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NeilBlanchard · 02-02-2013, 08:35 AM

Testing Electric Vehicles in the Real World

http://www.edmunds.com/fuel-economy/...ison-test.html

They did a decent job, though they are still are stuck on some platitudes. It would be interesting to see the data on charging that they got - and it would be interesting to see how much it cost to drive each of these EV's per mile.

They could drive all cars that they review on the same loop, and report on the cost, and the pollution (gm/distance), as well. And it would be really important to compare the EV ranges to what people actually drive each day; and how much money they would pay for an EV vs their current car. They do post the kWh/100km (for all the cars except the Tesla Model S, curiously), and since the test loop is ~30MPH average, all the cars do significantly better than their EPA rating.

I applaud Edmunds for starting this project. I hope they publish even more data: they measured as precisely a they could, and if they published this it would be very helpful. We could see how close each car's range remaining gauges are, we can know how much it cost to charge each car and compare this to the other EV's and ICE's as well.

I predict that it costs as much (or more) for regular maintenance at a dealer on an ICE car, than it does to drive an EV. Remember, there is almost no regular maintenance on an EV; rotating the tires is about it. The Leaf needs to have the oil in the reduction gear at 150K miles. That means that you save about $17,000/per 100K miles driving an EV compared to a typical 23MPG car. Even a Prius costs about $7,000 more to drive 100K miles than driving an EV like the Leaf. All of the money you pay for electricity stays in your local economy. Much of the money you pay for gas goes to a foreign country. We don't need a military to defend our electricity, either.

I would be very interested to know what "gear" they drove the cars in - I'm assuming it was Drive? I would love to have the drive completed a second time in the Eco mode on each car that has one.

The Tesla has a toggle for the level of regenerative braking, and it would be very interesting indeed to know more about how this affects the range. I think that most EV's have way too much regenerative braking dialed in on the accelerator pedal - and they do not allow easy and consistent free-wheel coasting. Only the Honda Fit EV has free-wheel coasting in the Eco mode when you lift your right foot; and then has all the regen on the brake pedal. Edmunds could help improve all EV's by demonstrating whether easy and consistent free wheel coasting, or lots of regen on the accelerator yield more range.

02-02-2013, 08:35 AM	#1 (permalink)
NeilBlanchard Master EcoModder Join Date: May 2008 Location: Maynard, MA Eaarth Posts: 7,907 Mica Blue - '05 Scion xA RS 2.0 Team Toyota 90 day: 42.48 mpg (US) Forest - '15 Nissan Leaf S Team Nissan 90 day: 156.46 mpg (US) Number 7 - '15 VW e-Golf SEL TEAM VW AUDI Group 90 day: 155.81 mpg (US) Thanks: 3,475 Thanked 2,950 Times in 1,844 Posts	Edmunds Tests 9 EV's in the Real World Testing Electric Vehicles in the Real World http://www.edmunds.com/fuel-economy/...ison-test.html They did a decent job, though they are still are stuck on some platitudes. It would be interesting to see the data on charging that they got - and it would be interesting to see how much it cost to drive each of these EV's per mile. They could drive all cars that they review on the same loop, and report on the cost, and the pollution (gm/distance), as well. And it would be really important to compare the EV ranges to what people actually drive each day; and how much money they would pay for an EV vs their current car. They do post the kWh/100km (for all the cars except the Tesla Model S, curiously), and since the test loop is ~30MPH average, all the cars do significantly better than their EPA rating. I applaud Edmunds for starting this project. I hope they publish even more data: they measured as precisely a they could, and if they published this it would be very helpful. We could see how close each car's range remaining gauges are, we can know how much it cost to charge each car and compare this to the other EV's and ICE's as well. I predict that it costs as much (or more) for regular maintenance at a dealer on an ICE car, than it does to drive an EV. Remember, there is almost no regular maintenance on an EV; rotating the tires is about it. The Leaf needs to have the oil in the reduction gear at 150K miles. That means that you save about $17,000/per 100K miles driving an EV compared to a typical 23MPG car. Even a Prius costs about $7,000 more to drive 100K miles than driving an EV like the Leaf. All of the money you pay for electricity stays in your local economy. Much of the money you pay for gas goes to a foreign country. We don't need a military to defend our electricity, either. I would be very interested to know what "gear" they drove the cars in - I'm assuming it was Drive? I would love to have the drive completed a second time in the Eco mode on each car that has one. The Tesla has a toggle for the level of regenerative braking, and it would be very interesting indeed to know more about how this affects the range. I think that most EV's have way too much regenerative braking dialed in on the accelerator pedal - and they do not allow easy and consistent free-wheel coasting. Only the Honda Fit EV has free-wheel coasting in the Eco mode when you lift your right foot; and then has all the regen on the brake pedal. Edmunds could help improve all EV's by demonstrating whether easy and consistent free wheel coasting, or lots of regen on the accelerator yield more range. __________________ Sincerely, Neil http://neilblanchard.blogspot.com/ Last edited by NeilBlanchard; 02-02-2013 at 08:48 AM..