Ecomodders can Drive the Prius PHEV and more. Green Drive Expo Madison July 17 &18
 

Green Drive Expo rolls into Madison, Wisconsin July 17 & 18 for it's fifth year of fun!

We've been dispelling myths and sharing information about green vehicles for five years now, and it's people like you that make Green Drive Expo great. We we look forward to seeing you there!

There have always been Ecomodder folks in attendance, so it's a good time to hang out and compare notes in person. Some have already registered, and it's time for you to register, too. The whole weekend has kind of a family reunion feeling and for many it's an annual tradition.

So what's happening this year?

On Saturday, Chelsea Sexton from Who Killed the Electric car will be the featured speaker this year and she'll share her views on where green vehicles are headed.

There will be special vehicles to drive at this year's event like the
- Toyota PHEV
- Ford Focus BEV
- Enginer PHEV

You'll see cars like the EV1, X-prize participant vehicles, Teslas, find out about how to use your ScanGauge and get it updated, and repair hybrid batteries.

There will be plenty for the public to see and do, but for those of you who sign up as members this year we'll have plenty more!

Fun things like the MPG Challenge, Owners Showcase, cruise-in night, reserved time to drive the Prius PHEV, awards, door prizes, private technical and user sessions.

With your $75 registration you get:
- Green Drive Expo T-Shirt
- Green Drive Expo Goodie Bag
- Reserved space to show your green vehicle in the Green Drive Expo "Owners Showcase"
- Eligibility to win awards in the Green Drive Expo "Owners Showcase"
- Eligibility for special members-only door prizes
- You and your children (under age 16) receive free admission to the Dane County Fair
- Full access to the members' hospitality area
- Invitation to compete in the Green Drive Expo MPG Challenge on Friday, July 16
- Green Drive Expo Member-only "How-To" sessions on Sunday morning
- Invitations to the Green Drive Expo members-only gatherings during the weekend
- And, of course, you'll also receive the satisfaction of knowing you're helping make the Green Drive Expo event possible!

Come join us in celebrating five years of hybrid car (and ecomodding) camaraderie!

You can register for the event on line
Become a Member - Madison

Wooo yeah! I'll be there. :)

Ford Focus BEV is going to be awesome!

Hmm... can I drive the EV1?

LOL I'm going to guess that would be a no...

Who owns it, anyway? I thought they all got crushed. In the movie the only survivor shown is the one in a museum.

The University of Wisconsin owns this one. GM donated a few (less the original drivetrain) to Universities and museums. The UW often uses it as a test bed for all sorts of other EV drivetrains, so sometimes it's operational; sometimes it's not.

They are not allowed to drive it on public roads but in order to get it on/off the trailer they sometimes need to drive it in the parking lot. I've ridden/driven it at different times.

We have checked the VIN on this particular EV1 and confirmed it was originally a demo unit.

I just saw one today at the America On Wheels Museum.

America on Wheels Museum - a set on Flickr

Only nine days away! I finally got a reply back from one of the X-Prize teams I wrote to a few weeks ago. The FourSight X-Prize car will be at Hybridfest. It's in a Honda Insight body, modified (I'd love to see how) to seat four adults. It's a through-the-road parallel hybrid: 110HP electric up front, 800cc turbodiesel in the back.

Eric, will they have a booth at the Expo? How does the expo work, and who else will be showing their car?

I will be attending, and I really hope to get there at PSL+9 on a single tank (700mi, 70mpg, >70mph). I placed a metals order last week (which was supposed to be here on Monday but is still not in), and I hope to complete a temporary Insight boat tail this weekend.

So, if anyone wants to help drive my (hopefully) boattailed Insight partway from Buffalo, NY to Madison, WI, please send me a PM. Preferably someone I've met at a prior EM gathering.

You are correct. Team Foursight will have a booth at the Expo! I was so bummed to see them withdraw from the X-Prize Competition. In a shared booth they will also have the EV1 nearby as well as an electric snowmobile.

The Expo itself is open to the public by paying the gate fee at the entrance....BUT...
If you really want to join in the weekend-long camaraderie of other like-minded people, I encourage you to sign up to be a Green Drive Expo member. This gets you all the stuff I mentioned in the original post, like the special pre-and after-hours member-only events. Also, I would love to see you enter your boat-tailed Insight in the Owner's Showcase on Saturday for all to see!

Feel free to give me a call and I can answer your questions. I"m out most of tomorrow morning, but back in the afternoon. 608-729-4082. Or PM me a phone number and time to call you.

Alright, we're only a few days away now!

Who else is coming to the Drive Green Expo this weekend, and when will you be there?

I'm thinking I'll come out on Saturday morning and stay till whenever. I also haven't decided what car to drive there either. If someone would like to see either car, lemme know. I'm planning on having the PHEV back in the Prius this week hopefully.

Nobody else is going?

I know Ben Nelson will be there.

I've signed up to be Owner of the Hour, available to talk about my car, from 12:00-1pm. It looks like Ben will be giving a talk about how to build an EV at 3pm. Ron DeLong from LinearLogic will be there.

There will also be test drives and booths for Toyota, Ford, Enginer, and Ozee plug-in cars. It looks like there'll be at least two Teslas as well.