157,000 Electric Miles Later: We Are Indeed Getting There

 

Me & my MINI-E in 2009, my ActiveE in 2012 and my i3 in 2014. Five and a half years and over 157,000 electric miles (252,000 km), mostly powered by solar-generated electricity.

It's been a little over five years since my electric journey began. I couldn't have possibly imagined where this was going back in 2009 when I was accepted in to the MINI-E trial lease program. I knew I was interested in alternative fuel vehicles, and I knew I wanted to reduce my personal consumption of oil, but I really had no idea if I'd like driving electric or if the industry would actually be making and selling electric cars anytime soon.

Sure there were rumors that GM was going to make a plug in car that they were calling the Volt, there was a small start-up car company in California called Tesla selling an electric Lotus conversion for $105,000 and there were also a few new companies like Aptera and Phoenix Motorcars trying to bring electric cars to market, but nothing really seemed certain, and everything seemed many years away. So when I came across the online application to drive an electric MINI Cooper for a year in a small test program for BMW, I jumped at the opportunity and applied. It's now about 66 months since I took delivery of my MINI-E and between that car (73,000 mi) my ActiveE (70,000 mi) and now my i3 (14,000 mi). I've driven over 157,000 electric miles.

I admit I'm impatient and frequently wonder why it's taking "so long" for mass electric vehicle adoption. I wonder why there aren't more EVs from more manufacturers with a wider array of range options and utility. The driving experience of electric cars is simply so much better than that of an internal combustion engine car. In fact, most everybody who buys an electric car seems to agree that they want to continue driving electric from then on, and they don't ever want to go back to the ICE. However, every now and then I'll reflect on the past five years that I've been driving electric and I realize just how far we have come in that time. As I mentioned, back in 2009 the electric options were a $105,000 sports car from an unknown start-up electric car company (Tesla), apply for the MINI-E test program or build your own electric conversion. Today there are about 20 plug in cars available! Granted not all are available in every market in the US, but every couple of months or so a new plug in is introduced. So in reality plug in cars are indeed advancing pretty quickly, even if EV supporters like myself want more plug in options now.

We have indeed come a long way in a relatively short period of time. The automobile industry historically moves slowly and this shift to electrics is happening at a pretty fast pace as far as the OEMs are concerned. The typical gestation period for a totally new car is typically about five to six years, so by industry standards the plug-in revolution is indeed happening rather quickly. In 2009 and 2010 less than 2,000 plug in electric vehicles were sold in the US each year, respectively. In 2011 that number jumped up to about 17,000. In 2012 it more than doubled to over 52,000 and in 2013 there were over 97,000 US plug in sales. This year we are on a pace to sell about 120,000 plug in electric cars. That's nearly 300,000 cars with plugs sold in the US since I first started driving electric back in 2009. I know 300,000 is a very small number compared to the overall amount of vehicles sold in the US during that time, but the number keeps growing every year and with new models being introduced all of the time that trend will likely continue.

I'm more convinced than ever that plug in electric vehicles are here to stay, and that mass adoption is only a few short years away. Battery electric vehicles offer a better driving experience. They are quieter, they drive smoother, they have much less maintenance and the fuel costs much less. They are cleaner and when powered by renewable energy are completely emission free. The electricity supply is getting cleaner every year as more and more renewables are introduced and the old, outdated and worst polluting powerplants are decommissioned. The supply chain of gasoline is going in the opposite direction as it takes more and more energy to find and extract oil so gas is actually getting dirtier and more polluting all the time, even as gas cars become more energy efficient. There are so many reasons why battery electric vehicles are the future it's easy to realize that we'll get passed the challenges faced today as this disruptive technology is being impeded and questioned by the entrenched industry.

The one thing I keep circling back to when people ask whether or not electric vehicles will have staying power or if they are only passing fad is the owner loyalty. The vast majority of electric vehicle owners love their cars and vow to never go back to gas. People love driving electric because it's better. That's the real reason EVs are here to stay. It isn't the governmental incentives, the fact that they are cleaner, or are cheaper to operate. The real reason EVs will win in the long run is that they offer a better driving experience. People love driving them, it's really that simple. The high cost of batteries, the need for a robust fast charge infrastructure and the inertia of the status quo are all just temporary obstacles that will be solved in the coming years.

When I first got my MINI-E, my daily driver was a Toyota Tacoma pick up which I still own. I now only use it to plow my driveway and the parking lot of my restaurant and whenever I need to haul something large. I  only drive it about 1,000 miles a year. The Tacoma averages about 18 miles per gallon so let's say I never went down the electric path and simply kept driving my Tacoma this whole time. Here's a little taste of what I would have had to do:

* I would have needed to buy about 8,600 gallons of gasoline, which would have cost approximately $30,000. The electricity to power my EVs during that period cost about $8,000 if I were paying market rate. However since I mostly charge from my home solar array and have a surplus many months I figure the real out of pocket cost for me was somewhere around $2,000.

* I would have had to have done about 30 oil changes that would have cost about $1,500 and 165 quarts of oil would have needed to be recycled. There would have also been plenty of belts, filters, plugs and other normal wear items on the internal combustion engine that would have needed to be replaced.

* I would have had to stop for gas about 500 times and wasted 60 hours of my life just waiting at a gas station for my tank to fill - and they say plugging in is inconvenient!   

*I would have released at least 100,000 lbs of CO2 into our atmosphere. According to the EPA burning one gallon of gasoline releases 19.64 lbs of CO2. If all of the electricity I used to charge my car came from my solar array then I would have save over 160,000 lbs of CO2, but since I do charge at my restaurant and at some public charging stations I realize it's not possible to offer a perfectly accurate estimate. However I'm certain more than 66% of my energy comes from my solar array. 

The future looks bright indeed. I'm ready for the next 157,000 electric miles!

I'd like to thank the followers of this blog and my previous EV blogs. It's been such a great ride so far, and the support I've gotten from the people here has definitely enriched the experience. Together we really are making a difference!

REx To The Rescue

Those that have followed this blog since before I got my i3 know I toiled a bit over whether to get the range extender option or not. Having lived with pure battery electric vehicles for five years I really didn't like the idea of hauling around an internal combustion engine if I really didn't need to do so, even if it was a very small, efficient one.

Ultimately, the decision was easier than I had hoped. Once it became clear the i3 would have significantly less electric range than the two previous BMW-made electrics that I've been driving (MINI-E and ActiveE) I knew I needed the REx. As much as I love the i3, I'm still disappointed BMW moved backwards with the electric range in every EV they have produced. The MINI-E was good for a reliable 100 miles in moderate temperatures, the ActiveE about 90 miles and the BEV i3 is EPA rated at 81 miles per charge. I drive a lot and 81 miles would just be cutting it too close for me, especially in the winter when the range is negatively effected by the cold weather.

Our Equinox, Tacoma and i3 joined by my old ActiveE before I turned it back in.

So i3 REx it was for me, and fortunately I'm very happy it worked out that way. Without the reassurance of a long range EV like Tesla's offerings, there will indeed be some cases where the limited range of the sub-100 mile EVs require you to alter your plans or make compromises. I accept that because for me the advantages of driving electric far outweigh any small inconveniences that occasionally arise from the limited range or charging times. However the range extender option on the i3 was inciting because I knew I'd be driving on electric for 95% of the time, but still be able to take the car on days that I knew I needed to drive further than the range could accommodate. That has indeed held true because I have a little over 11,000 miles and only about 500 of those miles were with the REx running. However so far the REx was just a convenience, allowing me to take my i3 on days I needed to drive far when I otherwise would have taken one of my gas cars. I hadn't faced a situation where I really needed the extra range, and didn't have any other options, until last weekend.

Plugging the tire

My wife and I have two gas vehicles besides the i3. Meredith drives a Chevy Equinox and I also have a Toyota Tacoma pick up which I use when I need to haul large items like refrigerators for my restaurant, and I also use it to plow my driveway and the parking lot of the shopping plaza that I own and manage. These are our long range cars for trips like when we go to my in-laws in Vermont. So when Meredith needed to go on a company retreat which was 95 miles away in Pennsylvania she naturally planned on taking her Equinox. About a half hour before she was ready to leave, I went out to the garage to give the Equinox a once-over. I always do this when she's going far from home, just to be safe. The first thing I did was a quick visual inspection of the tires and wouldn't you know it, the first tire I looked at had a large screw sticking right into it and in a perfect position for me to see it. OK, there is no time to fix this now so the Equinox is ruled out. No problem, I'll load up her stuff into the Tacoma and she'll use that. It can use a good run anyway since we barely ever drive it. I then remembered that I needed to refill the washer fluid because it was empty the last time I drove it. I popped the hood, filled the fluid and when I closed the hood I heard a loud cracking noise and the hood popped back up. As I lifted the hood I could see the latch that holds it closed was rusted and cracked in half. With no way to secure the hood closed that rules out the Tacoma. There's only one option now, she'll be REx-ing it to the retreat.

The owners of the B&B she stayed were nice enough to let her charge up. They told her their son in law drives a Volt so they weren't totally surprised about a car that needed to plug in.

After a quick REx briefing (I don't think she had ever driven it in REx mode before) she was off. Since the temperature was in the 40's and it was all highway driving, I knew she'd only get about 60-65 miles before the range extender turned on so she'd be driving about 30 miles with it running. I had a full tank of gas so she wouldn't need to stop for gas on the way there, however we didn't know if she could plug in at all once she got there and she may have to drive the whole 95 miles home in charge sustaining mode. I've driven the car enough to know this wouldn't be a problem as long as she kept her speed under 75mph, other than the fact that she'd have to stop for gas twice on the way home. I did a quick check to see if by chance there were any level 2 charging stations near where she was going , but as I expected, there were none. Luckily, the bed and breakfast she stayed at allowed her to plug into an outlet they had on the garage, so she was able to charge at 120v overnight. Since the retreat lasted for four days, she had no problem fully charging even with using the car to run some local errands every day.

So even though I've used the REx a dozen or so times already, this was the first time it was absolutely necessary, and further validates my decision to shell out the additional $3,850 for it. It really makes the car so much more versatile, and allows me to not even think about the range. As others have noted, it really does allow you to drive more electric miles because you can use it for trips you otherwise couldn't with the BEV i3. Obviously, the ultimate goal is for longer range electric vehicles to become more affordable, and infrastructure to mature to the point where public charging and DC fast charge is ubiquitous. However until then, the range extender will play an important role in the adoption of electric vehicles, as it allows for utility that is simply unavailable in the vast majority of today's electric vehicles. 

Trip stats: I was very happy to see 3.7 miles per kWh considering it was about 70% highway driving, with the cabin heat on the entire time.

Stats from the trip:

Going to PA: 61 miles on battery, 34 miles on REx
While there: 49 miles all on battery
Coming home: 65 miles on battery, 30 miles on REx.
Total: 239 miles; 175 miles on battery, 64 miles using range extender
Total gas used: 1.7 gallons (.9 gal refill when she was in PA & .8 gal refill when she was 1.5 miles from home). Averaged 37.65mpg while REx was running.

Born Electric Guest Blogger: Meet Mike From Virginia

My name is Mike from metro Richmond, Virginia.  I was Born Electric for the second time on August 11, 2014, with the purchase of a new i3 with Range Extender!  

The i3 is my first BMW but my sixth car from the BMW Group as I have owned several MINIs over the past twelve years ranging from a base Cooper to the track-ready JCW GP.  The i3 shares currently shares driving duties with my first EV, a 2012 Nissan LEAF SL.  It�s the first time in 25 years of driving that I don�t own an ICE car as well as a car with a manual transmission.  I think I am having serious withdrawals with no clutch as I really miss shifting for myself!

Racing the Sun

My first exposure to electric vehicles came at Virginia Tech as a student in the College of Engineering.  As a guy passionate about cars practically since birth, I naturally found myself working with peers to design and build a solar electric vehicle for entry in Sunrayce 97, a multi-day competition sponsored by GM and DOE.  This race would pit us against other schools from the U.S. and Canada and have us driving the car on public roads between Indianapolis and Colorado Springs with pit stops along the way.  A typical one-day stage had us driving 50-200 miles completely on electricity.  Hyper-miling techniques would take on new meaning and would have to be the norm rather than the exception!  Like the i3, the solar car made use of carbon fiber (plus Kevlar) and aluminum to keep weight low and strength high.  Unlike the BMW, our car employed several pounds of lead-acid batteries which were mandated as a means to level the playing field and keep costs low.  Boy has battery technology really evolved since 1997!  I would have the honor and privilege to qualify the car first at the GM Proving Grounds in Michigan and then across the bricks at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Throughout the event at IMS, I remember watching GM reps drive through Gasoline Alley in an EV1 and thinking about how futuristic and cool it was at the time.  We ultimately made the race and I was able to drive the car across the finish line in Colorado.  It was both scary and thrilling at the same time!  I just knew at some point down the road I would have an electric vehicle of my own. Little did I know that the knowledge and experience that I gained from the solar car program would not only boost my interest in EVs, but also somewhat change my driving habits. 

Enter Nissan LEAF

Fast forwarding into this century, I had anxiously awaited the arrival of LEAF and Volt in my area.  The Volt is nice, but I was more interested in the Nissan.  I carefully monitored sales, waited until prices came down a good bit, took a few test drives of the Nissan, and finally leased a new fully loaded 2012 LEAF SL in Blue Ocean.  The LEAF was my introduction to production electric vehicles and would allow me to gauge over a 24-month period whether or not a battery electric vehicle would mesh with my driving habits work in my life, allow me to explore the local charging infrastructure (or lack thereof), and force me to setup charging at home.  The central Virginia infrastructure currently shows only a few public charging stations, but we do have Tesla supercharging stations so hopefully more Level 2 stations will be installed in the near future.  More on the LEAF later, but let us now move into BMW territory.

One LEAF and one i3 REx. Could be the perfect garage!

No Availability of MINI-E and ActiveE

As a longtime MINI owner until a few months ago, I would have jumped at the opportunity to participate in the MINI-E and ActiveE trial programs but was unable to do so because neither one was available for lease in my area.  Shame on MINI and BMW for not offering these cars in non-urban markets!  I did get to see an ActiveE in person earlier this year which was an unexpected thrill.  An ActiveE owner from the greater New York City area moved to Virginia and returned the car to my local dealer.

Tom's MINI-E and my ActiveE, side by side.  Yes, I'm definitely jealous!

Choosing the i3 w/Range Extender

The BMW driving experience and range extender option are the two main reasons why I chose the i3.  The LEAF is a very good car especially for the price, however, I simply wanted more in my next plug-in: 

1)      Greater range with the ability to travel to Washington DC, North Carolina (to visit my family) and beyond without stopping for a lengthy recharge, even if it meant using a little gas

2)      Better all-around performance � handling, braking, acceleration

3)      More attractive styling outside and inside

4)      Remain practical enough to tote around my 8-year old son (who loves to ride!) and occasionally carry a few adults and stuff

5)      Greater use of available lightweight and/or sustainable materials

6)      All of the above for a decent price

The i3 Rex fits the bill almost perfectly for me (except for the lofty price!) because I can limit my environmental impact by driving the car as a BEV about 90% of the time and engage the Rex 10% of the time for long journeys.  My daily commute is less than 20 miles roundtrip.  Most of the time I won�t need the Rex, but it�s there when I do need it thus eliminating the need on a daily basis for an ICE vehicle.  The i3 is compact and roomy but not as limited in some areas as the MINI, it�s nimble and quick, it features traditional BMW rear-wheel-drive, it doesn�t look like any other car in terms of the exterior and interior styling, and I can take my 8-year son just about anywhere anytime.  I actually like the rear window styling and think it makes changing lanes a little safer since it improves visibility!  Does it look a bit strange?  Yes it does, but the rear window along with the rest of the i3 is interesting in a good way.

I think all of the entries in the plug-in category are terrific however the Tesla Model S and Cadillac ELR (not really a consideration) are priced out of my range.  The Chevy Volt is modern and refreshing on the outside but not so exciting on the inside.  I might have considered a Mercedes-Benz B-Class Electric Drive or VW e-Golf (my pick between these two cars) however both cars will not be available in my area for quite a while.  Sadly, the Honda Fit EV, Fiat 500e, Toyota RAV4 EV, and Chevy Spark EV are also not for sale leaving only a handful of plug-in EV models from which to choose out of the increasing pool.

Order, Production, and Shipping of my i3

My first trip to the local dealer took place way back in August 2013 not long after BMW released the first bits of information and images of the production i3.  The MINI sales manager, whom I knew very well, introduced me to the BMW sales manager.  I told him that I was very interested in the i3 and wanted to place my name at the top of the list.  The only major thing that I wasn�t sure about was the price as it had not been announced yet.  Meanwhile, I kept in touch with the dealer, followed the press releases, and discovered many i3 discussion groups and online forums.  Many thanks to Tom Moloughney, Chris Neff, and other i3 owners around the world for their knowledge sharing and great blogs!  I finally placed an order in early February for an i3 on somewhat of a reasonable budget with the following options: 

�        Range Extender

�        Solar Orange metallic paint (changed from my initial order of Andesite Silver)

�        Giga World trim

�        Technology and Driving Assistant Package

�        Heated Seats

The dealer pulled some strings to secure me a production slot in Week 10 (early March) only to have BMW headquarters push my order back a couple of months to build pre-configured i3s, accommodate supply constraints such as the shortage of Tera World leather, etc.  I am a patient guy so it was fine with me as long as I ultimately got the car I ordered in the right configuration.  While I received some updates from the dealer about my order, I frequently called the BMW Concierge to get information about my car. The Concierge was great and more than happy to give me the status of my order and answer any questions.  Thank you, BMW, for this welcome service!  My car entered production on May 21, completed production on May 30, passed QA with flying colors onJune 2, but then got held up at the factory nearly a month.  It shipped out to the VPC (New Jersey) at the end June and eventually arrived in Virginia around the 1^st of August.  I was perfectly fine with letting BMW keep my car as long as necessary to do more quality control, perform hardware and software updates, etc. as long as it arrived just the way I asked for it and without significant issues.  Total time from order to delivery was about 6 months.

i3 Colors

I ordered my i3 with the gorgeous Solar Orange metallic paint.  It really glows in the sun (pun intended!) and looks great with the two-tone interior of the Giga World trim level!  The color palette is pretty limited at the moment with too many silvers and greys, so it�s a good thing that I have wanted to buy an orange car for a long time.  Solar Orange truly hits the mark!  For the time being, I am the only one in my area with an i3 in this color although someone else in a different part of town has a Solar Orange / Mega i3.  My second and third choices, respectively, would have been Ionic Silver and Capparis White with either Mega World or Giga World trims.  I had considered the Andesite Silver, but deemed it too brown.

 

Options

Here is my opinion regarding each trim level and individual option:

�        Range Extender � Must have in my case, biggest distinguishing feature between i3 and other EVs

�        Mega World � Looks good with some colors, if seats are a bit light and materials not as rich looking as Giga World and Tera World trim, no Comfort Access and Sirius radio (can be added)

�        Giga World � Best suits my taste with two-tone cloth and leather combination, leather dash, and eucalyptus wood plus you get Comfort Access, Sirius satellite radio, and garage door opener

�        Tera World � Too dark for my taste, reduces the light and airy feeling of the passenger compartment; Climate is too hot / cold here in Virginia to have dark brown leather seats

�        Technology and Driving Assistant Package � Required in my opinion since you are spending this much money on a high-tech car you should have the big center screen and bells / whistles too

�        Parking Assistant Package � Did not order, but decent value at $1,000; Most likely would never use the autonomous parking; Backup cameras will be required on all U.S. cars starting in 2018

�        20-inch Wheels � Gorgeous, but slightly harsher ride, more noise, perhaps more punctures

�        DC Fast Charging � Currently no infrastructure in my area to support this option

�        Heated Seats � Won�t buy a new car without them, great with cloth and/or leather seats

 

Solar Orange with Giga World interior is the best combo IMO.

Frustrating Delivery

I feel that I should mention here that the actual delivery of my new i3 Rex was quite disappointing.  Not only was the car not even halfway charged nor did it contain even remotely close to a full tank of gas (even if it is only a whopping 1.9 gal!), but I would ultimately have to return to the dealer not once but TWICE to re-sign all of the Owner�s Choice with Flex financing paperwork making a total of three times to sign all the important documents.  The dealer had driven the car to a local music festival along with other vehicles without asking me when they knew darn well that I had ordered the car and was close to coming to get it as I was negotiating with the sales manager but had not yet taken full possession of it. Plus it was not plugged into the charger, thus leaving the SOC around 30% at the time of the delivery.  We did go to the gas station and fill up the tiny tank with Shell premium unleaded for just $6.55.  At least it was squeaky clean as they had run it through the detail shop.  While my car was on order, my Client Advisor had been promoted to a Finance person so I will chalk up the first mistake to the learning curve with his new role. The second mistake was inexcusable as I was told i3 financing paperwork had to be printed on �special� printer paper.  Excuse my ignorance, what is wrong with the regular printer paper which is probably made of the same recycled paper?  Honestly, I could discern no differences when I sat down for the third time to sign the paperwork.  At least I got the dealer to discount the car by $1,000 (not great considering better deals could be had 100 miles away) and throw in some accessories.  

Accessories and Paint Protection

As part of my deal for the i3, I asked the dealer to provide me with the all-weather mats and trunk mat/box free of charge.  The trunk mat doubles as a cargo box with the pull of the drawstring which is kind of cool.  I highly recommend the all-weather mats as they are significantly easier to live with than the standard Giga cr�me mats!  For extra protection in the interior, I went to Target and purchased charcoal grey bath towels to place over the seats, particularly in the rear where my son will sit.  The dealer also gave me a voucher for $50 for use in the parts shop which I took over to get two blue glow-in-the-dark key covers and the BMW i notebook.  Additionally, I placed a call to Joe @ Autobahnd (for those of you with i3s in central Virginia he does top notch work) shortly after delivery to cover the front of my i3 with clear bra to protect that luscious orange paint.  Joe did a great job and charged me $650 for full hood, front bumper, headlights, fog lights, A-pillars, and the trapezoidal lower sections behind the front wheels.  I will ask Joe to return in the near future to do my lower doors and front fenders also.

Applying the clear bra

Home EVSE

I charged the LEAF over the past two years using a combination of Level 1 (home) and Level 2 (work) chargers.  Now that I own two EVs, I went ahead and purchased a Bosch Power Max EL-51253 home charging station from Amazon for about $550 (after using a $50 gift card that I had lying around).  The only disadvantage is the 18 foot cord, but it is long enough for my needs.  I highly recommend this charger as it was easy to install, looks great in my garage, and charges the i3 and the LEAF without fail!

Overall Impressions

The i3 has been a blast to drive and trouble-free throughout my ownership period of two months and 1200 miles, with no warning lights or error messages.  Overall, the car is fast, comfortable, efficient, fun, and turns some heads!  The acceleration throws you back in the seat and the steering is very responsive, almost too fast.  BMW engineers nailed the steering however I will have to spend more time evaluating the suspension to determine if BMW got the handling right because while the ride is fine I am not sure if the suspension and large wheel / tire combination really hit the mark.  The i3 carves a very nice arc and corners more flatly than the LEAF but it doesn�t feel as stable and composed over bumps as I would expect from a BMW.  My favorite part of the car is the strong regenerative braking � I LOVE the one-pedal driving!  Switching the car into Eco Pro or Eco Pro+ mode allows me to complete local but long round trip drives (without tapping into the range extender) that I could not previously do in the LEAF, even driving conservatively in the middle of summer.  The i3 BEV is fantastic also, but the range extender makes the car just that much more versatile.  Visibility to the front and sides is excellent with a commanding view of the road ahead.  I feel like I sit higher in the i3 than I do in the LEAF, which is surprising.  I would not call visibility to the rear great, but the standard parking sensors work well enough.  I am not a music lover, however, the base stereo sounds good considering there are no rear speakers and I have come to enjoy the Sirius radio on my commutes to work.  My last few cars have all had Sirius and I had never spent more than a few minutes listening to it but now I do in the i3.  If there is one thing to which I am not accustomed yet, it would be the drive pod (transmission).  While easy to operate, it does not feel intuitive as I find myself often selecting Drive rather than Reverse or vice versa.

    

Operation of Range Extender

A few weeks ago, I was able to experience the range extender by taking a 215-mile roundtrip deep into the Blue Ridge mountain range to do some apple picking with my son.  The trip would prove one way or the other if the Rex was worth the extra dough as I would be driving mostly at highway speeds along both flat stretches of road and moderate hills along Route 29 between Charlottesville and Lynchburg.  The night before going to the orchard, I was pulling the i3 into my garage when I noticed a message on the professional navigation screen saying the Rex would run in maintenance mode the next time I drove the car below 75% SOC.  Sure enough, the next day driving along I-64 the little engine came to life for about 10 minutes holding the charge steady as I cruised around 70 mph on the way to the orchard.  I can enthusiastically say that we made it to the orchard and back without a hitch!  Here is the mileage I was able to obtain during this trip starting with a full charge and the gas added by the dealer at delivery:

�        EV range (highway):  74 miles

�        1^st Rex tank (used 2/3 tank of fuel):  47 miles

�        2^nd Rex tank (used � tank of fuel):  49 miles

�        3^rd Rex tank (used � tank of fuel):  45 miles

�        Total mileage:  EV:  74 miles; Rex:  141 miles

I arrived home with just under � tank of fuel after depleting the batteries and stopping twice very conservatively for a couple splashes of gas.  This trip was my first chance to try out the Rex and I didn�t want to be left stranded somewhere with my son.  The Rex performed flawlessly, going about its business without much fanfare!  I could not tell it was operating at all on the highway, even with the windows up although we had the windows cracked all the way to the orchard.  I could only make out a little bit of noise below 50 mph or so with more noise as I approached stoplights.  There is also a tad bit of vibration through the seats when the Rex is running.  The vibration becomes more pronounced when the Rex is really cranked to its max.  I wouldn�t go so far as to call it thrashing, but it is definitely more noticeable at times.  The only negative thing I noticed was some hesitation in power during one of two hill climbs, however, the car never lost more than a few mph and giving me the confidence to continue driving with a few changes to my throttle position.  I should add that the hesitation occurred after the blue bar had dropped down below the 6.5% threshold and inched closer to the 0% SOC mark.  Prior to this hesitation, I had taken off quickly from a stoplight in Comfort mode to gain momentum going up a hill but didn�t think about my acceleration affecting the power.  The blue bar WILL move toward away from the small triangle and toward the 0% SOC mark if you accelerate hard and expend more power than the Rex is producing.  I would suggest selecting Eco Pro or Eco Pro+ to avoid over exerting your right foot and closely monitoring both your speed and the SOC level.  You shouldn�t have any problems!

Likes

Here are the aspects of the i3 that I like the most: 

1.      Strong regenerative braking � love using the motor to stop the car instead of the brakes

2.      Strong acceleration � put the hammer down and it flies

3.      Steering � ultra quick with a ridiculous turning circle

4.      Exterior styling � futuristic and bold, especially in Solar Orange or Ionic Silver

5.      Interior styling � love the design and use of different materials throughout

6.      iDrive � completely new to me but I like it so far

7.      Comfortable and supportive seats � conform well to my 5�7�, 160-pound body, no   aches / pains

8.      Clamshell (�suicide�) rear doors � easy getting stuff and / or my son in and out

9.      Range Extender � brilliant, so far it has worked as advertised!

10.   Adaptive Cruise Control � makes the car even easier to drive on the highway

11.   Mirrors that fold down in Reverse � nice touch that makes parking that much easier

12.   Enhancements � can be mostly done with software and hardware updates for current owners

Dislikes

There are a few things that either I don�t like or would like to see  about the car, even though it is genius in several ways!  Most of these items are minor and some even downright petty:

1.      Unsettled suspension motions over bumps and changing pavement -  could be more composed

2.      Thin steering wheel � nice material, small diameter, but wimpy thickness

3.      White / cream floor mats with Giga World � practically useless to me, what was BMW thinking?

4.      Car  is turned on but then turns off when door is opened � lawyers went overboard here   

5.      Transmission control stalk � not intuitive as I get confused selecting Drive or Reverse

6.      Extras not available � heated steering wheel and opening rear side windows would be welcome

Summary

The i3 Rex has generally lived up to my expectations thus far as the first electric offering from BMW.  This car is the most expensive vehicle that I have ever purchased, so I just hope it will deliver real value as the LEAF has a lot going for it at just $250 per month in my case!  Frankly, the more I drive the i3 the more I really like it although I need to spend more time with it to understand its full capabilities.  It was very exciting to drive my i3 a total distance of 200+ miles in one day � a genuine delight!  I plan to keep the car for about 5 to 7 years and really look forward to a positive and rewarding ownership experience!

National Drive Electric Week a Smashing Success!

Back on October 16th 2011, I celebrated the first National Plug in Day at the only event being held within driving range of my MINI-E. That was held in New York City and was one of 29 events held nationally. Last year National Plug in Day was expanded to a weekend (even though we still called it "plug in day") because there was such interest we wanted to have more opportunities to hold events. There ended up being a little over 100 different events and it was indeed so successful, that for this year and moving forward it will be called National Drive Electric Week, and we'll dedicate an entire week to host events.

My MINI-E on display at the very first National Plug in Day back in 2011

This year there were an amazing 152 events taking place in 5 countries, 39 US states and 6 Canadian Provinces. There were 150 different cities in which owners of over 3,000 electric vehicles registered to display their cars and share their electric driving experience with the public. The Cupertino California event set a Guinness World Record with a parade of 507 electric vehicles!

I was the city captain and host of the Montclair, New Jersey event which I held in the parking lot of my restaurant. We had 32 electric vehicles show up and a lot of people stopped by to ask questions and check out the cars. We even had a couple owners allow some people to test drive their car and give the person a chance to experience electric drive first hand.

Mercedes Benz of North America brought a new B-Class Electric Drive for display

Mercedes Benz of North America brought one of their newly released B-Class Electric Drives and had a representative there to answer questions about the car. I noticed it got a fair amount of attention throughout the afternoon as most people didn't even know Mercedes was selling an electric car. However the real highlight of the day was when two BMW i8's pulled up. It was actually the first time in the US that two i8's were together in public other than the initial press drive event a few months ago. Not only did we have the cars, but driving them were the two of the top BMW i executives in North America! Jacob Harb, head of EV Operations and Strategy for BMW North America pulled up in the white i8 and Jose Guerrero, Chief Product Manager for the i3 & i8 arrived in the Ionic Silver one. They both talked to the crowd, answered questions and Jose opened up a couple cases of BMW i pens and key chains and handed them out. It was a great showing by BMW and was really appreciated by everyone.

Why settle for one i8 when you can have two?  :)

The i8 is an awesome vehicle, but I'm perfectly content with my i3. I do however, want the Frozen Blue seat belts from the i8 for my i3. They would go perfectly with my Tera World interior so if anyone at BMW was wondering what to send me for Christmas... just sayin' : )

Of course I had to get some seat time in the i8. I actually got to drive an i8 last month but the i8s at the event were not available to test drive. I want these Frozen Blue seat belts transplanted into my i3!

It's really great to see how far electric vehicles have come in the past five years. Back in 2011 when I attended the first National Plug in Day I couldn't have imagined that in three short years we would be where we are now. In 2011 the electric cars we had on display were a Tesla Roadster, a Nissan Leaf, a Chevy Volt and my MINI-E which wasn't even available to the general public. At my event this year we had: a Tesla Roadster, Tesla Model Ss, Nissan LEAFs, Chevy Volts, a Honda Fit EV, BMW i3s, BMW i8s, a Mercedes B-Class ED, a smart electric drive, a Ford Focus EV and a Toyota RAV4 EV. There is still a long way to go for mass electric vehicle adoption but we are well on the way. Manufacturers are bringing cars to market and EV charging infrastructure is improving. Infrastructure deployment may not be going as fast as many electric vehicle supporters would like, but it is indeed happening.

The owner of this Honda fit offered test drives for those interested. Much appreciated!

2015 promises to be even better with more electric choices coming to market. Volkswagen will release an electric version of their popular Golf, Audi will introduce the A3 e-tron and Mitsubishi will bring their extremely popular Outlander plug in hybrid to the US in the spring. The Outlander PHEV has been a smashing success in Europe and Mitsubishi can't even make them fast enough. In some markets it has even eclipsed the Nissan LEAF to become the top selling plug in vehicle. Yes, the electric revolution is indeed underway. I want to thank everybody who attended this year's event and hope to see you all again next year!