.

Last note: in light of the new UL standard, it could well be the Lucid's adapter has not finished the process. It can take MONTHS from submittal of the product until certification. I am told UL is backed six months on certs.

 

[SaratogaLefty]

Just got mine, too.
No, it's not UL certified. whereas the Lectron adapter on Amazon is --"FIRST UL 2252 CERTIFIED ADAPTER The Vortex Plus is the first publicly available NACS to CCS adapter certified under UL 2252 by SGS (NRTL-Nationally Recognized Testing Laboratory). Market-leading safety, thermal and mechanical performance" -- and at a cheaper price.
Don't know what's under the hood, but spec-wise. I'd not mind having the UL stamp.
Also, the upper limit for operating temp is 122 F, and we're getting close to that this week at 116 F.
Looks like it does have the central pin mentioned in the interview with Ford and Lectron.
Would've been a nice touch if Lucid'd thrown in a plastic case for storage a la Tesla Tap.

I think the fitted foam housing for the Adapter is excellent and probably better than a flimsy cloth or plastic case in my opinion. I intend to just leave it in its nice Eureka Gold box and inside the shipping box it came in for even more protection. Reality is I doubt I will ever use it as long as the 50kW limit exists but I had the points so what the heck.

 

[EVCar]

@EVCar , this is a worm hole I have been down personally. getting electronics approved under CE for use in the EU. It costs MANY thousands of dollars to get a product certified under UL or ETL. And UL and ETL are themselves NRTLs!

Trust me but just saying so does not ALWAYS make it so. Amazon and eBay are littered with tens of thousands of items with phony UL certifications for China. Amz and Ebay do nothing to check if the UL or ETL stamps are legitimate. And its not easy at all to check if an item really has been UL or ETC or CSA approved. The Lectron adapter is not actually certified by UL, but was certified by a totally independent lab to the published UL standards. The UL 2252 JUST CAME OUT. SGS is a very old, quality EU testing firm. SGS certified that the unit complies with the newly published UL 2252 in March.

In light of the brand new UL 2252 standard, I would only be concerned about a UL or ETL from a Amazon product with a goofy name. And even then, the likely hood of a phone cert if great.

Many have been waiting for UL 2252 for a LONG TIME. A2Z claimed the first unit meeting the certification. If you really want to get into the weeds, look at this Redditt

Redditt Link UL 2252 discussion

I can easily see why Lectron, as a marketing firm out of China, would want a UL cert from a NRTL like SGS in Switzerland. Makes great marketing sense. A unique selling point -- for a time.

So, I agree, a UL or ETL is nice. But I put more trust in the electronic engineers at Lucid, with tons of experience in designing, testing building and using HV DC circuits, to properly review the circuits in an adapter.

Last note: in light of the new UL standard, it could well be the Lucid's adapter has not finished the process. It can take MONTHS from submittal of the product until certification. I am told UL is backed six months on certs.

Wow, thanks for the details.
You've taught me something I didn't think about.
As a layperson, I didn't appreciate the Lectron's statement about UL certification.
While technically transparent, their UL claim is not what I assumed.
There is only one UL, and UL is UL, not SGS.
In my profession, a medication is either approved by FDA or not approved.
Approval by anyone else is irrelevant.
Now I'll look for the info on the certifying body before buying into the claim.
Thanks again for explaining the nuances of commercial ads.

 

[DeaneG]

Wow, thanks for the details.
You've taught me something I didn't think about.
As a layperson, I didn't appreciate the Lectron's statement about UL certification.
While technically transparent, their UL claim is not what I assumed.
There is only one UL, and UL is UL, not SGS.
In my profession, a medication is either approved by FDA or not approved.
Approval by anyone else is irrelevant.
Now I'll look for the info on the certifying body before buying into the claim.
Thanks again for explaining the nuances of commercial ads.

There is absolutely nothing wrong with products certified to meet UL standards by recognized testing companies (NRTLs). It is absolutely a common and recognized practice. US-based UL, on their own, cannot test every product sold worldwide. Typically, a company will send a product to UL or another testing company, and that testing company will evaluate the product against relevant UL (UL-mark) and European (CE-mark) standards, among other standards for various non-EU countries. The end result is a detailed report indicating the details of the product test configuration, the standards met, and the test results obtained. This report is accepted by the countries that require the applicable standards.

 

[EVCar]

There is absolutely nothing wrong with products certified to meet UL standards by recognized testing companies (NRTLs). It is absolutely a common and recognized practice. US-based UL, on their own, cannot test every product sold worldwide. Typically, a company will send a product to UL or another testing company, and that testing company will evaluate the product against relevant UL (UL-mark) and European (CE-mark) standards, among other standards for various non-EU countries. The end result is a detailed report indicating the details of the product test configuration, the standards met, and the test results obtained. This report is accepted by the countries that require the applicable standards.

Since there's no governmental requirement for meeting UL standards, it's nice that Lectron even applied. It does give them bragging rights.

 

[DeaneG]

Since there's no governmental requirement for meeting UL standards, it's nice that Lectron even applied. It does give them bragging rights.

It also may help when confronted with a product liability lawsuit.

 

[Miami_Lucid_Man]

Charging with my Lectron adapter. No problem. I used the Tesla app to connect and pay. I have charging rate plans so I don't use the Lucid Charging Service. Once the battery was warmed up it was chargingat 46 kW. Started at 35. So yep, it'll do in a pinch.
View attachment 31300

Love the stealth.

 

[Lucken]

I think the fitted foam housing for the Adapter is excellent and probably better than a flimsy cloth or plastic case in my opinion. I intend to just leave it in its nice Eureka Gold box and inside the shipping box it came in for even more protection. Reality is I doubt I will ever use it as long as the 50kW limit exists but I had the points so what the heck.

Actually the packaging for the Lectron seems identical to the Lucid. Nicely sandwiched between 2 soft fitted foam enclosures. Again, I’d be shocked if there was any significant difference between the Lucid & the Lectron other than the branding.

 

[kurious]

That's exactly my experience today too.
One difference that may or may not matter, but I care about, is that because I bought it from Lucid at a premium, I expect (with confidence) they'll stand behind it in the 1% chance anything isn't plug-and-play. I hope to try mine out this weekend.

 

[EVCar]

Last note: in light of the new UL standard, it could well be the Lucid's adapter has not finished the process. It can take MONTHS from submittal of the product until certification. I am told UL is backed six months on certs.

You're spot on here.
Even the Ford adapter is only listed on Ford website as "OEM-certified." not UL certified, and it's been around for a while.

 

[Plg]

Got my adapter today. Here's a video of my first trip to a Tesla charging station.