Don't Buy A Non-Tesla EV (Until 2025)!

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With recent news that Rivian will adopt Tesla’s charging infrastructure (known as NACS) going forward, every major American carmaker will produce vehicles with the North American Charging Standard starting within the next few years. That’s huge news as it unifies a fractured industry that has struggled to convince traditional car owners to convert to the new platform. 

With one less thing for haters to check off on their checklist, I think it’s a huge needle mover that Ford, GM, and now Rivian have all unified with Tesla to be able to share a charging infrastructure and network across the country. Not only will Mach-E’s and R1T’s be able to use non-magic dock Superchargers, many EV charging companies like Chargepoint and Blink have already committed their intentions to providing NACS to their stations. That means Teslas will be able to use EVGO stations or Chargepoints without using an adapter. All in all, this is a major win for American consumers.

But What About The PResent?

To put it in other technology terms, it’s like buying a smartphone with a micro-USB charging port knowing that the same phone will have USB-C in a couple of years.

Take away the technical specs and charging speeds and just look at it from a logistical standpoint. The sheer number of Superchargers and the support Tesla provides their network is astounding. Sure, stations go down occasionally, that happens to all electronics. But the maintenance and reliability Tesla provides its network is miles ahead of anyone else. It’s the best charging infrastructure bar none. With NACS on other cars, this opens up the market for buyers that never would have considered anything other than a Tesla. 

Now what should you do if you’re in the market for an EV right now? It’s going to take a couple of years before these car makers can fully integrate NACS into their models. Buying a Ford or Rivian as they are now will immediately supply you with an outdated charging port in the United States. Sure, Rivian says these cars will still have access to the Supercharging network thanks to an adapter that the company will produce for you to purchase, but the 2025 R1T and 2025 R1S are the true products of the future going forward for the company. 

A Tesla Model X we rented on Turo

As there already are set dates for this shift, this leaves buyers interested in a Rivian, GM, or Ford, left hanging in a peculiar situation knowing that the model of the car they purchase now will have an outdated port right off the factory. To put it in other technology terms, it’s like buying a smartphone with a micro-USB charging port knowing that the same phone will have USB-C in a couple of years. Sure you can buy a micro-USB to USB-C dongle, but nobody likes having adapters when you can have the actual port promised. That’s the analogy, but just about 40x on a bigger monetary scale.

37 Superchargers at Quartzside

USA Vs. The World

Another headache for buyers seems to be the political implications this shift to NACS could be a result of. It’s not surprising for me to hear that all of the major American manufacturers have unified under NACS. The Biden Administration and Elon Musk have been very active in discussions regarding the Bi-Partisan Infrastructure Law over the past year. This administration has made a huge push to incentivise a deterrence on imported goods. While the USA has good standing in the trade market with most European and Asian countries, China is a clear example of politics interfering with consumer capitalism. No matter how enticing a product made in China is, Chinese EV makers have not broken through to the American market without first acquiring European assets like Geely has with Volvo and Polestar. 

With strained Chinese relations, Europe and the US markets have struggled to determine the right middle ground between Chinese manufacturing and western competition. The EV Tax Refund debate last year completely centered around the percentage of a vehicle's American production heritage. 

All eyes will now shift to Hyundai and whether they will pivot from their current CCS infrastructure and join the Tesla way of life. Hyundai and Kia have been in the forefront of the current electric vehicle push, with terrific forward thinking designs and philosophies. If the European and Asian markets continue forward with their current CCS model, and don’t provide a NACS variant of their cars for the American markets, this scenario would test buyers and their loyalty based on an oddly geographical divide in order to make their decision.

Foreign Biases

For example, my Baby-Boomer Dad grew up with one brand that epitomized a checkpoint that would illustrate the success of all of his hard work. That car he strived for was a Mercedes Benz. Now in his senior citizen years and decades brewing with his own perceptions driving many brands like Volvo, Honda, and BMW, his staunch belief is that Mercedes Benz’s are the best cars to drive and sit in. He’s on his fourth or fifth Mercedes and although he has yet to pull the trigger on an electric vehicle, he’s constantly flirted with another Benz. This time around it won’t have an engine.

Lida’s Father on the other hand is a lifelong Japanese car owner. While he worked on Volvo’s for a living as a career, he’s adamant that Japanese cars are the most reliable and well built vehicles in the world. He’s also a result of his time period and the general perceptions that a brand has built up with the public. Toyota and Lexus are the only cars he trusts to drive. 

Both of these long tenured drivers have been interested in purchasing electric vehicles seeing as they have children who work in the industry and also drive them. However, their personal concerns about the viability of the platform has alienated them from making the jump. Charging outside the home has always been a sticking point for many people who have never experienced daily life with an electric car. It’s the same story here with our parents. If they were to buy an EV, it would be with the brands they trust. In this case, there isn’t a huge incentive for the German or Japanese brands to move away from the CCS infrastructures of their homelands to cater towards Tesla’s system. I don’t have all the information in regards to Biden’s negotiations with the various automobile industry leaders, but from everything the White House and the American media has published, the American market doesn’t seem to be incentivizing foreign made products too much. 

How would I then recommend my Dad or Lida’s Dad to jump all-in on a Mercedes EQS or a Lexus RZ as their first EV, when I know their biggest fears would actually play out. Lida and I have a Model 3 and a Polestar 2. It is a nightmare every time I drive by an Electrify America. On the other hand, there are so many Superchargers popping up every month that I haven’t come across wait times here in Orange County, California, which would have been insane to imagine a couple years ago. Even in the comfort of my own garage, the Tesla mobile charger is so much more portable and smoother to insert than the PS2’s Type-2 mobile charger. It’s not even close. 

So What To DO?

So this leaves the market in an extremely awkward place. The next few months will be pivotal in shaping the automobile industry for decades to come. Will European and Asian manufacturers fall in line with what seems to be a Biden-led American alliance and provide NACS variants of their vehicles for Americans? If they don’t, then will American buyers (even with their foreign biases) pivot to buying American cars simply because they have the superior infrastructure? This American transition to NACS is a fascinating case study of political lobbying, capitalistic advancement transforming into a monopoly, and most importantly, consumer mindsets. 

Like it or not, a lot of us are going to have to make some interesting decisions in the next 5-10 years regarding our automobiles. If you live in California like me, your last new gas car purchase will have to happen before 2035. Then it’s all electric by law. That’s going to sneak up on you much quicker than it looks on paper. It’s no longer just a decision about color, how big, and how many miles. As an all-electric car household that contains both CCS and NACS compatible vehicles, I personally would not purchase an EV that isn’t a Tesla right now, especially if it’s going to be your first EV. In 2025? The floodgates open and it’ll be like a candy shop of beautiful options in the US. They just have to be American candy.      

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