Relief as EV Plug formats are finally converging
At last the great EV plug wars are finally coming to an end, it has been accepted that multiple incompatible charging plug types is not a realistic way to promote Electric vehicles. Such convergent situations have existed many times in the past, the best known being the video-tape wars where VHS finally won.
CCS charging wins
In Europe CCS (Combined Charging System) is the winner with most manufacturers now adopting it, whereas in China and Japan CHAdeMO rules. Consequently, the same car models will use different plugs and sockets depending on where they are sold. CCS offers Rapid charging.
Where Type 2 sits
In Europe Type 2 has been widely used by manufacturers, For Example, the Renault Zoe. This is now incorporated as part of the CCS design. Literally, the top part with 7 pins. Type 2 offers Fast but not Rapid charging.
See UK Electric car plug concerns
CHAdeMO fading out
CHAdeMO, as used by Nissan, was the principle competitor. The Nissan Leaf Second generation uses Type 2 in addition to CHAdeMO and, with the forthcoming Ariya model, will be moving to CCS, dropping CHAdeMO entirely in Europe.
Tesla converging
Meanwhile, Tesla, with its unique charging system is also moving towards CCS, with some models requiring adaptors.
Compare EV Plug types
V2G – Bidirectional
There will be delays for the development of Bidirectional charging, as currently CHAdeMO is the only protocol offering it. Bidirectional charging is more generally known as V2G (Vehicle to Grid).
CCS will be offering Bidirectional charging in the future.
