Plug types and connections - Guide.

As electric cars have developed technically, different types of plugs and connectors have emerged in parallel. Essentially, four types of plugs have become established: Type 1 plugs, Type 2 plugs, CSS plugs (Combo 1 and Combo 2), CHAdeMO plugs.

Type 1 - Plug

The Type 1 plug enables single-phase charging via a charging station/wallbox with up to 7.4 kW.

This requires 230 V alternating current and a 32 A fuse.

The Type 1 charging cable uses 3 wires (conductor, neutral, earth) for power transmission and two more for communication between the electric car and the charging station.

Because current only flows through one wire of the charging cable, this charging process is called “single-phase”.

The Type 1 plug can be used for Mode 2 charging and Mode 3 charging.

Japanese, French and US manufacturers in particular use the Type 1 plug.

Type 2 plug (standard in Europe)

The Type 2 plug enables three-phase charging with up to 22 kW at the charging station/wallbox with alternating current (400 V, 32 A). A cable with seven wires is used for this: three conductors, neutral, earth and two for communication. The charging current flows through three conductors, which gives this type of charging its name. The Type 2 plug can be used for Mode 2 and Mode 3 charging.

There is a slightly modified version of this plug for Teslas; this allows Teslas to be charged with direct current in Mode 4. Tesla only builds a CCS coupling into the vehicles from Model 3 onwards; Model S and Model X have the modified Type 2 coupling.

CCS - plug

CCS stands for “Combined AC / DC Charging System”.

CCS is the new standard for plugs and connectors in electric cars in Europe.

This plug combines a Type 2 plug with 2 additional poles for direct current charging in one plug housing. Direct current fast chargers are also known as DC chargers. These charging stations always have a permanently mounted cable with a CCS plug.

They can be found, for example, at motorway service stations, because higher charging capacities are possible with direct current charging than with alternating current charging.

Direct current (DC) has no phases. There is only a positive pole and a negative pole. CCS plugs enable charging with 50 kW (DC) to over 400 kW (DC) charging power.

Type 2 plugs can also be connected to the CCS couplings or inlets on the vehicle side. In this case, charging takes place at a wallbox/charging station with alternating current (AC) and a maximum of 22 kW.

CHAdeMO - Plug

CHAdeMO could be translated from French and means: Chargè de Move.

Electric cars from the Far East, but also vehicles from Renault and Peugeot/Citroen, are equipped with CHAdeMO connectors, which enable a charging capacity of up to 400 kW when charging with direct current according to Mode 4.

Such DC fast chargers / direct current fast chargers (e.g. at motorway service stations) always have a permanently mounted charging cable with a CHAdeMO plug in addition to the charging cable with a CCS plug.