In the Driver's Seat

Get Your Green On, and More

West Coast Green. The Green Drive Expo. Bioneers. And the West Coast Corridor Coalition. Which of these events fits under the category of "pro-environment"?

If you answered "all of the above," you'd be right. This is just a West Coast sampling of the many events Plug In America will be involved in over the next two months, and we've got some special deals for Plug In America members if you'd like to attend. Not a member? Join Plug In America today.

Hey, non-West Coasters -- is there an event near you that could benefit from our participation too? If so, leave a comment here or email your suggestions to events@pluginamerica.org. Plug In America has supporters in every state. Hello, Florida! Number three among states with Plug In America supporters. And a shout out to Texas -- number four! (California and Washington rank numbers one and two.) People all over the country are eager to end our addiction to oil, and Plug In America is here to spread the word about driving on clean, domestic electrons -- with your help.

Meanwhile, if you're in the San Francisco Bay Area, come join us at one of these four events -- one for every part of the Bay Area:

 Climate Policy and West Coast Transportation Conference - Sept. 15-17 at Stanford University, Palo Alto. Plug In America President Dan Davids will be speaking at this event, hosted by the West Coast Corridor Coalition in cooperation with key sponsors and supporting organizations, including Plug-in America. One focus of this two-day event will be the implementation of the I-5 Green Highway as envisioned by the west coast governors and the premier of British Columbia in their Pacific Coast Collaborative, as well as to discuss other innovations for a clean, green and smart West Coast EV corridor. Registration for the two-day conference is $175.

West Coast Green - Sept. 30 to Oct. 1 at Fort Mason, San Francisco. For many years this has been one of the pre-eminent conferences on greening the "built environment" (like the building trades, architecture, etc.) and now they're expanding to include greening transportation. Plug In America board members Marc Geller and Sherry Boschert will attend an invitation-only summit as part of West Coast Green, and Plug In America's booth will be in the main exhibit hall. If you're a paid member of Plug In America and would like to attend West Coast Green, we have three passes that lower the $1,175 full-conference registration to $425. Beyond that, all Plug In America members can get a 30% discount for a full-conference registration price of $822.50. Contact us for details. If you're not yet a member of Plug In America, join Plug In America today! For one-day passes ($425 before Sept. 28) or passes to the tradeshow exhibit hall only ($75 for one day, $95 for all three), see the West Coast Green site. 

Green Drive Expo - Oct. 9, Craneway Pavilion, Richmond. The wonderful organizers of the annual HybridFest in Madison, Wisc. are branching out to embrace full vehicle electrification and other alternative fuels in their first West Coast exposition. Plug In America co-founder Marc Geller will speak, we'll have lots of fun in the Plug In America booth, and attendees will get to test-drive various vehicles. Admission is $10, parking is $5. Plus, if you have a "green" vehicle, you can enter it in an "Owner's Showcase" for an extra $15.

Bioneers - October 15-17, Marin Civic Center, San Rafael. Bioneers is one of the leading forums presenting breakthrough solutions for people and the planet. Plug In America co-founder Sherry Boschert will speak on Saturday, Oct. 16 from 4:30-6:00 pm on "Movin' On: Greening Cars and Wheels." Look for us in the Plug In America booth too. Three-day passes are $495, daily passes are $195, and a "Grounds" pass for exhibits only is $285 or $95/day.

Hope to see y'all at some of these! If you're not already a member, join Plug In America today to get discounts on admission to events like these.

-- Sherry Boschert

Electric Taxi in Texas

 Plug In America member Sara Bissig and her husband Jimmy have a very visible all-electric taxi service in The Woodlands community north of oil-rich Houston, Texas.Their two Go Green Eco Taxis faithfully deliver passengers around town in clean, chic electric style.The larger of the two Sky Car neighborhood electric vehicles (NEVs) is often filled to 10-person capacity as it zips around The Woodlands Mall, Town Center and Grogan's Mill Village for $3.00 per person.The Bissigs' smaller blue eco taxi comfortably seats five passengers plus driver.

Let's say you happen to be in The Woodlands area, and you'd like to make your way to the local mall but parking is impossible. Maybe you'd fancy dining on Market Street or Waterway Square or you'd prefer some local sightseeing or you merely long to experience the ambiance of an ultra-smooth, non-polluting ride in an electric vehicle. Simply call Go Green Eco Taxi. Sara or one of her driving team will sail silently by in a rare-as-diamonds all-electric Texas taxi and literally sweep you off your tired, aching feet.

How did Sara and Jimmy come to own this electric taxi business? Sara -- who proudly proclaims an interest in all things environmental -- says she "hopes to inspire our customers and friends to live green with our eco taxi." On a purely practical level, Sara noticed a few years ago that it was becoming ridiculously challenging to find parking around The Woodlands Mall: "There was a sea of vehicles that needed parking." She'd already been thinking about ways to green her world and make a difference. A lightning bolt of inspiration struck her. Why not provide electric transportation for local residents and tourists? She and husband Jimmy then promptly purchased their two all-electric Sky Car NEVs.

The two electric work horses can be found picking up and delivering passengers to shopping destinations, concerts or restaurants Monday through Saturday. The Go Green Eco Taxi is also available for business conventions, wedding receptions or holiday parties. As Sara likes to say, "If you drink, let us drive." One of Sara's passengers declares, "This is not a typical taxi service. This ride rocks!"  

I asked Sara about the reaction of random passengers who hop into her two Go Green Eco Taxis. Sara explains, "People love it. They just love it! Lots of concert goers hitch a ride, and we play downloaded music from the concert they are going to attend. Often it's the first time people have ever been in an electric vehicle. Even though this area is all about oil-derived wealth, the positive reaction we get from the Green Eco Taxi is amazing." Another benefit of the green eco-taxi: "Dogs ride free."

So hats off to an enterprising Plug In America member who saw a clear transportation need and powered both that need and her Go Green Eco Taxis with electrons.

Posted by Linda Nicholes

Photos courtesy of GoGreenEcoTaxi.com

Buy These Books Lady Gaga

Summer's almost over, but it's not too late to get in on Plug In America's summer reading special deal -- two great books for the price of one. Place your order before Labor Day to take advantage of this offer.

For a $10 donation (plus $3 flat rate shipping), we'll send you a print copy of our 2010 consumer resource guide, "Charged Up & Ready To Roll: The Definitive Guide To Plug-in Electric Vehicles" ($8 value) plus a copy of the book that best tells the fascinating history of the past decade that led to our current EV era, "Plug-in Hybrids: The Cars That Will Recharge America" ($10 value).

After reading these, your enthusiasm will be electrified and ready for the new plug-in vehiucles to debut later this year.

Remember, take advantage of this deal by ordering before Labor Day. School has started in many parts of the country, so this may not count as summer reading for some, but it's never too early to get holiday gifts when it's for a good cause, right?

Oh, and about that Lady Gaga reference in the title of this post... Just a little "search engine optimization" trick to see if we get more hits on this post than we usually do. But Lady Gaga, if you're reading this, wouldn't you look fabulous in an electric car? And make the car look even more spectacular? Lady, I'm inviting you to Plug In America's annual benefit party on October 23 at the home of director Chris Paine -- of all the stars that will be there, you would be the brightest. Seriously. I'd love to hear from you. ; -)

More on the party in a future post. Hold the date, y'all.

(Photo of Lady Gaga at the 2010 International Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas by flickr user Domain Barnyard under Creative Commons license.)

--Sherry Boschert

@sherryboschert on Twitter

Exhaustion and Excitement at the Automotive X Prize

One hot summer day when I was a child, my parents took me to the county fair.  This was an unusual event for us, and we were there all day.  We didn't get home until late, so I went straight to bed--exhausted, yet excited and happy.

 

The way I felt that night kept popping in to my mind last week as I represented Plug In America at the Progressive Insurance Automotive X-Prize Leadership Summit.  The first day was inside some comfortable conference rooms; through the large windows we could see the blistering heat on the track where the competitors were running the last events of the Finals Stage.  That evening we were released on to the (fortunately much cooler) track to see the cars and mingle with the competitors at the Closing Ceremony.

   

Keep in mind that the X Prize was announced in 2008, and measured evaluations of 136 vehicles from 111 teams began in April.  The competition was grueling, it was hot...and as of this day, there were only 9 cars from 7 teams left.  The remaining teams must still go through a Validation Stage before prizes are awarded.  So yes, exhaustion was clearly visible.  And yet...so was excitement and happiness.  Even from the teams that had been eliminated in the past week!  The camaraderie, pride, and determination were inspiring.

 

The Leadership Summit itself was similar.  Getting plug-in vehicles back on U.S. roads after the much-publicized crushing of California EVs in 2003 has been a very long haul, with a number of frustrating setbacks.  The goal of the Automotive X Prize is familiar: to commercialize new vehicles that reduce our dependence on oil and stem the effects of climate change.  I enjoyed the chance to get perspective from a broad range of industry players at once--event competitors, automotive suppliers, governments, NGOs, researchers, venture capitalists, etc. 

 

While the X Prize event is technology neutral, almost all of the conversation at the Leadership Summit was about electrification.  As one federal government official noted, only automotive electrification has a chance of making enough of a difference to meet national goals (which were related to energy security and carbon emissions for his organization; others there were concerned with other factors like pollution and the economy).  Despite the wide variety of backgrounds, everybody believes that major change is coming.  Incentives have been granted, cars are being built, and infrastructure is being installed.  There is much work left to be done, but really the biggest open question is how large consumer demand will be.

 

The Summit was a few hours out of my normal timezone, so by my watch I had to get up at 3:30am to attend the second day.  By the time the conference was over and I'd been on a couple of airplanes and managed to get home to my own bed, 21 hours had passed.  So I went to bed--exhausted, yet excited and happy.

 

Posted by Chad Schwitters

 

Photos courtesy of Peraves AG and Edison2

Welcome Aboard, Chad!

Electric vehicle advocate, adventurer, technology evangelist, businessman, computer expert and Tesla road warrior Chad Schwitters recently became Plug In America's newest board member.  PIA's multi-talented new guy hails from Redmond, Washington where his oh-so-green garage houses not one, not two but THREE plug-in vehicles. Chad has served his state by helping to educate the public about the immeasurable benefits of alternative transportation.  He's served the EV community by working with PIA and organizing events for the Seattle Electric Vehicle Association.

Chad is as comfortable hiking in the Cascades as he is in a business suit and has endorsed cleaner, less polluting transportation for over 20 years by walking, biking, busing, carpooling and motorcycling.  He started riding a motorcycle to work in 1984 "primarily because it got better mpg."  He then began taking the bus, practicing the old-fashioned art of destination walking and also had his family's 2005 Prius converted to a plug-in hybrid. But what really "moves" Chad these days are his two 100% electric vehicles -- a Toyota RAV4 EV and a Tesla roadster.  In fact, last April Chad's brilliant yellow electric Tesla actually moved him all the way from Seattle to San Diego and then back again. If you'd like some of the inside scoop on his EV road trip adventures, feel free to shoot him an email: chad@pluginamerica.org.  He'll be pleased to hand out recommendations on hotels, RV campgrounds and places to plug in.  

 PIA president and fellow Washington state resident Dan Davids frequently works side-by-side with Chad at EV advocacy events.  Dan declares, "Chad is an inveterate entrepreneur and accomplished businessman. He is not short on great ideas, and we are fortunate to have him join our organization and board." 

Should you question why Chad is such a resolute champion of electric vehicles, here's Chad's short answer:  "There are lots of good reasons to drive an EV:  Pollution, climate change, energy independence, geo-political stability, reduced maintenance, the economy.  The question then is not so much why there are so many batteries in my garage as why NOT?"

Be sure to stay tuned to Plug In America's official blog site for some words of wisdom from this ultimate EV adventurer / advocate.

Posted by Linda Nicholes

Photos courtesy of Chad Schwitters and Autoblog Green

Charging Ahead at 98

I recently had the honor of dining with fellow Tesla roadster owner Howard Dunholter, who at 98 years of age is clearly not your "typical" Tesla enthusiast.  Howard's interest in EVs began way back in 1921 when he was a ten-year-old tot. He remembers watching lamp-like electric horseless carriages gliding through his hometown of Cincinnati as the cars delivered local ladies to church services.  Howard never forgot those silent, crystalline cars. "They had a lot of glass and class."  It was the beginning of his life-long fascination with electric vehicles.

So in 1996 when GM began to lease its first EV1 electric cars (with lead acid battery packs) Howard jumped at the chance to lease his own. Howard and his wife Kay adored their little EV1 from the get-go and predictably abandoned the gas car. As Howard explains, "The EV1 became our car of choice. We drove that EV1 all the time." Howard recalls that when they first got the car, "There were lots of places to plug in around town." With a far-away look in his eyes, he talks about the road trip that Kay and he took from their home in Palos Verdes to visit friends in San Diego:  "We plugged in at Costco stores along the way.  One of the best adventures we ever had. We used that EV1 for everything." 

He recounts the time Kay zoomed over to LAX in the EV1 to pick up their two teenage nieces.  By stacking the giggling girls on top of one another and cramming luggage into the trunk, Kay transformed the EV1 into a temporary airport shuttle. He emphasizes that "GM did an incredibly good job of designing the thing. Naturally we weren't too pleased when GM took the car away."

In 2006, Howard -- then an active 95-year-old fellow -- met former CEO Tesla Motors co-founder Martin Eberhard at the LA Auto Show. Most "sensible" folks would opine that 95 is way too old to even consider buying a wickedly fast, ground-hugging sports car -- electric or otherwise. But most of those folks wouldn't have been thinking about electric cars since 1921 either.  Finding the 100% all-electric Tesla roadster irresistible, Howard got in line to receive the super-charged sports car. He confidently slapped down a $50,000 deposit. And then he waited -- and waited.  

Sadly, in the two years before Howard actually get the glacier blue Tesla, his beloved bride of 50 years died. "Kay never got to see or ride in our Tesla." Compounding that wrenching loss -- and during the long wait -- Howard had a stroke and lost vision in one eye along with his ability to drive.  Then, ironically, the racy new roadster was delivered.  Howard laments, "At that time I didn't have much to look forward to."

But Howard accepted delivery of his Tesla anyway, and then he unexpectedly started to look forward to and even enjoy letting friends and family drive his fancy new electric car.  And, of course, he certainly didn't mind being chauffeured hither and yon in the stunning blue EV either. He promptly and proudly pioneered 110V charging for local condos through his Long Beach condo association. Howard's son, Paul Dunholter, currently shares custody of the "blue streak." Howard's two granddaughters, Bridget and Megan, are thrilled to their teenage toes with their grandfather's car.  

Bridget has been at the wheel of her Grandpa's Tesla in a large parking lot under her Dad's watchful supervision as she practices for her California driver's license exam. At 16 she is presumably the youngest Tesla driver; Howard the oldest. 14-year-old Megan admonishes her grandfather, "You'd better not sell that car before I'm old enough to drive it!" 

Given this heroic EV advocate's rare 88-year history with electric cars, I thought he'd be just the guy to ask about the future of electric transportation. Howard asserts that "The future for EVs is bright. Everyone will want to drive electric cars. People will prefer electric cars in the coming decades just like they did back in the early 1900's.  We need to bring back more infrastructure, of course, but this time there won't be newly-invented electric starters on gas cars to put those electric cars out of business."

Howard made me promise to include his expression of gratitude to former Tesla Motors CEO and co-founder Martin Eberhard for two enormous accomplishments:  1) Having the inspiration to develop an electric sports car and then actually doing it  2) Moving Howard's historical hero, Nikola Tesla, out of 20th Century obscurity and into the light of the 21st Century by naming the first mass-produced electric vehicle to hit the highway in a decade -- naming that car the Tesla. 

Posted by Linda Nicholes 

Tesla roadster photo courtesy of Paul and Patricia Dunholter

Special thanks to Eric Swenson, Will Kostman and Stefano Paris

Portland is hot for EVs

The Oregon Electric Vehicle Association held their 2010 EV Awareness Day on Saturday, July 10.

Kelli and I arrived the day before. We were told the weather had been rainy and cold, but by Friday it had turned hot and sunny. Pioneer Square, affectionately known as Portland's "living room", was barren, except for a few scattered tents hinting at the activities of the coming day.

Saturday morning, the Square started filling with conversions of every type. We had some pretty well-known (to any reader of the EVDL, or visitor to the EVAlbum) member conversions like Gary Graunke's Honda Insight, and Victor Tikhonov's Honda CRX. There was a very clean lithium Toyota Yaris conversion. Production vehicles included a Chevy S10 Electric, a Toyota RAV4-EV and a Tesla Roadster. Best Buy had a booth showing off at least a dozen different e-bikes.

At 1pm, OEVA Chair John Christian introduced the first speaker. Charlie Allcock of PGE spoke about how the OEVA was instrumental in driving EV progress in Portland. He recounted the story of the first Shorepower charger PGE installed. The event received media attention, and soon after, Charlie received a call from Nissan. Mark Perry and the Zero Emission team came out from Tennessee, took a good look around Portland, and decided it had everything going for it. Later that year, after Nissan and PGE/Oregon agreed on an MOU, at the Detroit Auto Show in November, Carlos Ghosn announced Portland as the official launch point for the LEAF. I spoke to Charlie afterward and he said this is a great example of why it's important to always answer your phone calls promptly. (timeline of EV events in OR)

In speaking to Charlie, I also noted the difference in attitude between PGE, and PG&E in California. In particular, I brought up the recently defeated Proposition 16, which would have abolished community aggregation of power in Northern California. Charlie said that there are some issues in the Bay Area that could cause problems if everyone decides to "go EV" at the same time (undersized supply panels, for instance), but ultimately, he said that the power company needs to step up and make the needed changes to the infrastructure. It's as simple as that.

John next introduced Jeff Cogen, Multnomah County Chair. Jeff spoke about the benefits of driving electric and described some of the business coalitions in the area that are all very supportive of EVs. DriveOregon (http://driveoregon.org/) is one such example of manufacturers, municipalities, utilities, and drivers organizations like the OEVA all working together. This unity is no doubt one of the prime reasons Nissan decided Portland was so ripe for EVs.

I had a chance to speak next. I spoke about the radical shift Plug In America's relationship to industry has undergone. What was once an adversarial relationship with the automakers has evolved into a collaboration, just as it should be. I spoke about how our group has seen, with the release of vehicles like the Tesla Roadster and the BWM Mini-E, new drivers becoming advocates. Some of our most exciting projects are being led by members that have been with our group for only a year. Imagine what will happen when LEAF and Volt drivers join the cause. I congratulated Portland on the EV-friendly community that they have built. (become a member of Plug In America)

Throughout the day, drivers went up to the podium to give their testimonials. We heard from Gary Graunke and Dmitry (video of Dmitry's day and his speech)

Other speakers included Dexter Turner of OpConnect and James Mast of the Portland Development Commission.

Kelli worked the booth with me most of the day. The most common question was "What is PIA working on?" We spoke about some of our legislative efforts, including the recent success with the "white sticker" HOV lane incentive extension in CA. Visitors wanted to know if EV buyer incentives might increase. I told them about the Federal tax credit already in place and told them about the CA Clean Vehicle Rebate of $5K. Oregon doesn't seem to have an equivalent. There is a $1,500 state tax credit, but no rebate like in CA.

As always at these events, we got to meet lots of different people. The "It's a Small World" phenomena was in play, as we met a family that lives not one block from our house in Huntington Beach, 1,000 miles away (they were in Portland for a wedding). We had a discussion with a very nice man about anti-depressants which delved into the philosophical. At one point, he decided to illustrate the effects of drugs on the brain via an interpretive pole dance. We thought he might bring our tent down. ;-) We also met a man riding an electric mobility scooter who told us he was going to be receiving a $120 million inheritance and would be buying a Tesla. Share the wealth, dude! Ultimately, you can't really say you visited a city until you meet some of its people, and Portland has some colorful characters.

Portland is a great city. It shares much in common with San Francisco to the south, and Seattle to the north. However, it has it's own self-described "weirdness". Walking around downtown, seeing the great mass transit (mostly electric), tall buildings (some with wind turbines), it's difficult to imagine this distinct combination existing anywhere else in the US. If this is "weird", it's also wonderful. The combination has certainly caught the eye of EV manufacturers. If you get a chance to visit, don't pass up a drink at Henry's Tavern or Bridgeport Brewery, or a stroll through the aisles of Powell's Books.

Thanks to Jeanne Trombley and Jon Hellam (sent two boxes of supplies to meet me in OR), Linda Nicholes (nice banners), Jay Friedland (legislative help), and Pat Conner, John Christian, Ray Blackburn, Gary Graunke and the rest of the OEVA team that worked so hard to make the event a success.

Photos by Richard Kelly. More photos at Flickr.

Other event photos taken by Chris Arnesen

Plug-In 2010

   Just how plugged in are you going to be this summer?  How about electrifying your hazy-crazy-lazy days of summer by joining Plug In America from July 26-29 for this year's Plug-In 2010 Conference and Exposition at the San Jose McEnery Convention Center? 

You'll find Plug In America at the entrance to the exposition floor in booth #503 directly across from EPRI (Electric Power Research Institute).  And you certainly wouldn't want to miss PIA President Dan Davids' and Legislative Director Jay Friedland's conference and panel presentations.     

Jay:  Electrification Incentives, Policies and Programs - 7/28 at 3:30 pm 

Dan:  Infrastructure  -  7/28 at 3:30 pm 

First register for this one-of-a-kind expo and conference. Then get set to enjoy an informative, interactive international assemblage of automakers, infrastructure, parts and service suppliers. You'll learn from utility providers, academic and environmental organizations as well as industrial and consumer associations -- all with invaluable knowledge to impart about plug-in cars and the infrastructure they'll depend upon.  If you are especially interested in what's new in battery technology and vehicle-to-grid communication, then you do belong at Plug-In 2010 with Plug-In America.

Do you often wonder how close we actually are to getting mass-produced plug-in cars on the road or what infrastructure will support the millions of future plug-in cars hopefully headed for freeway on-ramps across the country?  Are you interested in getting up-to-the-minute info on market research and plug-in policy?  Plug-In 2010 will help to address your questions / concerns.

Visit Plug-In 2010's website for the handy Agenda at a Glance along with registration and pricing information.  Naturally we'll expect you to stop by and say hello to the PIA gang in booth # 503 on Tuesday, July 27 during Public Night. The admission cost for that event only is $10, and you can pay at the door.  If you decide to register for the full conference, you will be treated to a content-rich agenda covering topics from battery and vehicle costs to Smart Grid integration and renewable energy generation. 

Plug In America looks forward to welcoming you to the exhibit floor where Nissan will proudly display its all-electric LEAF, and GM will show off the extended-range Plug-In Chevy Volt  -- among many other great exhibits and products.

If you happen to be searching for convenient lodging within walking distance of the Convention Center, you might consider the Fairmont San Jose or the Hilton San Jose. Make reservations before July 5 at either of these two hotels, mention "Plug-In 2010", and you will receive a discounted room rate.

We look forward to seeing old friends and making new connections at Plug-In 2010.

Posted by Linda Nicholes

Logo courtesy of plugin2010.com

Photo courtesy of EPA.gov

Driving Th!nk, Six Years Apart

Th!nk was my first electric car, leased from Ford in 2002-2004. My wife and I loved that little car and were heartbroken when Ford canceled all Th!nk leases. Six years later, I got to drive the Th!nk again. (Photos: New Th!nk in red, old Th!nk in blue.)

The company has returned to its roots as a Norwegian automaker, this time with a factory in Finland and another under construction in Elkhart, Ind. Some 1,500 or so Th!nks have been ordered in Europe, and 500 more will start going to U.S. fleets in late 2010, with U.S. sales to consumers expected to start sometime in 2011. The Euro versions use Zebra batteries, and Enerdel lithium-ion batteries will go in the U.S. cars.

I won't repeat all the details in the fine review by Linda Nicholes on this same blog -- a 100-mile range on 17 kWh battery packs, etc. etc. What I can add, though, is the perspective of someone who drove Th!nk for years and has been behind the wheel of a Toyota RAV4-EV for the past 5 years. (See videos below.)

Th!nk's cartoon tinyness combined with a surprisingly comfortable and roomy interior were still there, though these are less surprising to people today since Smart cars and Minis have appeared in the ensuing years. I would have liked to see the "2+2" seating configuration that will be offered as an option instead of just the 2-seater hatchback, but that will have to wait.

The most noticeable thing as I started to drive is that this Th!nk didn't feel quite as peppy as the original, mainly because of the marked regenerative braking that can be felt in both the "Economy" mode and the "Drive" mode.

The first Th!nk had no regen, and was a beautiful coasting car. In the RAV4-EV, the driver shifts into regen mode when desired. It's automatic in Th!nk now. Clearly the engineers decided the efficiency advantages are greater with constant regen than with an easy coasting option (helping enable a 100-mile range vs. the 55-mile range on earlier NiCad batteries). For me, it's a bit less fun, but anyone who never drove the earlier Th!nk probably won't think twice about it.

In the video interview with this post, I rode with Wilson Leong of Akeena Solar in his virgin drive in an electric car and recorded his reactions. Wilson was able to find a sweet spot when letting up the accelerator pedal that seemed to give the car coasting ability. And overall, he liked the driving experience a lot. He then test-drove a Toyota RAV4-EV brought to the event by owner Michael Moira and like that as much or more than the Th!nk. 

I already knew from experience that the Th!nk would drive well and could meet my driving needs, so of course what I want to know is what it might cost. Th!nk's David Antonio Wassmann said, "The announcement by Nissan" (of a $32,000 price for the Leaf, or $21,00-$26,000 after incentives) "obviously helped. It forces everybody to go back and say, how do we drive down costs?" The target is to be priced comparable to conventional cars, after incentives.

The battery costs--the main factor--primarily are a result of batteries not being produced in high volumes, he said. "Any car you make in low volume is a luxury car." The key, said Wassmann, is to get volumes up into the 10's and 100's of thousands. We should start to see those 10's of thousands over the next year from Nissan and GM's Chevy Volt, with 100's of thousands by 2012 from Nissan and an unknown quantities of Volts. With any luck, Th!nk will ramp up too.

Wassmann told me all the electronics have been updated since earlier Th!nks, the software is improved, all Th!nks have global positioning systems (GPS) and the ability to do live communications (so, for example, you'll know remotely when the car has finished charging). There's an iPhone app ready and waiting for the cars.

Besides the 120-volt and 240-volt charging options, the company has been testing fast charging with the Enerdel batteries. "We know we can" do it, Wassman said, but won't be rushing to offer a fast-charging option, partly because there is no U.S. standard yet for fast-charge equipment, as they have in Japan.

Thanks go to a number of groups in addition to Th!nk for organizing the test-drives today: our host Better Place, the Silicon Valley Leadership Group, Bay Area Clean Cities, the Bay Area Council, and Silicon Valley Network Joint Venture.

--Sherry Boschert

 

Testing the Leaf on Nissan's Yokohama track

Dawn broke early this morning in Yokohama, and I was awake to see it since I was still on west coast time. I also couldn't sleep given this was the day I would finally get to drive the actual Leaf EV, not a converted mule like those I'd driven before.

Nissan flew Marc Geller and me, along with a few auto journalists and bloggers from around the world, to Japan on Monday for a Leaf immersion. We got started early with a hearty breakfast followed by a short bus ride through this large industrial city hard to Tokyo's southern city limits. The streets were amazingly clear of traffic, at least compared to any large American city I've visited. Marc speculated that it might be due to a good mass transit system. Also missing was even a hint of graffiti. Wish that were true of the U.S.

We arrived at Nissan's test track and were brought into a building where we received a thorough overview of the Leaf, along with instructions on how to avoid hitting the birds on the backstretch (hint: stop the car immediately!).

We were each given up to 30 minutes behind the wheel on the track, and I drew the lucky straw to be first. A very nice engineer who had designed many of the exterior features of the car was my instructor. He walked me through the starting process which essentially consisted of pushing a button that triggered a melodic series of notes, one of three you can choose to hear when you start your Leaf. Putting the car in drive is accomplished by nudging the round knob toward you and back, not unlike the dash mounted device on the Prius, but this one is located precisely where your hand naturally rests, so there is no reaching for it.

Ergonomically, the car is a dream. Everything inside seemed to fit my frame perfectly, and I suspect it will for most people. I tried the back seat and there was ample leg room and plenty of head room. Three adults could easily fit in the back seat.

The interior of the car is gorgeous! Like most Japanese cars these days, Nissan is taking pains to make sure as much recycled product is used to manufacture the interior panels, seat fabric and most everything else inside the car. The result feels good tactically and emotionally.

Once I had adjusted the mirrors and fastened the seat belt, it was time to drive. With cameras rolling I glided out of the staging area and onto the track's main straight away, flooring it to see what kind of kick it had. Since I'd driven the GM Volt not too long ago, I could fairly compare the two in terms of acceleration. I'd give the nod to the Volt on that score, but just barely. The Leaf had plenty of power in the lower speeds, but it leveled out just a tad as I got over 60. I didn't try to hit the top speed, but did get over 70 quickly and it was still pulling strong as I let off. On the third lap, I was feeling like I could push the curvy section and did. The car responded perfectly, hugging the road and steering predictably. I learned later that this is a consequence of having the bulk of the weight distributed tightly in the lower center of the car. This eliminates yaw of the vehicle when turning hard. An internal combustion car's front end will pull to the outside since the heavy engine is toward the front of the car. One final test was an emergency brake. I warned the co-pilot so he wouldn't freak out and slammed on the brakes. Just as with the RAV, the stopping ability was very strong. This seems to have something to do with combining the regen of the motor with the disc brakes. It really gives you peace of mind knowing it'll stop so well.

My co-pilot insisted I roll up the windows while we drove so he could demonstrate how quiet the car was. I've driven several EVs over the years, but nothing comes close to being as quiet as my RAV, that is until I drove this Leaf. Total silence, well, except for the tinnitus, but that's all in my head so it doesn't count. I even forgot about the controversial noise that the federation for the blind has insisted be added to all electric vehicles. Many in the EV community have tried to fight the move to add noise to these quiet cars since we think it's not really needed, but legislation is before Congress to do just that. Both Nissan and GM have given in to the demand and added noise to their respective EVs when they are driven at low speeds. After I got out, I didn't recall hearing the noise, so I asked them to demonstrate it. They brought a small gas car, the Nissan Versa, and a Leaf to a separate area and had first the gas car drive slowly toward us, then the Leaf. I could barely hear either of them, but the Leaf did have anaudible noise. If you clicked that link, you heard the noise for both going forward and backing up. It sounds very loud in the you tube video, and that's why so many of us got upset that Nissan added such a noise, but in reality, it's barely audible when you're outside the car, and pretty much not audible at all from in the car with the windows rolled up. If there is ambient noise on the street, you probably won't hear it at all. The back up noise is about twice as loud, however, and was a bit obnoxious to me. Both noises can be turned off with the push of a button once the car is on, so it won't be a big problem unless or until the legislation passes and then they'll probably have to eliminate the button that disables the noise on future models.

Here's a picture of the small solar panel you get if you buy the SL version. The energy generated by the panel will help maintain a charge in the car's auxiliary battery to power in-vehicle devices. It's a nice touch and helps people understand that they can power the car's traction battery pack by installing a larger solar PV system on their house.

This photo shows a design of the Leaf that some have found unappealing, the head lamps. We learned today that they were designed to divert the airflow around the side mirrors to improve the coefficient of drag and reduce wind noise. The photo they showed from the wind tunnel seemed to prove the efficiency of the design.





They had three Leafs driving constantly over the course by the 2 dozen invited guests, with most everyone pushing the car to its limits over and over. After we were finished, they plugged in to a couple of 50 kW chargers to replenish the energy. I'd never seen an EV charge so fast! The Tesla HPC charges at about 18 kW and my RAV charges at 6.6 kW. This 50 kW charger took the Leaf's battery pack to 80% full in less than 20 minutes, then the amperage automatically dropped to top off the battery safely. The Leaf is initially coming out with a 3.3 kW charger, but will eventually be built with a 6.6 kW charger. However, as slow as 3.3 kW is, as long as you have one of the Aerovironment fast chargers available near your house, you'll always be able to get charged up in a matter of minutes (the one shown here is a Nissan built charger). Several dozen will be installed in the initial roll out cities with hundreds more planned as the number of Leafs grows throughout the first year. Eventually, there will be thousands of fast chargers along the freeways and inside of cities everywhere. All you'll have to do is drive to your favorite coffee shop and plug in. By the time you've sipped your latte, your car will be full.

The day was capped off with a big dinner on the 70th floor of Yokohama's tallest building. Nissan's top executives were sprinkled throughout the room with our table being graced by Nissan's super-friendly COO, Toshiyuki Shiga. Marc and I bent his ear for most of the dinner, then he was replaced with Hideaki Watanabe, Corporate VP and lastly with Andy Palmer, Senior VP, Product Planning. These executives have bet the bank on the success of their EV program, and Marc and I were happy to tell them their bet is safe.

If you haven't already deposited $99 to get a place in line, go here and do so today.

Thursday, we have lunch with CEO, Carlos Ghosn. I can't wait...

Paul Scott