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Jul 02, 2023

News: Ford F

This is a bit of a surprise. This news comes as a bit of a surprise. Ford and Tesla announce that Ford F-150 Lightning and other Ford EVs will have access to the Tesla charger network starting next

This is a bit of a surprise.

This news comes as a bit of a surprise. Ford and Tesla announce that Ford F-150 Lightning and other Ford EVs will have access to the Tesla charger network starting next year. This includes Ford vehicle to Tesla network software integration. Initially, this does seem like a big deal since Tesla has been opening their charger network for non-Tesla vehicles since earlier this year. This Ford-related news is significant because Ford is announcing that Ford will be adding native NACS “Tesla” charger ports in their EVs, starting in 2025.

Why is this a bit of a surprise? Well, the two companies have been highly competitive over the last several years. When Tesla’s Elon Musk unveiled the Cybertruck around four years ago, he showed it beating a Ford F-150 in a tug-of-war.

Since then, Ford has released and started selling the F-150 Lightning EV pickup truck. Tesla is yet to release and sell the Cybertruck. Now, the two are sharing a DC fast-charger network. It means that when the Cybertruck arrives on the market, it will likely be competing for the same charger network as the F-150 Lightning. It does not appear that Ford is abandoning the current CCS charger ports. Their future vehicles may have both.

Ford’s CEO, Jim Farley, announced this news on Twitter as well as other channels. Yes, Twitter is owned by Elon Musk.

This agreement appears to be mutually beneficial, so is it a win-win? We do not yet know what Ford and/or Tesla owners will have to pay due to this partnership. Will it cost extra money, extra waiting time at the charger, or both?

Here is our recent Ford F-150 Lightning road trip that highlights a challenge of charging a large EV on a long journey.