Tesla Magic Dock and Kona Electric

JoeS

Member
Scotts Valley Tesla Supercharger is one of very few locations in the country that has been modified to accept US CCS1 dc fast charging vehicles.
Took our new used 2020 Hyundai Kona Electric Ultimate there, and it worked fantastically using the Tesla app.
The adapter is very cleverly integrated into the Tesla charging station and simply gets unlocked using the app. Pulling on the handle brings out the Tesla handle plus the adapter. Not using the app, the Tesla handle alone comes out normally.
Charged at around 40kW with a 40%SoC. I have no experience to determine if this is normal for the Kona.

IMG_5922.webp
IMG_5926.webp
 
As much as Tesla often rubs me the wrong way, I have to applaud their engineers for coming up with this brilliant solution to what I thought was a nearly-unsolvable problem, applicable mostly only to N. America.

As Tesla use a normal CCS Combo 2 on all their chargers (and all cars sold new) here I thought we would be first on the list but that's not been the case. Despite that I'm in a relatively rural part of an island, there's a cluster of three 250kW units about 15 km away. They were flooded last month but are now working.

The slightly different situation we currently have is that Teslas have always been able to use the chargers that non-Tesla owners use, and usually do more than using Tesla chargers, so this would even out the playing field.

upload_2023-3-29_10-20-20.webp
 
Scotts Valley Tesla Supercharger is one of very few locations in the country that has been modified to accept US CCS1 dc fast charging vehicles.
Took our new used 2020 Hyundai Kona Electric Ultimate there, and it worked fantastically using the Tesla app.
The adapter is very cleverly integrated into the Tesla charging station and simply gets unlocked using the app. Pulling on the handle brings out the Tesla handle plus the adapter. Not using the app, the Tesla handle alone comes out normally.
Charged at around 40kW with a 40%SoC. I have no experience to determine if this is normal for the Kona.

View attachment 20065
View attachment 20066
First Kona EV I have seen posted using Magic dock. Looks like the lead was plenty long enough without violating adjoining space. Good to know it actually communicates and charges properly. Thanks for posting;)
 
As much as Tesla often rubs me the wrong way, I have to applaud their engineers for coming up with this brilliant solution to what I thought was a nearly-unsolvable problem, applicable mostly only to N. America.

As Tesla use a normal CCS Combo 2 on all their chargers (and all cars sold new) here I thought we would be first on the list but that's not been the case. Despite that I'm in a relatively rural part of an island, there's a cluster of three 250kW units about 15 km away. They were flooded last month but are now working.

The slightly different situation we currently have is that Teslas have always been able to use the chargers that non-Tesla owners use, and usually do more than using Tesla chargers, so this would even out the playing field.

View attachment 20067
I have seen my share of water hazards on golf courses, but this one looks pretty hard to avoid :eek:
 
Considering the 2020 Kona maxes out at 75kw (Maybe 77 if the wind is at your back) 40kw is what I'd consider acceptable. Not great, but not bad enough to make me move to try another cable or anything. Too many variables to say what the cause might be.

The V3 stations with the dock that I've seen videos of seem to be 175KW rated, but I don't think I've seen or heard of anyone doing much better than 100-ish? And a lot of reviews seem to cap out in the 40-60 range. Some vehicles with 800V battery systems need to use an onboard booster and that limits power significantly; high power CCS2 stations are 1000V, but Tesla stations are only 500V max. Not that this is a factor with Kona's ~350V pack!
 
Took our new used 2020 Hyundai Kona Electric Ultimate there, and it worked fantastically using the Tesla app.
And the important thing for Tesla drivers is that you didn't have to block the adjoining stall, which other EVs with their charge port by the drivers door, on the left front corner, or back right, all do.
Tesla cars will accurately show available stalls on their way to the SC, an unexpected bonus when Kona EV and e-Niro drivers use the Magic Dock.
 
This is great news if Tesla will open all superchargers to CCS eventually. Has tesla indicated a plan for the magicdock rollout? How does one find superchargers with the magicdock?
 
This is great news if Tesla will open all superchargers to CCS eventually. Has tesla indicated a plan for the magicdock rollout? How does one find superchargers with the magicdock?
I haven't been following the scuttlebutt and I don't know if Tesla has announced their rollout plans. I personally doubt that they will open all Superchargers to CCS. At present, there are only eleven Supercharger locations that have the Magic Dock. They can be found here -
https://www.tesla.com/findus
Select only "Superchargers Open to Non Tesla"
 
Last edited:
You don't have to turn the car off before charging. It will just go into the equivalent of an "accessory" mode, with
everything powered up normally but not driveable. The 12V system is maintained by the DC/DC converter as
usual. When you stop charging, you need to do foot-on-brake + start button to come back to full driveable
status with the main pack relays on, otherwise you'll drain the 12V. The car warns you about that.

On my Florida runs I was powered up for 3 days at a time, except for brief off/on cycles to get out of
utility mode back to driveable. The trip-meter stats didn't reset because the car wasn't off for 4 hours.

_H*
 
You don't have to turn the car off before charging. It will just go into the equivalent of an "accessory" mode, with
everything powered up normally but not driveable. The 12V system is maintained by the DC/DC converter as
usual. When you stop charging, you need to do foot-on-brake + start button to come back to full driveable
status with the main pack relays on, otherwise you'll drain the 12V. The car warns you about that.

On my Florida runs I was powered up for 3 days at a time, except for brief off/on cycles to get out of
utility mode back to driveable. The trip-meter stats didn't reset because the car wasn't off for 4 hours.

_H*
I did once have an issue with a 50kW charger not initiating the charge sequence using BC Hydro so I always assumed this was the case for all charging networks.
"You’ll need to turn off your vehicle in order to start a charge. After you’ve started the charge, you may be able to turn power back to run the heat or radio, but power steering and the ability to move the vehicle will be disabled until you’ve stopped charging."
Not sure if I want my vehicle to go into "powered accessory mode" as Utility mode would seem more desirable (c/w visual display). A new mode I haven't heard of...until now.
It has just become a habit (pre-charging ritual) that I have gotten used to, but will give it a shot next time to verify.
Thanks for the info;)
 
Last edited:
Scotts Valley Tesla Supercharger is one of very few locations in the country that has been modified to accept US CCS1 dc fast charging vehicles.
Took our new used 2020 Hyundai Kona Electric Ultimate there, and it worked fantastically using the Tesla app.
The adapter is very cleverly integrated into the Tesla charging station and simply gets unlocked using the app. Pulling on the handle brings out the Tesla handle plus the adapter. Not using the app, the Tesla handle alone comes out normally.
Charged at around 40kW with a 40%SoC. I have no experience to determine if this is normal for the Kona.

View attachment 20065
View attachment 20066
It's fine to use a SC as a test, but a Kona EV is only occupying a spot that someone else could utilize (unless in dire straits). The best the 2020 Kona EV can charge at is a 78KW rate, so occupying even a 150, 200, 250 or 350KWh charger, is a waste; they won't make your vehicle charge faster. This concept is misconstrued by quite a few new owners that have never had this explained to them. Plus, you are charged more to use a faster charger which can't be taken advantage of. That's a waste of your own money. Enjoy your Kona EV. Cheers, Steve
 
Steve, I'm afraid you misunderstood me. I knew the upper limit of the Kona dcfc was around 75kW and was certainly not expecting more from a Tesla SC. I was simply wondering if the 40kW at 40%SoC is normal for this car, irrespective of the CCS source. Is there a graph somewhere which shows the charging rate vs. SoC for the Kona Electric? BTW, here in California, Tesla (and most other dcfc stations) charge by the kWh ($/kWh).
 
Last edited:
Is there a graph somewhere which shows the charging rate vs. SoC for the Kona?

Fast charge curves for the Kona, from ev-database.org. This curve seems to match most of the reports I've seen from Kona drivers.
kona FastchargeCurve.webp
Based on those curves, I produced these grids with approximate charging times for start and ending SOC's for a max charger (75 kw or more) and a 50 kw charger. Values are in minutes and in hours.

max and 50 kw grids.webp
 
s there a graph somewhere which shows the charging rate vs. SoC for the Kona Electric
hyundai-kona-electric-charges-at-up-to-72-kw.jpg

Except for a brief pause ~ 80% and 90% while BMS checks cells (replacement packs also may include software updated original packs)
 
@mtd and @electriceddy, thank you both for providing these graphs. Quite informative for a Kona Electric newbie.

When charging, I do like the dashboard display telling me how much longer it will take for the car to charge to my programmed SoC.

Based on the graphs, it appears that my Kona wasn't drawing the full power normally available from a Tesla SC. Perhaps the power was limited because it was being shared with an adjacent station.
 
Good graphs. Thanks. Tomorrow or the next day, I'll take delivery of my first EV. Lots to learn.

Given the Kona's ~70kW max charge rate, when doing long distance should you opt for frequent, short duration, high-rate sessions? (free, low-rate charging notwithstanding, of course)
 
long distance should you opt for frequent, short duration, high-rate sessions?
Several posts on this with details, here are a couple:
https://www.insideevsforum.com/community/index.php?threads/10-500km-kona-to-california.14161/

https://www.insideevsforum.com/comm...arging-infrastructure-and-your-kona-ev.15325/
Of course you can with Kona EV, planning of course is a benefit when doing this sort of thing, it seems most unforeseen charging issues can be solved especially as infrastructure becomes more developed. ;)
 
Back
Top