I am going to buy an electric car in 1-2 years so I have been doing some research and watching videos. Every non Tesla road-trip video I have seen has problems trying to charge because of infrastructure issues. Things like charger not working, working very slow, payment not working, etc…
Is the Tesla network that much better?
I’m a Midwest (Omaha) CCS EV driver. Both our vehicles are CCS EVs.
The Tesla Superchargers seem to be very reliable and super easy to initiate charging (simply plug in). Locations tend to have more plugs but tend to be mostly along interstates.
CCS charging is far more varied in locations, station size, ease of payment, and general reliability.
Along the interstates, CCS charging can be fairly similar to SC charging. Well spaced locations with 4-8 chargers thanks to EA. At EA locations for vehicles that support Plug&Charge, even payment can be handled similarly (simply plug in).
Away from the interstates is where things are different. Tesla typically doesn’t have as much of a presence, particularly in the less populated Midwest states. CCS charging might only be 1 50kW charger, but that’s better than nothing when you need to charge.
I usually check Plugshare for the chargers I’ll use on a trip to see if people are having issues. Reliability has been good for me. Payment can be varied, but I’m adaptable.
The big thing is that charging is improving.