No. A NACS adapter of the kind sold for AC and DC charging is a passive connector: contacts, housing and sealing, with no processor, no memory and no software inside. There is nothing in it that can receive an update. What does change is everything around it: your car’s software, the station’s software, and your car maker’s published guidance.
Key Takeaways
- A passive NACS adapter contains no software, so it needs — and can receive — no firmware update.
- What changes is around it: car software, station software, and your car maker’s adapter guidance.
- For DC adapters, maker approval and station access are documents to re-check, not one-time facts.
- “Updatable” on an adapter listing is a claim to verify in the maker’s documents, not a quality mark.
What Is Actually Inside a Passive Adapter
An adapter’s job is mechanical and electrical: it presents one connector shape to the charger and the matching shape to the car, and it carries the current across metal contacts. The designs are specified by their ratings — current, voltage where stated, and an IP sealing rating — not by software versions.
| Part of the adapter | What it does | Can it be updated? |
|---|---|---|
| Contacts and terminals | Carry the charging current between the two connector shapes | No — metal, inspected for wear and damage instead |
| Housing and sealing | Hold the shapes together; the stated IP rating covers dust and water | No — checked for cracks and a clean fit |
| Signal pins | Pass the connectors’ signals through so car and charger can run a normal session | No — the conversation belongs to the car and the charger, not the adapter |
With no software, there is no version to fall behind. An adapter stops working when its contacts wear, its housing is damaged, or the rules around its use change.
The Three Things That Do Change Around It
- Your car’s software. Cars receive updates that can change charging behaviour, including how a car treats adapters and third-party stations. If a session that used to work stops working after a car update, the car maker’s current guidance is the first document to re-read.
- The station’s software. Networks update their chargers too. Access rules for a given car can change at the station side, which is why DC adapter use always carries the condition that the station or network is open to your car — checked against the network’s current position, not last year’s.
- The maker documents. For DC adapters, your vehicle maker’s approval of third-party adapters for your exact car is a written position that can be revised. The approval you relied on when you bought the adapter is worth confirming against the maker’s current document before a trip, not assumed permanent.
A Word on “Smart” and “Updatable” Adapters
Some listings market adapters as smart, connected or updatable. Treat that as a claim to verify, not a feature to want. If a maker says its adapter contains electronics, the honest questions are what they do, what an update changes, and where its documents say so. An update mechanism is not evidence of quality by itself — and for a plain passive adapter, the absence of one is not a defect. It is simply what the object is.
The Adapters in This Range
The EVDANCE JT02 is a NACS-to-J1772 AC adapter rated up to 80 A, with silver-plated copper contacts and IP65 sealing — AC only, never for DC fast charging. The EVDANCE JT08 (up to 500 A / 1000 V, IP66) and the EVDANCE JT09 with handle (up to 500 A, IP66) are NACS-to-CCS1 DC adapters. None of the three listings states any firmware, app or update function, and none is claimed here. Use the DC adapters only where your vehicle maker approves third-party DC adapter use for your car and the station is open to it — those two documents, not an update, are what keep them usable.
Frequently Asked Questions
My car received a software update. Will my adapter still work?
Usually nothing about a passive adapter changes — it has no software to fall out of step. If a session behaves differently afterwards, check the car maker’s current guidance on adapters and the network’s current access rules; the change, if any, lives in those documents.
Can an adapter become “out of date”?
Not in the software sense. It can wear out — contacts discoloured, pitted or loose are retirement signs — and the approval position around DC adapter use can change. Both are checks you make by inspection and by re-reading the maker’s document, not by updating anything.
Do the JT02 or JT08 need an app?
No app is stated for either adapter. Charging apps belong to the car and the charging network; the adapter is not part of that layer.
Related Reading
- Are EV Charging Adapters Safe?
- Is the Tesla Charger NACS? NACS, J3400 and Adapters Explained
- Can a Tesla Use J1772 Chargers?
- What Is J1772? The North American EV Plug Explained
