Mercedes-Benz Makes It a Bandwagon, Gives Access to Tesla Superchargers

We’re calling it: The floodgates are open. Since Tesla announced in February that it would open its Supercharger network to other brands’ electric vehicles, first Ford, then GM, then Volvo and Polestar, and now Mercedes-Benz have revealed partnerships with the Silicon Valley EV darling in quick succession. (Rivian is on board, too, but while that’s good for its owners, the company’s current sales volume means it carries a lot less weight as an indicator of industry trends.)

Related: Tesla Opens Supercharger Network to Non-Tesla EVs

The details of the Mercedes arrangement follow what is now the established pattern: Mercedes EV drivers will have access to Tesla’s Superchargers starting in 2024. The company will begin integrating Tesla’s charging port, also now known as the North American Charging Standard, into its vehicles starting in 2025, along with their existing Combined Charging System port. In the meantime, Mercedes will make available an adapter enabling its vehicles to use the Tesla chargers — think one of those plug adapters you pick up at the airport before that flight to Europe, except it’s about the size of a loaf of bread (not a full loaf of Wonderbread, but more like a smaller, pricy artisan loaf).

What this doesn’t change is Mercedes’ plans to develop its own charging network. The automaker still plans to open its first locations by the end of 2023 and says it will have more than 2,500 chargers at some 400-plus locations in North America by the end of 2029. All charging providers play this little numbers game. It’s like Shell saying it has X number of pumps at Y stations; X is obviously going to be higher. Both numbers matter, since a gas station with just a single pump would likely have quite a line, but the more important figure is probably the number of gas stations — or in this case, the number of charging locations.

Now that two of the largest U.S. automakers, two Swedish brands, one of the largest luxury brands and arguably the highest-profile EV maker that isn’t Tesla have all announced such partnerships, we’re expecting an imminent tide of similar announcements from other brands.

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