After objecting to some comments I made here:
http://ecomodder.com/forum/showthrea...ain-32850.html
User jray3 made the offer to let me burn some electrons in his i-MiEV. I took him up on the offer and we agreed to meet a couple days later. He indicated he'd be the "geek in the black 8 ball".
Sure enough, he shows up in his black egg-shaped car... with a big "8" on the roof. I suppose you gotta have a sense of humor with a car like this.
We got in and he asked if I had any questions. Concerned about him having enough range to get back to work, my first question was about how much range he has. He smiled, clearly getting that question a lot, and said he had plenty of capacity and showed me on the dash where the range was indicated, then went into some of the controls. After a few more questions, we headed off.
First impression is that... well, it drives like a car. A quiet one, but not much different than any other car. The suspension was a bit harsh, but Jay mentioned that he had lowered the front and had the tire pressure up. Even without that, it would probably be overly firm. No real complaints though.
I played with the unusual settings on the PRNDL stick. "Eco" made the throttle feel very... reluctant. As Jay explained, this is very useful in the stop-n-go traffic we are often blessed with. "B" made motor braking (regeneration) very pronounced even without touching the brake pedal. Power seemed good, but going up a steep hill it was noticeably lacking when I changed lanes and tried to accelerate briskly. Presumably like most EVs, it's high torque masked the modest 63hp it is capable of. Jay also mentioned this is more noticeable on the freeway, but the last minute decision to try that out was foiled by the weird on ramps in the vicinity.
I headed back and parked the car. As we stepped out we were immediately asked by a passing gentleman, "What sort of range do you get in that?". I guess he does get that a lot...
So, it's not a bad little car. Would I buy one? Well... no. Its... comical... outward appearance would take a little getting used to. And I still stand by my comments that EVs have some big hurdles to overcome before gaining widespread popularity (range anxiety, battery life, time to recharge). My opinion of the i-MiEV is certainly higher than before I drove it though. I always though of them as a glorified golf cart, but it really is capable of being a decent commuter car.
Thanks Jay, for letting me letting me take your i-MiEV for a spin. Let me know if that Ghia needs it's legs stretched, I'd be happy to try that one too.