Driving An Electric Car: Why Didn’t I Do It Sooner?
Dr. Valerie Irvine @_valerieiRON Talk on Nov. 2, 2016
Photo by Fabien Rochet // CC BY-NC-SA 2.0
Personal Profile
• Sold a Toyota Siena minivan in 2013• Bought a used 2011 Nissan Leaf (first
gen)• Family profile:–One adult–Two tweens–Two small dogs
GARTNER’S HYPE CYCLE FOR EMERGING TECH
MY PERSONAL EXPERIENCE ALONG THE HYPE CYCLE
…IN IMAGES and GIFS
TECHNOLOGY TRIGGER
PEAK OF INFLATED EXPECTATIONS
TROUGH OF DISILLUSIONMENT
TROUGH OF DISILLUSIONMENT… IN BED LATE AT NIGHT
SLOPE OF ENLIGHTENMENT
PLATEU OF PRODUCTIVITY… MORE LIKE EMERGING RESENTMENT FOR
USING FOSSIL FUELS UNNECESSARILY
The Other 5% Of The Time: Over 3 YearsPROBLEM
Random call to pick up someone from ferryForgot to plug in my car onceExternal plug shorted from rainTravelled to Vancouver four times
Travelled to Up Island: Duncan Level 3 charger was out of commissionTravel to Parksville with 5 of us and 2 dogs
WHAT HAPPENEDNot enough range. They took a cab
Don’t recall. Didn’t go out? Cab?Don’t recall. Didn’t go out? Cab?Took the car twice. Rented once. Borrowed once. Needed space thoWe took a later ferry. BC Ferries let us charge in their lot and on their ferry. My fault for not checkingAdded on 2 hours to the trip for charging
Why This Talk?• How do you like it?– Love it!
• How far can you go?–Depends…
• How long does it take to charge?–Depends…
My Charging Patterns
• Did not install an in-home level 2 charging station (the 4-hour one)• Use a high-gauge extension cord (for
safety) and charge mine on the street (level 1 charging which is about 15 hours)• Charge almost exclusively at home
Lessons Learned On Charging
• Some chargers require a card to access vs. credit card, but can still be used if you call the 1-800 number and have an account
• Use of apps to locate them and if check-in used, then able to determine if available
• Problem with districts like Oak Bay who make access to chargers difficult (e.g., parking their staff or district gas vehicles in there to block it)
• Access to charging stations is NOT a privilege
The Money MindsetThe car might be more expensive? – Often rebates are available– Gas & maintenance costs transferred to car
payments– The car becomes disposable. With the amount I
spent on gas, I end up with a free car after 10 years. It doesn’t matter if newer models come out making mine obsolete (e.g., new Leaf has 27% more range)
– Or consider savings (approx. $2500/year) toward car share membership to use a truck at times of need or to rent a car or cab if needed in a pinch
My Driving Habits
• Went from “Swirvine Irvine” who was an assertive accelerator to a smart accelerator
• Speeding reduced• Gamification option: novelty• I focus on the speed and “energy bar”• Highway driving at speed limit• Coasting to gain “range”
My costs over 3 years
• $7.50 for a light bulb• $150 for a regularly scheduled check-in
(might be a money grab, but I have to do it to preserve my bumper-to-bumper warranty)
My Storify on Driving an EV
Questions: [email protected]@_valeriei
Also, check out:
http://victoriaevclub.ca/where there are much more knowledgeable and involved people