RVD
Active member
This happens more often than I expected...
I got my Leaf a few weeks ago. It's been an awesome experience. When I drive my ICE car, it just feels so primitive, loud, dirty, etc...and my ICE car happens to be a $100k+ luxury car and it still feels like that. I much prefer driving the Leaf.
So when I talk about my excitement with others, I get the same stupid questions over and over again.
Q: But how can I drive from San Francisco and drive down to San Diego?
Yes, I know that you can in theory using charging stations, etc. (BC to BC rally, etc.). But we all know that the Leaf or any EV isn't meant to be a 100% replacement for your gas car. The guy that asked this question actually never drove from SF to San Diego in his entire life. But the theme is the same regarding range to go on a trip as if people take long vacations and trips via car every day.
I have tried to approach of emphasizing the use of an EV as covering 95%+ of your driving needs, not 100%. Mainly it's there to cover your daily commute, regular errands, etc. But for some reasons, these folks are so focused on those few times that they travel for vacation...
Q: What is the range really like?
Of course it is highly variable on speed, how you drive, etc. For my driving, I don't even think twice for trips 50 miles or less. 50-70 miles I think about and consciously try to conserve power while driving, and 70+ miles would make me slightly nervous where I would plan out some emergency charging stations, etc. I tend to be conservative though and this assumes 75% highway driving and 25% city.
The response that I get sometimes is "that's why I would never get an EV."
Sure, if you just want to hop into your car and never think about range, an EV isn't for you. But it's not that much work and the satisfaction of never pumping gas is more than enough motivation for me to keep range in mind.
Maybe just me but these 2 questions annoy me the most.
I got my Leaf a few weeks ago. It's been an awesome experience. When I drive my ICE car, it just feels so primitive, loud, dirty, etc...and my ICE car happens to be a $100k+ luxury car and it still feels like that. I much prefer driving the Leaf.
So when I talk about my excitement with others, I get the same stupid questions over and over again.
Q: But how can I drive from San Francisco and drive down to San Diego?
Yes, I know that you can in theory using charging stations, etc. (BC to BC rally, etc.). But we all know that the Leaf or any EV isn't meant to be a 100% replacement for your gas car. The guy that asked this question actually never drove from SF to San Diego in his entire life. But the theme is the same regarding range to go on a trip as if people take long vacations and trips via car every day.
I have tried to approach of emphasizing the use of an EV as covering 95%+ of your driving needs, not 100%. Mainly it's there to cover your daily commute, regular errands, etc. But for some reasons, these folks are so focused on those few times that they travel for vacation...
Q: What is the range really like?
Of course it is highly variable on speed, how you drive, etc. For my driving, I don't even think twice for trips 50 miles or less. 50-70 miles I think about and consciously try to conserve power while driving, and 70+ miles would make me slightly nervous where I would plan out some emergency charging stations, etc. I tend to be conservative though and this assumes 75% highway driving and 25% city.
The response that I get sometimes is "that's why I would never get an EV."
Sure, if you just want to hop into your car and never think about range, an EV isn't for you. But it's not that much work and the satisfaction of never pumping gas is more than enough motivation for me to keep range in mind.
Maybe just me but these 2 questions annoy me the most.