Quote:
Originally Posted by redpoint5
My parents live 66 miles away on a mostly freeway route where traffic averages 65 MPH in the slow lane. Could I make the trip comfortably in the MEV? I assume using headlights or AC/heater would affect my chances.
|
The longest highway trip I regularly make in a single charge is 54 miles, and when it's real cold I use 51 miles of surface streets to avoid a full discharge. For your 66 mile journey to be comfortable in winter without stopping, I'd recommend a LEAF. The iMiEV can out-distance a LEAF in city driving as it is much lighter with less rolling resistance, but the LEAF is more aerodynamic and has 50% more battery (but faster degradation), so it shines on the highway.
HOWEVER, Oregon is the land of DC fast charging, and a 10 minute boost at a DCFC station would put you over the top with no problem. Between Tacoma and Portland, an iMiEV and a LEAF have to hit the same 3 charging stations (Centralia, Castle Rock, Ridgefield), as a LEAF has trouble skipping over a stop on just 80% charge, but an i-MiEV takes 10 minutes less than a LEAF at each stop (19 to 21 minutes to 80% vs 30+ minutes). Leapfrog a LEAF between stations, and that 30 minute advantage becomes a one-hour difference due to the avoided wait! DCFC lineups have become common in WA because the DCFC installations have grown much slower than the EV population has. 2016 LEAFs should be able to skip every other station on the West Coast Electric Highway, but not reliably with the Gen1.
Lastly, the headlights and marker lights draw about 120W more than the daytime running lights, but the heater cycles on and off at 5000 W, so heating is the much bigger concern.
Cold climate iMiEVers (Russia, Poland, Quebec,...
Wisconsin) are replacing their stock 12V lead acid battery with a little liquid-fueled heater (Webasto or Chinese imitations) plus a remote 12V lithium battery. I've run the numbers, and a reservoir of hot water is more valuable for cabin heating than added battery capacity, so I've got an old steel 5 gallon outboard motor gas tank and heating element to experiment with this winter. (Talk about upcycling!) A hot water reservoir is worth more heat than any other available material other than phase change paraffins (unless you burn fuel), and you can dump the water weight after it cools off if desired. Adding a hidden insulated reservoir to the stock heater loop would be the next step after proof-of-concept. That promises to automate the whole affair and eliminate a sloshing tank of hot water lashed to the floor! The iMiEV has a remote control and allows up to 30 minutes of pre-heat while still plugged in. It'll do that indefinitely with a manual remote reset every 30 minutes, but isn't available as a recurring schedule or smartphone app.