The Tesla Supercharger station located next to 87th St. between 73rd and 74th Avenues was hit by vandals sometime on the weekend or early this week, barely a week after two pickup trucks tore up the turf at the Osoyoos Golf Course.
In this latest bout of un-civic behaviour, an individual(s) filled the recess where the charging plug is stored with some white sealant-like substance. This then plugged up the nozzle rendering it inoperable.
Only one unit of the eight Tesla V3 250 kW fast chargers was vandalized. The Version 3 chargers supply electric power at 250 kW, up from the original Version 1 which supplied 100 kW of power. The cable on the V3 is thinner and lighter than its predecessors and utilizes liquid cooling.
Usage is typically billed by the energy consumed during charging and idle fees are often charged to deter customers from remaining plugged in after charging of their vehicle has completed charging to ensure the charger is available to other users.
As of January 2024, Tesla operates a network of 6,000 Supercharger stations with nearly 55,000 connectors, according to Wikipedia. The network is primarily deployed in three regions: Asia Pacific (over 2,400 stations), North America (over 2,300), and Europe (over 1,100).
A post on a local Facebook page descended into social media banality with an argument over electric vehicles punctuated with disinformation leading one participant to acutely observe: “I just don’t understand the hatred towards electric cars, if you don’t want one, don’t buy one.”
The Times Chronicle reached out to Tesla (which manages the Supercharger station) but did not receive a reply prior to press time.
