MINI E Electric Vehicle Feedback

Those who are yearning to know how is it like to use an electric vehicle in your daily life may find this article by release by BMW and summarize by WorldCarFans helpful. BMW commissioned the University of California, Davis to conduct the study on a select few. Here are their reactions :

most MINI E cutomers are generally happy with their cars after six months of usage. However, as the financial post report, the most common complaint is "range anxiety."

Although a fully-charged MINI E can keep the car moving for 160 kilometers, a full recharge with the included high voltage cables takes between four and eight hours. If a MINI E owner is forced to plug the car into a standard 110-volt household outlet, recharge time takes up to 23 hours.

MINI E driver Tom Moloughney told the Canadian newspaper, "Until there are plentiful public charging stations, there is an 'electric leash' that you must respect." Because of this, Moloughney installed an extra charging station at work. "Being able to charge midday virtually doubles the range for me. I've driven as much as 280 km in a single day, which is more than just about anyone would need to do for a work day."

It is this last statement that BMW's marketing department is really honing in on. A press release from the MINI parent says that 160 kilometers has been reported as being "sufficient for most daily needs" by the 57 drivers surveyed in the study. The study also examined the logs of all 450 MINI E drivers, who say that the motoring experience in the electric vehicle is just as "delightful" as in a conventionally-powered car. However, driver's would also like to see more room for cargo and additional passengers.

"When people first drive the MINI E, they usually don't like the regenerative braking," said Dr. Thomas Turrentine. Dr. Turrentine is running the MINI E study for UC Davis. Still, the report shows that "after a few hours they get used to [regenerative brakes], and after they have driven it for a week, they are very positive about it."

The MINI E trial will also serve as the basis for the limited rollout of the BMW ActiveE electric car. The ActiveE was shown off at the NAIAS, and will become available in limited numbers from 2011.

Citroen C-Zero Shown Ahead Of 2010 Launching

Citroen's version of the Mitusibishi i-MiEV is previewed a year in advance. Heck how much time does the firm needs to replace Mitsubishi's badge with theirs. :) Powering the C-zero is a permanent magnetic synchronous motor, which produces 47kW (64bhp). It produces 133lb ft of torque between 0 and 2000rpm and power is sent to the rear axle by a single-speed reduction gear. A complete charge of the battery pack takes six hours through a conventional 220-volt socket while an 80 per cent charge is possible in about 30 minutes using an external station with a single-phase current of 125A at 400V, for power of up to 50kW.

The Citroen C-zero which is 3.48 meters long managed a century sprint in 15 seconds with a top speed of 80mph. It can travel about 80 miles before the battery pack run out of juice. A Citroen spokesman told Autocar that the C-zero is expected to be available in UK showrooms in the final quarter of 2010, although whether the car would be able to buy outright or be available for lease-only has yet to be determined. The source also said no pricing had been decided at this stage.

Source : Autocar

Novel Idea To Spur Electric Vehicle Sales

Speaking of Electric cars, Israel-born entrepreneur Shai Agassi started a company that aids consumer confidence in purchasing an electric car. At Better place, robots in charge of replacing depleted batteries located under your vehicle much faster than the time to fill up your gas tank.

Agassi said “When electric cars are more affordable and convenient than gas cars, consumer adoption will tip the market,”. Better Place proposes building a network of curbside charging stations where owners can top off their vehicle batteries. Agassi’s idea generated $300 million in venture capital and sparked international interest: Cities in Israel and Denmark hope to have the first robotic change stations running in 2011, and the company aspires to expand operations to Australia, Canada, Hawaii and California in 2012. In late September, Better Place signed a deal with Renault-Nissan to put 100,000 electric vehicles on the road in Israel and Denmark by 2016.

So here is how the system functions :

• Better place will own the batteries along with the infrastructure for servicing them. Hence the owner does not need to worry about worn out battery performance over a period of time which is extreemly costly to replace.
• Those have some time to spare can opt for an electric plug so that drivers can top off at curbside charging
• Gps-enabled software in the car will alert drivers when they are running low on battery power which then directs them to the nearest quick-charge station along their route.
  

The following shows how the whole process is completed within 1 minute 30 seconds on an apparently Electric Nissan Rogue.


The electric 'Fueling Station' will solve many if not all the issues afflicting the future of electric vehicles especially high density areas where most of its residents lives in high rise buildings. The need of having an electric socket in every parking lot is eliminated along with the risk of electric theft. Kudos for making the world....a Better Place.

Source : Popularmechanics.com