[North America] - Supercharging a 2024 Macan Turbo EV (with Lectron adapter at Tesla Supercharger(

[daveo4EV]

TLDR; it works and works well! The Lectron adapter is a worthy substitute if for some reason you simply can't get Porsche to give you one!

gory details:

I received my Lectron NACS to CCS Adapter w/Interlock | Vortex Plus - you know the one Porsche is rebranding but can't seem to actually ship anyone. I ordered it from Lectron on Sunday oct. 26th and received it today Oct. 28th…the Lectron unit was $182.99 - free shipping - it's missing two things that come with the Porsche unit:

1. the P O R S C H E logo stenciled on the unit
2. the nifty case Porsche provided to store the unit

if you're tired of waiting for Porsche you can order this one - it works great and is functionally Identical to the unit you'll get from Porsche eventually…

https://ev-lectron.com/products/lec...0a-1-000v-compatible-with-tesla-superchargers

So I promptly got in the Macan EV and drove to my nearest Tesla Supercharger…it's a V4 unit on 41st Street, Capitolia, CA - and it all worked!!! and my God - the Porsche software worked really really well.

thoughts in no particular order below:

• the Lectron unit is hefty and feels substantial - the interlock mechanism keeps you from releasing the unit while the vehicle is charging
• Plugging in and removing was easy
• I used the Porsche Charging service to start the charging session - I did _NOT_ use the Tesla app to start the charging session. I used the Porsche app, found the supercharger on the charging map in the app, and then tapped through to start the charging session just like EA or ChargePoint
  • it all worked, and works really really smoothly - it's the first time I've interacted with Porsche "app" software that felt smooth and frictionless
• SUPRRISE: the app has some very intriguing notifications - pop ups showed up in app when I plugged in the charging cord, telling me I'm authorized to charge, and another pop-up appeared telling me when the charging session actually started
  • it did _NOT_ start the charging and billing on it's own
  • I had two ways to start the charging session
    • tap the "start charging" button in the Porsche App
    • using a tap-to-pay credit card on the Point-of-Sale screen on the V4 Supercharger
  • what this means to my keen software eye - is that Porsche has excellent data feeds from the supercharger network - and is primed to "kick" off auto-billing step…they are sooo. close to plug&charge support you can feel it
    • think about from only plugging in the cable - they were able to send a notification to _MY_ Porsche account - that means they've got enough data to kick off billing operations - and that from just the plug-in to the car
    • also the app nofiications shows up even before the PCM knew it was plugged in from the LED ambient lighting changing color…
    • color me impressed - they have all the moving parts nailed and are super close to auto-starting a charging session…
    • wow!
• Maximum charge speed I saw was 125 kW - but I pulled in at 58% SOC with the Macan. - so I wasn'tgoing to get "peak" rate any ways
  • basically from 50% SOC a 400V charging station is no slower than 800V charging station - because you're at or below 150 kW max charge rate on the charging taper curve…
• the actual charging session starts electrons flowing much faster than EA - I had power being delivered the battery on the Macan less than 5 seconds after hitting "start charging" in the app - no 30-120 second stalls while the Charging station ramps up like I've experience on EA
• Tesla superchargers are listed in both the Porsche PCM nav, and in the map in the Porsche "app"
• Interesting tidbit
  • the 41st Street V4 supercharger is listed as a 325 kW station in the Porsche app
  • it's listed at a 250 kW supercharger in the Porsche NAV
  • both 250 kW and 325 kW should be impossible for a 400V station - and 99.9% of the V4 Tesla superchargers currently have V3 hardware running them - but V4 is 800-1000V capable, and there are two "true V4" stations in my area
  • some day when I get my SOC down low enough I might run by the "true" v4 stations and see what charge rate we can accomplish
  • but Porsche listing the stations as 250/325 kW is interesting to me - do they know something about the Supercharger road map that we don't? Stay tuned
• I'm really really impressed with the Porsche app integration for supercharging - and those that know me, know I don't say that a lot about Porsche software - they are literally a hair's breath away from having plug&charge working here folks…that would be awesome
• 'all of this bodes really really well for the Cayenne EV - it will have a native NACS port - and if they work as well as they do now I'm betting we get plug&charge along with the Cayenne and then supercharger are going to be really really well integrated
• the Capitola station has 16 stalls - 6 were occupied , well lit, next to Burger King - and all stalls appeared to be online and functional - a nice change from EA that typically has 3-6 stalls sites and 2-4 stalls are non-functional…
• there was a Cadillac lyric charging
• the supercharger screen shows nice simple stats during the charging session (pics below)
• given that I was at 58% SOC when I started charing the 400V speed-limit was not in play - the Macan was the limiting factor during this charging session - not the 400V charging stations
  • frankly I'm soooo tired of people saying I'm not going to use supercharger because they are slower - given the charging curve drops below 150 kW at about 50% SOC - it's only faster for the portion of the charge session that's below 50% - so frankly it doesn't harsh my buzz
    • math says best cast a 350 kW stations is 7 mins faster than a functional reliable 150 kW station - and you'll lose 2 of those 7 minutes waiting for EA to actually start the session…
    • fear not - use a supercharger if it fits your travel plans and don't sweat the charging speed…and if you're above 30% SOC the difference will be inconsequential
    • if you're below 10% SOC - yeah you'll be faster until about 50% SOC - and then it will all equalize…because charging curve!
• V4 stations have longer cords, but given the Macan's rear quarter panel charge port -and me backing into the stall - a short cord would be no problem - but the longer cords are still more flexible.

all in all this was a very very positive experience and the integration seems well done, and the adapter is a solid piece of tech!

Add supercharging to your trip plans and you're no longer limited to the wonky CCS network in North America - you are free to roam about the country!!!

pic's below with some comments!

questions welcome!

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[daveo4EV]

supercharger site used for this test

https://supercharge.info/map?siteID=6258

 

[daveo4EV]

This is a screen shot from the Porsche.app on iOS - latest version as of this date - I find it interesting that Porsche thinks this is a 325 kW station location? perhaps they know something we don't about the future!

tap on the tab below in the Porsche App to start your Tesla Supercharger session!! It will be billed to your Porsche Charging service account - just like EA and ChargePoint! Hmmmm - would be kinda cool if future version of PCM software supported Porsche Charging service so you could just tap "start" charging on the car's main screen … hmmmmm…

Look Ma - a 2024 Macan Turbo EV plugged into a V4 supercharger!!!

the Tesla Supercharger V4 point of sale screen - useful and simple status!!!

the view of the session from the Porsche app

the end of a successful charging session - I unplugged at about 73%

 

[daveo4EV]

and here is the Tesla Supercharger session billed to my Porsche.app Porsche Charging Service…tight tight integration - I"m pleasantly surprised - they really really are super close to having a functional plug&charge - I can feel it!!

NOTE: the listing of this stations as 325 kW - hmmmmm - again what does Porsche know about the future that we don't?

 

[daveo4EV]

there are now many many trips that are inconsequential now that Supercharger are available to Macan (Porsche EV) owners and integration is this well done!

Kudo's to Porsche on this one folks!!

and thanks to Tesla for building a network that actually works!!!

 

[daveo4EV]

I'll just leave this here…

https://www.taycanforum.com/forum/t...he-next-nine-networks-combined-article.31094/

"Tesla Added More US Superchargers In Q3 Than The Next Nine Networks Combined

 

[PrudentOcean]

One other thing to keep in mind when comparing charging speeds against Electrify America is that EA uses balanced chargers almost exclusively, so the peak of 350 kW is only achievable when the stall next to you isn’t occupied, otherwise you’re sharing the output.

 

[daveo4EV]

Pic's of the Lectron Vortex Plus NACS to CCS adapter…

https://www.macanevowners.com/forum/threads/porsche-ccs-to-nacs-adapter.23482/page-2#post-348801

 

[daveo4EV]

next up I'm going to test:

• MagicDock supercharger in Scott's Valley - but use my own adapter
• a V3 charging station (no LED display for point of sale)
• try one of the "real" v4 stations in Silly-con valley and see if charge rate can exceed 150 kW

stay tuned!!

 

[shawn]

I'll just leave this here…

https://www.taycanforum.com/forum/t...he-next-nine-networks-combined-article.31094/

"Tesla Added More US Superchargers In Q3 Than The Next Nine Networks Combined

Hopefully, they can continue that trend and do a few up in Western Canada Vancouver island. Right now there is one V3 and the rest of the V2 which do not work with the Porsche adapter. No indication as to when they would be putting in more V3. There are no V4s.

 

[dgkhn]

Thanks for this Dave. One question that's not completely clear to me. Did you select the charging station in the app and then plug in after doing so or did you plug in first?

 

[daveo4EV]

Thanks for this Dave. One question that's not completely clear to me. Did you select the charging station in the app and then plug in after doing so or did you plug in first?

yes you have to drill down to he charging station you're parked at…in the Porsche app

steps are:

• launch Porsche app
• goto the Map/charging tab
• find the charging station you're at
• tap on the "map pin" for the charging station you are at
• tap on the "right arrow" in Choose Plug Type
• tap on the correct stall from the list of displayed stalls
• tap "Start Charging"

 

[daveo4EV]

here is a "blow by blow" in thumbnail pics…

Tap the myPorsche App

tap the "map arrow" button at the bottom on the screen

tap the "map pin" icon on the map for the charger you intend to use

at the bottom on the screen you'll see a info-panel for the charger you selected on the map - tap on the info-panel at the bottom of the map/charging display…

after tapping on the "map pin" for the charger you'll see this screen - tap the NACS stall count/arrow on the right

once you've tapped on the stall-count/arrow you'll be presented a list of charging stalls - tap on the stall you're parked at from the list

on the next screen you tap "Start Charging" - and you're good to go!

this is the process if you want the charging session billed via your Porsche Charging service contact

 

[daveo4EV]

you can presumably use the Tesla.app (following a similar process) to start the charging session…but it will be billed to your Tesla account (and it's associated payment method) vs. your Porsche Charging Service contact (and it's associated payment method)

 

[daveo4EV]

you can also just plug in via the Adapter on a V4 station and then use the V4 Stations "tap to pay" LCD screen to start the charging session…

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