The new 2026 Nissan Leaf has an interesting, and possibly confusing, setup for charging it. Unlike many EVs, there are two charging ports on the car. While some do have a two-port arrangement, like the Porsche Taycan, this setup is a bit different and will take a little bit of explaining. Here’s our guide for understanding it.
Two ports! In this economy?
That’s right, there are two charging ports on the car. One is on the driver’s side, and the other is on the passenger’s side. Both are hidden behind a manually operated charging door.
On the driver’s side of the car (in right-hand drive markets, like North America), there is a SAE J1772 port. This is a standard, non-Tesla level 1 and level 2 charging port. Nearly every electric vehicle in the United States has this connector, and while it is being phased out on the newest of cars, this is the connector you’re most likely going to find on home charging equipment or level 2 charging out in public.
For the eagle-eyed amongst you, you’ll note the J1772 port is also part of the CCS DC fast charging connector. That’s true. The first C in CCS stands for combined, and two DC connectors are added to the bottom of a J1772 hole to provide fast charging compatibility.
Since the connector on the Leaf only supports AC-based level 1 and level 2 charging, there needs to be a way to fast charge on a DC circuit.
NACS
On the passenger side of the vehicle is a SAE J3400 connector, or NACS, port. This port, also called the Tesla connector, handles getting the juice into the car quickly. It can be plugged into any Tesla Supercharger fast charging station in North America, and also stations that support NACS like Ionna, and allows for the Leaf to have broad compatibility with many charging locations.
Like all new EVs that come with a NACS port, if you want to fast charge at a station that only has a CCS connector, you’ll need an adapter to convert that CCS plug to the native NACS port. Most new EVs that have a NACS port will come with this adapter, but there might be a time when you’ll have to purchase one in order to make it work.
But what about level 2?
On dedicated NACS vehicles, where that’s the only charging connector, if you want to level 2 charge your vehicle (or slowly trickle charge on a standard home outlet at level 1 speeds), your connector needs to have a NAC plug on it. Yes, there is an adapter for Tesla and other NACS owners to level 2 charge from a J1772 plug, but the Leaf introduces something extra weird.
For the Leaf, the DC fast charging is done by the NACS, but you cannot plug a level 2 NACS connector into the Leaf to have it work. The only way to AC charge the car is through the J1772 port on the driver’s side. That means if you have a Tesla home charger and purchase a Leaf, you’ll need an adapter to convert that NACS connector to a J1772 connector so it can plug into the Leaf, even though there is a NACS port on the other side of the vehicle.
No, that doesn’t make sense to us either.
When pressed, Nissan says that the decision to offer NACS instead of CCS came in the middle of the development cycle of the Leaf (which does make sense), and it was beyond feasible to stop and make the necessary changes to the electric system to handle both AC and DC duties with the NACS plug.
Aside from the label describing the NACS port as DC charging only, the car will inform the driver if they plug it into the wrong type of plug. It’ll be important to remember that the driver’s side is for level 2 charging, and the passenger’s side is for fast charging. Leaf drivers might end up being the EV drivers on the road who carry the most dongles and adapters for charging.
It should be noted that the new Mercedes-Benz CLA with EQ technology will also have a similar setup, though both the J1772 and NACS ports will reside under the same charging door.
Ultimately, it might not be that confusing for some Leaf owners, because they’ll have come from the Leaf as their previous EV. In that car, there was a J1772 port for level 1 and level 2 charging, and a CHAdeMO port for DC fast charging. The only difference is that a CHAdeMO connector doesn’t provide AC charging, and a NACS connector — in some situations — does.
Once an owner starts using it regularly, it shouldn’t be too difficult. But it does add complexity to the ownership experience that other EV drivers won’t have to worry about. Products coming to market during this transition are likely to be a little weird. The new Leaf is one of those transitional products.
At the time of this article’s publication, it is expected that the Leaf to come with a DC adapter to use CCS with the car, but it’s unclear if there will be a level 2 adapter. We have one listed below if it does not.
- INCREASED CHARGING OPTIONS – Access Tesla or North American Charging Standard (NACS) chargers to…
- COMPATIBILITY – Compatible with the Tesla High Powered Wall Connectors, all generation of…
- QUICK CHARGING – The J1772 charging adapter is the only adapter on the market that supports 48 Amps…
- PORTABLE – The Tesla Adapter is compact and durable, making it ideal for charging on the go; Keep it…
- SAFETY & PERFORMANCE – This electric vehicle charging adapter has been SGS certified under the UL…
![Lectron NACS to CCS Electric Vehicle Adapter with Interlock - (500A/1,000V) - Compatible with Tesla Superchargers - CCS1 EV Fast Charging with Vortex Plus [Check Automaker for Compatibility] - UL 2252](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/310Iflz5lIL._SL160_.jpg)
