Alpitronic 400 kW EV Chargers Are Coming To The US: Why I think This Is A Big Deal

I visit Alpitronic's US headquarters and chat with its CEO about the company bringing its high-powered DC fast chargers to the US market and why I'm excited about it.
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Chapters:
00:00 Intro
02:48 Mike Doucliff, CEO Alpitronic Americas
05:22 Why are Alpitronic's chargers more reliable than most others?
11:26 Branden Flasch, Technical Sales Manager, Alpitronic
17:45 How will Alpitronic service the equipment in the field?
19:58 What I like about Alpitronic's equipment
24:05 Outro
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[@brandenflasch]

Thank you for coming out to Charlotte! Great to finally meet you in person.

[@thenetworkarchitectchannel]

Great to see the Queen city in the spot light. We have a good state for tech (EV & otherwise) to call home.

[@kybrowns]

Best EV news we have had in a while.

[@cordkretzschmar5693]

I know these chargers (I think 300Kw) from Germany and i like them. Never had a problem with this chargers.

[@WatermelonJellyBean]

Thanks for flying down for the day and giving us a glimpse inside their HQ. Proud that Alpitronic chose North Carolina for their HQ in the Americas. If the Mercedes strategic alliance with Simon delivers on their goal of charging locations at 55 Simon locations, then at some point there should be some Alpitronic chargers a few miles from me at the Carolina Premium Outlets in Smithfield.

[@Joinusinfrance]

I charge on Alpitronics frequently in France (several companies use this hardware). Never saw one that didn’t work. They are GREAT!

[@berthogendoorn2133]

Alpitronics need to come to Canada, we have so many dead and dying stations especially at many many Petro Canada stations and Electrified Canada, they could help resolve their totally unreliable chargers that were installed up to 6 years ago, but are never functioning for longer than a few weeks after repair!

[@havnfunb4]

Petro Canada are horrible. Electrify Canada here in NB so far so good as they are newer chargers

[@simplygregsterev]

Alpitronic equipment is absolutely fantastic. It will be great to start using it in USA/Canada! They are everywhere in Europe!

[@johannesdopke538]

We have Alpitronic everywhere in Germany. They work extremely good. They are as good as Tesla Superchargers. All CPO‘s use them (Only Tesla use their own equipment). I would say they have a 80 - 90 percent market share in Germany without Tesla network.

[@borama7845]

In Europe, Alpis are reliable, reliable, reliable, reliable. All I need on a road trip.

[@simplygregsterev]

They work flawlessly!

[@glenngore6609]

Now we know why there haven’t been any new videos from Brandon in quite a while. He is now working for this company. I certainly wish him well in this new job and REALLY hope that these new units actually work. It will probably be years before there is a significant number out in the field. I have heard a lot of ads on various podcasts and KZbin videos about “the #1 charger manufacturer in the world” and the “most chargers in the field of any manufacturer”, etc, but I have yet to see a single unit in the wild from any of those manufacturers. Star Charge comes to mind as one of those manufacturers, but they have nothing in the US at all.

[@thenetworkarchitectchannel]

Super excited to see who the October sites will be. That is only a few weeks away.

[@jeffs6090]

Hopefully when these installs happen, each unit has a CCS and a NACS cable on board.

[@johnlabernik4599]

That power management feature will be huge. You can have a bolt and a Silverado EV charging off the same pedestal at full speed.

[@tspurre]

Clever in Denmark has a lot of hyc300. I often charge them, and there is very rarely a failure. and if it finally does, it can almost always be fixed with remote control.

[@Mobile_Dom]

Alpitronic hyperchargers, along with kempower units, \are the *only* DCFC I've never had a bad charge from, yes, even including tesla superchargers. the HYC150 is one of my favourite chargers to see implemented, they're small, pretty ,big screen etc and reliable. the HYC50, whilst im not a fan of installing more 50kW units, if we're gonna, they better be these small, easily upgradeable highly udsable models. I look forward to when alpitronic goes pulbic

[@Yanquetino]

Makes me wonder… what will the IONNA network install for DCFC…? Maybe the Mercedes and Pilot/FlyingJ/GM networks will shuffle together to form part of it…?

[@StateOfChargeWithTomMoloughney]

🤔

[@jesseallen2116]

The company my husband works for in neenha wi is making some of these for them

[@michaeldrake1681]

My local “Electrocute America” here in southern Arizona is simply horrible! Currently, two of the ten DC fast chargers are inoperable and one has its power reduced! I cannot remember the last time when all ten chargers were working properly! The two units not working have been this way for several weeks!

[@dushandesilva2595]

Alpitrinic. Is different than the electricity America, charge point is in terms of in house development of there own charging infrastructure and maintenance of the chargers like Tesla. Instead of relying on third party repair companies. And if in American the end user learn to use the chargers and not be abusive towards the charger maybe the chargers won’t be broken down that often.

[@jow.6605]

There is a need for EV chargers at rest areas on the Interstate Highway system. Perhaps this company a fill that gap.

[@tommckinney1489]

It's great that a company that makes chargers is focusing on reliability. As an aside, 400kW charging? Can any car take that today?

[@larryspiller15]

Cybertruck, hummer, silverado ev/sierra ev all go into the high 300s

[@4rwayner7]

So, from the dialogue it seems Brandon works for Alpitronics.

[@StateOfChargeWithTomMoloughney]

Yes, he's in the video @11:26

[@davidbaker9943]

Based off all of Kyle’s video of roadtrips in Europe definitely seems like a very solid choice! Didn’t know that Brandon worked for them. I also was checking to see if they have any openings lol it’s a cool company. Are they going to have j1772 connector? Assume so

[@omamiwininikwe9414]

I hope they come to Canada too.

[@StateOfChargeWithTomMoloughney]

They will

[@kemclawson314]

Great video as always. And this sounds promising. My biggest concerns are its software stack , underlying OS (please not windows!) , and networking. No matter how reliable the hardware is, these items often prove to be the achilles heel. Thanks

[@Chris21709]

Progress! Yay!

[@Lynyrd_Evnyrd]

I keep hearing about how they’re coming, but I still don’t see any around.

[@StateOfChargeWithTomMoloughney]

The first site goes live in October

[@timnevitt2993]

all i have used is the charger in my garage but if i need ever needed to use a fast charger it would be nice to have one reliable, heck i have not gotten my adapter from ford yet

[@wasabi521]

We need site level load management or else we will be stuck in line waiting for 1 of 2 cabinets to become available. as cool as these are they probably are 5x the cost of superchargers to deploy and require more grid power.

[@CoordinatedCarry]

I’m so excited to plug my Chevy Bolt into one of these 400 kW chargers!!! (I’m obviously kidding.😜)

[@epcalderhead]

Now that I upgraded my 2019 Model 3 to accept CCS (I needed it to charge in Nova Scotia) and I've used a few other CCS chargers, it shocking how unwieldily the CCS cable and charging heads are when trying to maneuver them about and plug them in. Then dealing with payments and hard to read screens adds to the friction of CCS charging. The death of the CCS head with the replacement of NACS can't come too soon.

[@fatunga1]

Great news! Thanks, Tom. Question: I understand that these are highly modular, but does that translate into any kind of redundancy? In other words, if a module or stack goes out, can the charger limp along on the functioning modules at a slower rate? I still think the far better approach is to make slow charging ubiquitous so that fast charging is seldom necessary. I look forward to that future, but I get it--for now, everyone's anxious and in a hurry.

[@badtoro]

What the point? If they are not rolled out in a large scale and key thing here, SUPPORTED

[@StateOfChargeWithTomMoloughney]

They will be...

[@patrick7228]

Honestly what is Tesla's secret? Everyone says vertical integration. They make the cars and the network blah blah blah. But then why is everyone's magic dock experience with non-Tesla's also seamless and reliable?

[@Rhaman68]

The “secret” is %#%^^*! Get it? In reality there is no secret. A well engineered system with quality components is reliable and with excellent tech support is the secret. Tesla is unique in that the chargers are part of the system that sells cars. Notice that Tesla SC have no screens, the hose and plug are like no others as to size, weight and the software is superb. As to other brands charging at Tesla’s SC, only the V3 stations and the ones with built in CCS adaptors work but at less speeds than high power units at EVgo and Electrify America. My Ioniq 5 will not charge at 230 kw in a Tesla SC, perhaps at 97 kw due to its 800 V architecture(whatever that means). I can imagine how long it will take to charge a 150 kw GM Hummer EV at a Tesla SC.

[@AnonymousFreakYT]

Branden looks so uncomfortable being on camera for his actual day job, instead of "just having fun". :-D

[@StateOfChargeWithTomMoloughney]

Maybe he was just star-struck about finally meeting the great Tom Moloughney🤣

[@brandenflasch]

@@AnonymousFreakYT 😅 I'm not used to not doing my own thing

[@AnonymousFreakYT]

@@StateOfChargeWithTomMoloughney That was certainly it!

[@mrdsn189]

Thank you! I look forward to them embarrassing everybody with their amazing reliability!

[@mts982]

will they have a map like teslas to easily find the chargers and map out a trip and show if chargers arent working?

[@CraigMatsuura]

IF someone bumped the holster connector which part breaks first? The holster or the connector?

[@mikeforman8246]

You didn't mention anything about the output voltage or output current. The website shows the options for current, up to 600 amps. What's the output voltage options?

[@brandenflasch]

@@mikeforman8246 150-1000V

[@Dqtube]

Just visit their website where you will find all the information. For *HYC400* , the specifications are as follows: - Output DC voltage range: 150 Vdc - 1000 Vdc - Maximum output current: 500 A continuous (600 A boost) - DC output (4x Power-Stacks) : 400 kW, max. 1200 A (600 A max. per cable)

[@brandond.7768]

Lots of smart people here, so maybe someone could answer this...lvl 2 chargers are slow, but could you have a battery that plugs into a level 2 outlet, and continuously charges, but when you plug your ev the battery gives the output of a lvl 3. Like my at home battery is charging 8 hours while at work, I come home and plug my ev in for 30 min and get that as fc?

[@gregpochet4812]

This is awesome, but I am tired of hearing about some company PLANNING on deploying chargers. Look at 7-Charge. They announced 18 months ago about installing DCFC. How many do they have? Answer: Very few. Where is Ionna? So I won't be holding my breath for Alpitronic to make true on their announcement. I hope they do.

[@brandenflasch]

Alpitronic doesn't deploy / own / operate - see the announcement from Mercedes HPC.

[@Dqtube]

Many of these companies are delaying their plans as they are waiting for the election results. Not everyone wants to be irresponsible and burn shareholder money.

[@dporrasxtremeLS3]

BE Smart!!! Buy TESLA! Buy a EV from a company that Has their Own Charging Infrastructure in Place!!! Buy Tesla! They Really Support their vehicles!

[@michaelhopwood1179]

not rivian. very reliable

[@sprockkets]

More of this and flo and kempower, but chargepoint seems OK too

[@keithhere5868]

hmm 27,000 world wide is not that much.....

[@StateOfChargeWithTomMoloughney]

Really? How many companies out of the more than 100 companies that are making DC fast chargers have more than that in service?

[@TheLobo91]

I heard that a Tesla maga pack battery can be connected directly to the grid. In theory if that is the case could they just connect the pack to the local grid and then discharge the pack to superchargers? That would get rid of the huge grid fee by allowing to trickle charge the pack. Kyle just installed a battery HVDC evse. Does anyone know if Tesla could do that with their mega packs?

[@robsquared2]

I feel like a lot of the reliability issues have to do with how much some Americans hate EVs and will thus mess with the infrastructure.

[@Rhaman68]

More DCFC is not the solution by itself. A commonality as to how to pay and some controls over the cost of charging is part of the equation. THE mistake of placing DCFC units at car dealerships, for example, needs to be stopped. The parking, the fees, the lack of 24/7 availability, reliability and locations of dealerships makes a case against DCFC at dealerships.

[@jasonweb9720]

Quebec Canada chargers are rock solid. Crazy in the states there always broken

[@Harrythehun]

Alpis are okay. Far to heavy cables, not so great cable handling and connectors holders, no micro grid = fewer chargers = power locked into each cabinet = more expensive for CPO due to lower power utilisation rate on each site.

[@FuncleChuck]

We spend a LOT of time talking about DC fast charging. A lot more, in fact, than we actually spend at chargers. Seriously. This is such a nonissue. Most people I know who own an EV hardly ever use fast charging. Tech KZbinrs spend an absurdly high proportion of their time thinking about something that most people don’t need often.

[@consolemaster]

Not only have more of these 400kw chargers, but, newer EVs that can charge quickly! Need to charge 20% to 80% in less than 5 minutes, then I'm game to switch back to EVs.....I hate doing multiple stops and waiting 20-30 minutes every stop to charge...switched back to ICE/Hybrid because of it....never needed to stretch, all I did was just nap in the car everytime that I was charging....waste of time....I think probably take another 10 years to get the 20% to 80% in 5 minutes to happen...I'll gladly switch back to EV when that's the case

[@JustinTimeCuber]

There are already cars that can do that in ~15 minutes and frankly the time you save not having to go to gas stations regularly more than makes up for an extra 10ish minutes on a road trip compared to a gas stop Like if you're going 400 miles, that's probably around 5 and a half hours. Gas stop adds say 5 minutes, EV charging stop (with 200kW charging) might be like 15. There are valid reasons to not want an EV currently (charging availability and reliability being the main ones imo) but charging speed on road trips with newer models is honestly a tiny concern at this point.

[@gregpochet4812]

Because most people drive 250- 500 miles in a day, every day of the week?? I love the people that say this "I drive in -30 degrees, up hill, 400 miles a day. Until and EV can do that and charge in 2 mins, EVs won't ever work". Meanwhile most people drive under 60 miles a day, charge at home(takes 10s to plug in , go to sleep), rarely drive in 0 degree weather for more than a couple of weeks.. The amount of time an EV driver saves by not going to a gas station 2 times a week. That time is way more than the time spent on 1 or 2 800 mile road trips/ year.

[@consolemaster]

@@gregpochet4812 most folks will buy only one car...if they take vacations, drive 500 miles....they don't want to stop for 20-30 minutes...I've done that and don't like it on an EV....slots of folks say plug-in? sure, only when you are using it close...but, hey, if you only need one car, and take it on trips....definitely a problem with me having to do multiple stops....I don't like stretching for 20-30 minutes....sightsee at rest stops? lol....can't switch or rotate drivers if you needed to, you're forced to stop all the time despite being capable of rotating.....food, same thing, eat with one hand....lol....planning? who don't plan when going on vacation?

[@JustinTimeCuber]

@@consolemaster just make two 10 minute stops then I promise you it won't be a big deal compared to the massive time save of being able to charge at home regularly

[@consolemaster]

@@JustinTimeCuber then you'll have to do multiple 10 minute charging stops...lol....defeats the purpose of less stops....definitely doesn't fit my convenience

[@mts982]

tesla should be the only installer of chargers for teslas and non tesla vehicles unless another company can make a network like teslas.

[@StateOfChargeWithTomMoloughney]

If they are the only installer, how will we ever find out if another company can do it just as good, or better?

[@pickelkilla]

Advocating for a monopoly lol

[@mts982]

@@StateOfChargeWithTomMoloughney well so far other non tesla chargers arent cutting it and theres been a few. a rarely hear of tesla chargers having problems.

[@mts982]

@@pickelkilla when its done right by a company why use other?

[@2023_GJ]

@@mts982 you should spend some time thinking about the answer to that question