First long ( for me ) journey in Leaf -range check on RAC EH
Jun 20, 2016 1:39:14 GMT 11
leafmedo and EVangelist like this
Post by ant on Jun 20, 2016 1:39:14 GMT 11
So today , 4 months after buying the Leaf , and after itching to take it on a range test run down the RAC Electric highway, I decided to postpone the Sunday arvo chores and drive down to at least Mandurah ( 86km from home ).
Now I have done this trip with the family before, in the iMiEV before we sold it, and while we loved that car to bits it was not a long distance car, not at all.
Having bribed the family ( I needed ballast to prove that the trip could be done with 4 people in an iMiEV ) by promising lunch at the Spur ( South African franchise ) restaurant in Mandurah which at the time was the only one operating in Aus, we set off and tbh it was not pleasant, sitting around in a fellow AEVA members driveway for a couple of hours mid journey for a 15A charge ( thanks again Rob Hills - lifesaver ) plus other random chargers eg. the UWA fast charger and at Fremantle for a 15A charge on the way down didn't make the family that enthusiastic about doing this EVER AGAIN... a total of 7 hours for a journey that takes less than an hour in an ICE...
So, fast forward a year, new(ish) Leaf, one bar gone ( SOH = 78% via Leaf Spy Pro - if you dont have it already, buy it NOW !) fully charged, I set off for Mandurah ( alone - family will go next time once I have proved it's ok ) , initially charging at the RAC Headquarters on the DCFC , then driving the 74km from RAC HQ to Mandurah at highway speed less 10kmh or so. My confidence to do this was immesely enhanced by speaking to Jeff the Walker at our meeting last Tuesday, his fascinating trip from Brisbane made me feel silly for not having attempted even the short distances on the electric highway more often, but as someone else put it, life gets in the way.
Most of the route is 100kmh, some 80kmh , last 40km or so is 110kmh. At those speeds, I didn't see anyone annoyed by having to pass me, in fact 2 or 3 cars stuck on my tail a bit too close for comfort, for annoyingly long times before lazily swinging by and passing in the (empty ) right hand lane.
I used 8.5kwh to cover the 72km from RAC HQ in Perth to the RAC Electric Highway charger in Mandurah giving me 118 wh/km or roughly 8km/kwh. It rained and it was a bit blowy ( side on headwind ) so I was quite pleased that when I arrived, there was 43km left on the ( eco ) GOM and leafspy pro said I had 22.5% , or 7.3kwh left...
On the return trip, I skipped the RAC HQ charger and went directly home from Mandurah, despite the DCFC switching off at around 85% charged on the Leaf - (eco ) GOM 121.
The - real distance would be 86.7km. When I got home I had 19 on the (eco) GOM and one charge bar left - first low battery warning just before I got home. I then drove a further 12km around the neighbourhood to get to 98.7km at which point I got the "three dashes"- so I'm fairly confident now of taking on the full electric highway with family in tow. Although I will probably stop at every charge station along the way and use 7km/kwh as a rough guide to how far I can go.
Having Leaf Spy Pro on my phone while driving visible was the best thing - real time numbers that made the GOM obsolete gave me far more confidence and seeing the actual kwh remaining rather than n/12 bars helps tremendously.
It may sound strange after being an EV owner for the last 3 years but I think I've finally conquered my suppressed range anxiety.
Next time? Make sure *phone is fully charged ( an EV owner should know this right??? ) and zero the trip meter, take photos of everything, screenscrape Leafspy Pro at every post and pre charge opportunity.
And .. take the family.
Now I have done this trip with the family before, in the iMiEV before we sold it, and while we loved that car to bits it was not a long distance car, not at all.
Having bribed the family ( I needed ballast to prove that the trip could be done with 4 people in an iMiEV ) by promising lunch at the Spur ( South African franchise ) restaurant in Mandurah which at the time was the only one operating in Aus, we set off and tbh it was not pleasant, sitting around in a fellow AEVA members driveway for a couple of hours mid journey for a 15A charge ( thanks again Rob Hills - lifesaver ) plus other random chargers eg. the UWA fast charger and at Fremantle for a 15A charge on the way down didn't make the family that enthusiastic about doing this EVER AGAIN... a total of 7 hours for a journey that takes less than an hour in an ICE...
So, fast forward a year, new(ish) Leaf, one bar gone ( SOH = 78% via Leaf Spy Pro - if you dont have it already, buy it NOW !) fully charged, I set off for Mandurah ( alone - family will go next time once I have proved it's ok ) , initially charging at the RAC Headquarters on the DCFC , then driving the 74km from RAC HQ to Mandurah at highway speed less 10kmh or so. My confidence to do this was immesely enhanced by speaking to Jeff the Walker at our meeting last Tuesday, his fascinating trip from Brisbane made me feel silly for not having attempted even the short distances on the electric highway more often, but as someone else put it, life gets in the way.
Most of the route is 100kmh, some 80kmh , last 40km or so is 110kmh. At those speeds, I didn't see anyone annoyed by having to pass me, in fact 2 or 3 cars stuck on my tail a bit too close for comfort, for annoyingly long times before lazily swinging by and passing in the (empty ) right hand lane.
I used 8.5kwh to cover the 72km from RAC HQ in Perth to the RAC Electric Highway charger in Mandurah giving me 118 wh/km or roughly 8km/kwh. It rained and it was a bit blowy ( side on headwind ) so I was quite pleased that when I arrived, there was 43km left on the ( eco ) GOM and leafspy pro said I had 22.5% , or 7.3kwh left...
On the return trip, I skipped the RAC HQ charger and went directly home from Mandurah, despite the DCFC switching off at around 85% charged on the Leaf - (eco ) GOM 121.
The - real distance would be 86.7km. When I got home I had 19 on the (eco) GOM and one charge bar left - first low battery warning just before I got home. I then drove a further 12km around the neighbourhood to get to 98.7km at which point I got the "three dashes"- so I'm fairly confident now of taking on the full electric highway with family in tow. Although I will probably stop at every charge station along the way and use 7km/kwh as a rough guide to how far I can go.
Having Leaf Spy Pro on my phone while driving visible was the best thing - real time numbers that made the GOM obsolete gave me far more confidence and seeing the actual kwh remaining rather than n/12 bars helps tremendously.
It may sound strange after being an EV owner for the last 3 years but I think I've finally conquered my suppressed range anxiety.
Next time? Make sure *phone is fully charged ( an EV owner should know this right??? ) and zero the trip meter, take photos of everything, screenscrape Leafspy Pro at every post and pre charge opportunity.
And .. take the family.
