That's amazing... there are going to be so many conversations as cars go by!
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That's amazing... there are going to be so many conversations as cars go by!
WARNING: Danger of Electric Shock! Vehicle may accelerate quicker than anticipated.
That is so great!
Shouldn't Goodwood rig up a few HPCs, say in the next week or so in time for Festival of Speed?
I believe there is one there plus a portable one that goes for some events.
If you want a fairly local overnight recharge, there is also an EV friendly guest house a few miles up the road.
Yesterday I drove Edinburgh to London in Tesla Roadster. I just wanted to say that thanks to the HPC network it was no big deal.
It took about 12.5 hours; Two charge stops (Radisson Blu Durham and QHotels Nottingham Belfry) were totally pleasant: a city walk and a sandwich by the river in Durham (that was a short stop, just 1.5 hours); a refreshing swim in the pool then a business meeting in Nottingham.
My teenage son who was with me said "I never realised going to London in the Tesla could be so little hassle. I was worried that we'd have to wait hours for charging, but actually it was just a nice rest."
We actually stayed at Nottingham almost an hour longer than I planned due to the business meeting, and we arrived with >60 miles range remaining. So I think it's easy now ( with the HPC network in place in the UK) to do this trip in under 12 hours (by shortening the 5 hours charging time to 4).
It's worth noting that I observed speed limits the whole way and there were quite a few long sections of 50 mph limited roadworks.
Actual driving time was around 7 hours (in line with pre-trip Google estimates); actual charging time 4:52. The balance of time was made up of things like getting one of the hotels to kindly move another ICE vehicle they had parked at the (now signed) charger; stops to put on/take off the roof; pulling over to take a phone call - between them they must have added about 1.5 hours - amazing really the time we spend that we don't notice. All the getting charger spots cleared will go away as EVs become common.
For comparison:
An ICE driven the same speed would take the same driving time. With less care about the driving speed/recharge time tradeoff I might have broken speed limits in an ICE (and risked my drivers licence) to shave off 30-60 minutes.
I also had a 1 hour business meeting in Nottingham that was delayed 1 hour+ by late arrival of another participant (despite my "slow" EV drive, I was 30 minutes early).
I reckon one stop for petrol and two for human needs (food etc) plus the roof on/off, calls, etc would add 2 hours. Add two more for the business meetkng, and I reckon in an ICE I might have done in 11 hours what in an EV I did in 12.5.
Given that I also got to walk Durham's beautiful streets and sit by the river; given that I got a relaxing swim in at Nottingham; comparing that to the stress of motorway service stations and the relentless drive, drive, drive feel of ICE roadtrips - I think its a huge win!
Having said all that: If I hadn't had a meeting part way and needed this specific car with me in London today and at Goodwood tomorrow, well then I would never have driven (ICE or EV)! I would have taken the new sub 4 hour train service on East Coast Trains!
Last edited by AndrewBissell; 06-29-2011 at 12:01 AM.
Impressed. And good to see charging networks are starting to come online. However, I disagree with your ICE times. I often drive from Glasgow & Edinburgh to London (2/3 times a month) and in my current car has never taken me more than 9 hours (usually about 8hrs), including 1 or 2 20 minute stops - for coffee/toilet. Car has a range of 750 miles, so no fill ups required.
78mpg avg, £20 road tax and 102g/km CO2. Until I can afford a electric car, this makes it the cheapest way to get to London and back - including flying and easily a lot cheaper than trains.
Hi C53204 - can I call you C5?
Welcome to the site and thanks for posting.
I know this is off-thread but Andrew and C5 raise an interesting idea about real-world comparisons for the same journeys - ideally regular commutes. Can Roadster owners team up with an ICE-buddy/workmate.
Of course there'll be endless discussion as to what constitutes a fair comparison
For example: Pure EVs can't handle long, continuous journeys at high speed and/or heavy lifting. On the other hand; 78 mpg for a motorway run?? (yes, I know it's the average figure you quoted) so what was your cruising speed?
Last edited by malcolm; 06-29-2011 at 07:32 AM.
C5 is fine. 78mpg cruising around 65/70mph on motorways and on any stretches of non motorway roads - the legal limit, or maintaining traffic flow speeds.Originally Posted by malcolm
78mpg is easily achievable with VW Polo TDI (1.2) on a long motorway 'run'. Even on a couple of weeks around town I never see less that 56mpg.
I used to teach 'eco' driving to fleet drivers. It's very easy to see big reductions in fuel consumption with just a few changes to ones driving style. Think of the millions of barrels of oil that could be saved a year.
Ok, lets stay on topic. If you want to start a thread on eco driving with a diesel please do it in a more appropriate section (e.g. one not labelled "charging").
Do we have a specific area for discussing how quickly it is necessary to jump in when someone answers a direct question?
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