cwerdna
Well-known member
Not sure if this has been posted yet... I received the print issue of Car and Driver awhile ago but the article's finally up online.
http://www.caranddriver.com/comparisons/2014-chevy-spark-ev-vs-fiat-500e-ford-focus-electric-honda-fit-ev-nissan-leaf-smart-fortwo-ed-comparison-test" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
As I basically wrote elsewhere a week or so ago:
I received the C&D issue. Although I'm not sure how I'd rank the vehicles, I recall they missed many points.
IIRC, they didn't touch on DC FC at all. Out of the vehicles they tested, only the Leaf and Spark EV have any DC FC capability. It seems like they didn't use it at all nor discuss it at all. And, we know how widespread CHAdeMO is vs. Frankenplug.
They should've dinged the Spark EV more for its slow OBC and J1772 CCS. But, as C&D is a more performance-oriented publication, I can see why they ranked the vehicles how they did. They also should've dinged the Focus EV more for its TINY trunk.
It's a little odd that they left out the Rav4 EV since they included CA compliance cars like the Spark EV, Fit EV, Fiat 500e and very limited availability Smart ED (~9 states, IIRC). In effect, they reviewed 4 cars that are unavailable to most of the US.
I also recall they gave no info about what their range test consisted of nor test protocol (i.e. how low did they drive it? until the car stopped? Did they add numbers from the GOMs (guess-o-meters) to driven distance?) I suspect it was a lot of high speed driving and the cold that sapped the range of their test vehicles (esp. the Fit EV). I'm surprised Fit EV did the worst in their range test, at 52 miles. In their test, the Spark EV achieved 66 miles, Focus EV 64 and Leaf 64.
FWIW, in the test at http://www.edmunds.com/fuel-economy/testing-electric-vehicles-in-the-real-world.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;, the '13 Fit EV beat out their '11 (battery degraded) Leaf, and '12 Focus EV.
The tow generator they showed above "Three little piggies suckle at the teats of Nissan's generator" looks identical to what I've seen Nissan bring to events (e.g. Alt Car Expo), including the Armada SUV and a CHAdeMO DC FC that's part of the whole rig. I put up pics of it at https://picasaweb.google.com/105684180251177299188/AltCarExpo2012?authkey=Gv1sRgCITZzJvF9JKo2QE#" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;. Did they not receive it or they just decided to conveniently ignore it?
http://www.caranddriver.com/comparisons/2014-chevy-spark-ev-vs-fiat-500e-ford-focus-electric-honda-fit-ev-nissan-leaf-smart-fortwo-ed-comparison-test" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
Rankings were2014 Chevrolet Spark EV vs. 2013 Fiat 500E, 2014 Ford Focus Electric, 2013 Honda Fit EV, 2013 Nissan Leaf SL, 2013 Smart Fortwo ED Cabriolet
Field of Dreams: We gather six government-compliant electric appliances for the quietest, slowest comparo ever.
...
+ Sixth: 2013 Smart Fortwo ED Cabriolet
+ Fifth: 2013 Fiat 500E
+ Fourth: 2013 Nissan Leaf SL
+ Third: 2013 Honda Fit EV
+ Second: 2014 Ford Focus Electric
+ First: 2014 Chevrolet Spark EV
As I basically wrote elsewhere a week or so ago:
I received the C&D issue. Although I'm not sure how I'd rank the vehicles, I recall they missed many points.
IIRC, they didn't touch on DC FC at all. Out of the vehicles they tested, only the Leaf and Spark EV have any DC FC capability. It seems like they didn't use it at all nor discuss it at all. And, we know how widespread CHAdeMO is vs. Frankenplug.
They should've dinged the Spark EV more for its slow OBC and J1772 CCS. But, as C&D is a more performance-oriented publication, I can see why they ranked the vehicles how they did. They also should've dinged the Focus EV more for its TINY trunk.
It's a little odd that they left out the Rav4 EV since they included CA compliance cars like the Spark EV, Fit EV, Fiat 500e and very limited availability Smart ED (~9 states, IIRC). In effect, they reviewed 4 cars that are unavailable to most of the US.
I also recall they gave no info about what their range test consisted of nor test protocol (i.e. how low did they drive it? until the car stopped? Did they add numbers from the GOMs (guess-o-meters) to driven distance?) I suspect it was a lot of high speed driving and the cold that sapped the range of their test vehicles (esp. the Fit EV). I'm surprised Fit EV did the worst in their range test, at 52 miles. In their test, the Spark EV achieved 66 miles, Focus EV 64 and Leaf 64.
FWIW, in the test at http://www.edmunds.com/fuel-economy/testing-electric-vehicles-in-the-real-world.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;, the '13 Fit EV beat out their '11 (battery degraded) Leaf, and '12 Focus EV.
The tow generator they showed above "Three little piggies suckle at the teats of Nissan's generator" looks identical to what I've seen Nissan bring to events (e.g. Alt Car Expo), including the Armada SUV and a CHAdeMO DC FC that's part of the whole rig. I put up pics of it at https://picasaweb.google.com/105684180251177299188/AltCarExpo2012?authkey=Gv1sRgCITZzJvF9JKo2QE#" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;. Did they not receive it or they just decided to conveniently ignore it?