Cybertruck lead engineer Wes Morrill on Wednesday took to social media platform X to advise Tesla Inc. TSLA supercharger users against using extension cords to charge their EVs on the network.
What Happened: “Would recommend AGAINST using an extension cord on a supercharger (or any DC charging station with a liquid cooled cable),” Morrill wrote on X. Using an extension cord, the senior engineer said, may cause cable overheating and shorting.
The temperature monitoring system within the supercharger allows it to regulate the rate of charging. “With the extension cable that safety goes away. On top of adding an additional junction which generates heat making matters worse,” Morrill said.
Why It Matters: In July, Tesla issued a similar cautionary statement against the trending practice of placing wet towels around supercharger connectors to accelerate the charging process.
Placing a wet cloth on supercharger handles does not increase charging speed but instead increases risks of overheating or damage as it interferes with temperature monitors, Tesla said.
"Please refrain from doing this so our systems can run correctly, and true charging issues can be detected by our systems," Tesla wrote via its handle dedicated to charging updates.
Tesla also filed a lawsuit against EVject, a company that makes a “breakaway” charging connector for Tesla EV drivers, alleging that their breakaway connectors are "dangerous" and pose a high safety risk.
The connector has no over-temperature protection and may overheat when charging, Tesla said in the lawsuit, posing risks of burn injuries to users. The high temperature also poses risks of fire to other combustible materials in the charger cable, the EV, or the supercharging infrastructure, Tesla alleged.
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