Re-Fuel Event

For various reasons, I wasn't able to make it to the Re-Fuel event as planned. I was really looking forward to taking the car out on the track to see what she could do, but it was not to be.
I am sure there were plenty of other electric and alternative energy cars in attendance, so that no one was too disappointed.
Hopefully I'll be able to make their next event.

Highway Cruising

As most of you know who have been following this blog, my commute is pretty short. I have been taking the streets and the route has some 45, 35 and 25 mph stretches with a number of hills, stop signs and traffic lights. Now I have taken the car on the freeway a few times for test purposes but just for an exit.
Lately, when I get in the car for the drive home at the end of the workday, the SOC meter will show 95% SOC. This can be attributed to the fully charged SOC showing over 100% as the Zivan will charge the string above what Optima said for 100%. In any case, last week I decided to take the drive home on the freeway. It was a bit tense as the SOC reads zero under load and I was pulling about 300 amps at 60 mph, but it was a fun ride. After sitting for an hour the SOC showed 45% - not bad.
Over the weekend I picked up a stock Miata "under cover" - this the plastic piece that goes under the engine between the nose and the subframe. My car didn't come with one and I wanted it to keep water off the motor when driving through puddles and for aerodynamics. I also picked up a sheet of aluminum for blocking off the air intake.
This week I've been commuting on the freeway just like the big boys. I'm now pulling around 250 amps at 60 mph (not sure if this has to do with a lighter touch on the pedal or the under cover) and getting about the same SOC displays as I was taking the streets.

My explanation for this is that the distance is about the same but there are no hills or stops to waste energy on.

EV Calculator

FYI - there is a handy EV calculator to help you in determining how your conversion project may turn out. I originally was told that it was pretty inaccurate, but now I see it was pretty close to reality.
I saved the EV Miata specs for your enjoyment.
Here is the link:

http://evconvert.com/tools/evcalc/?vals=veh=28:mot=12:bat=21:ctl=5:vlt=156:nst=1:dod=50:cwt=20:wtr=600:mwt=500:inc=0:wnd=0:sec=195:asp=60:rim=14:rr=0.015:bs=0.003:kwh=0.09:miles=9:

Now, it doesn't take RPM into account, which used to make me distrust the results, but just disregard the stuff about 90 mph is first gear. The Warp 9 has a red line of 8000 RPM.

Thoughts on Flywheels

Back in the 70's we had a subscription to Popular Science magazine and there was a lot of interest in alternative energy. I remember reading articles on cars powered by flywheels - you'd plug them in or use a gas motor to spin it up to some outrageous RPM and then drive around until the flywheel stopped spinning. I guess the idea was you'd go to a service station when your tach showed low RPM for a quick respin and then you'd be on your way again...

So what does this have to do with my car? Well, there are two camps on flywheels on electric cars - one camp says they are good and another says they are additional unnecessary weight. I belonged to the second camp but wanted a clutch so was stuck with the flywheel. You might have read some of the early posts where I tried (in vain) to get my flywheel lightened.

Since I've been driving the car regularly, I've changed my mind. In my experience, the flywheel stores your kinetic energy (just as Popular Science described) and helps keep the car stay in motion - reducing the amps needed to maintain a given speed.

The downside is that the flywheel slows your acceleration from a standing start (since it takes a lot of energy to spin up that big heavy disk) and it slows your braking (when in gear, your brakes are not only slowing down the car but the flywheel too).

The plus side is you get to retain your clutch which makes shifting gears easier and you can always use the clutch (or neutral) when braking hard.

What's in the News?

I ran across this post and it was (excuse the cliche) like a breath of fresh air:
http://www.twilightearth.com/2009/07/a-word-on-pollution-and-the-electric-vehicle/

If you read the news on the internet you probably see a lot of negative opinions about electric cars. Most just point out common assumptions and repeat them as fact.

An example of this was recently in the Morgan County News. Now I have no idea where Morgan County is, but that's not important. What is important is that when these mis-assumptions get passed off as fact they get into the popular mindset damaging the acceptance of this needed technology.

Here's another fine example - just the headline is inflammatory: Electric Cars - Kinda Stupid
This post just takes a quote from Wired and adds a rant on non-recyclable batteries - as if EVs run on alkaline energizers that can't be recharged!

Now a lot of news posts stay away from benefit statements and just report the facts - Nissan announces a new model, new battery technology, etc. and that's good, but we as EV advocates need to be concerned about popular opinion too. Popular opinion can influence funding and the legislature which can make or break a technology change like we're advocating. Right now popular opinion is on our side, but it seems to me that this position is fragile and we need to do more to defend it.

So, what's my point? It made me think that we as a group need to be more vocal. We need to quickly comment on these postings pointing out the facts and, more importantly, calling out the writer for their ignorance, laziness or their transparent negative agenda. Why do we need to quickly comment? Most blogs and news sites show comments in chronological order. Having your comment on page 3 is not going to influence anyone.

So get out there and post.
What's in the News? Hopefully you.

EV Miata on TV

The local ABC affiliate did a short piece on the electric cars being shown at the Marin County Fair. I'm a little leery of dealing with the media - they don't seem to bother getting all the facts straight and are more concerned about telling a story (any story it seems) than getting the truth out, but figure it was work a shot.
Putting my leeriness aside, I took some time off from work to drive up to the fair for my chance at an interview, and it ended up being well worth it. I had a chance to talk with some of the other car owners/entrepreneurs who were showing their cars (all great people) and the reporter, Wayne Freedman, turned out to be a great guy as well. He asked good questions and seemed to understand the answers, to my surprise. I had about 5 minutes to tell my story and when it was done he asked if later they could take a ride in the car(!) Why my car instead of the Porsche speedster or Shelby Daytona replica, I don't know, but I was happy to oblige.

I hung around as he did a few more interviews then was politely told that time wouldn't allow a ride. Oh well.

The piece aired that night, and I missed it, (of course), but thanks to the internet it can be seen forever (or at least until the take it off their site). Only a few seconds of my interview made it into the final segment - kind of funny - the one line I have is about kitchen appliances...

Anyway, it's a pretty positive overall.

Here's a link to the piece - don't blink or you'll miss me...

http://abclocal.go.com/kgo/story?section=news/technology&id=6896777