Survey: Volt drivers hate gas, plug in more than LEAFers

[thankyouOB]

Volt drivers also plug in when away from home 21 percent of the time, as opposed to Leaf drivers, who charge away from home only 11 percent of the time.

“We never anticipated that a 40-mile electric-range plug-in hybrid would charge more than a 100 percent electric car,” Mr. Read said. “You have that gas engine that you’re paying an extra premium for for a reason.”

Whether the motivation is economic, environmental or other is not yet clear, but hybrid drivers are trying to maximize their use of electricity, perhaps in part because ECOtality has not yet begun charging an access fee at the commercial stations, he said.

http://green.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/10/18/for-hybrid-drivers-a-gas-pump-allergy/?src=twr" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

 

[TNleaf]

“We never anticipated that a 40-mile electric-range plug-in hybrid would charge more than a 100 percent electric car,” Mr. Read said.

They DIDN'T anticipate that? A "40-mile" electric range car logically needs to be charged more than a "100-mile" electric range car.

Seems like a no-brainer to me. Then again, logical thinking isn't all that common.

 

[mwalsh]

I honestly thought that mant Volt owners wouldn't bother plugging in because they'd be lazy. Now I realize that many ARE plugging in because they're cheap.

 

[adric22]

They DIDN'T anticipate that? A "40-mile" electric range car logically needs to be charged more than a "100-mile" electric range car.

Seems like a no-brainer to me. Then again, logical thinking isn't all that common.

My thoughts exactly.

 

[scottf200]

Came home from work last night with 13 EV miles left on the battery. Plugged in the car for the 3am scheduled charge. Turns out the wife had an appt to get her hair down about 13 miles away. She said can I take the Volt and I said it only has 13 miles left. She said OK I'll take my <all ICE car>. I said no way still take the Volt because you can go half way on EV and it gets better miles than your <all ICE car>.

She said but I thought you were trying to get EV miles only. I said the goal is to reduce our gas usage!! She had to leave soon but turned the charging on on the Volt so she got another 3 miles added before she had to leave (20 minutes). If I'd known she needed the car I would have not had hot rodded the Volt to/from work <grin> and would have charged immediately when I got home. She could have easily gone all electric then instead of using a few tablespoons.

 

[JPVLeaf]

There's a Volt driver that uses the charging stations at our workplace just about every day. He also rides an electric bike, which he carries around on the back of his Volt. After he parks and plugs in his car, he takes off his e-bike and rides his e-bike to his work place, which is about 1-2 miles away. He does the reverse at the end of the work day. He even did this on those 90-100°F days. He lives less than 30 miles from work. He also has another gas car at home. I can't help but think that he could be doing his commute in a LEAF, and thereby do away with the PHEV + e-bike combo routine. On the one hand this seems 'cheap', although I suspect his e-bike wasn't cheap. Environmentalist? Quirky? Quixotic?

Someday soon, our workplace may begin charging ... to charge. I wonder at what point the now many Volt drivers using my workplace's charging stations will continue to so.

 

[DaveinOlyWA]

:lol:

:shock:
:roll:

there are simply no words...

 

[Nubo]

I honestly thought that mant Volt owners wouldn't bother plugging in because they'd be lazy. Now I realize that many ARE plugging in because they're cheap.

I speculated similarly. What I didn't realize until I got the LEAF was just how deeply satisfying it is to NOT roll into a gas station.

 

[DaveinOlyWA]

Came home from work last night with 13 EV miles left on the battery. Plugged in the car for the 3am scheduled charge. Turns out the wife had an appt to get her hair down about 13 miles away. She said can I take the Volt and I said it only has 13 miles left. She said OK I'll take my <all ICE car>. I said no way still take the Volt because you can go half way on EV and it gets better miles than your <all ICE car>.

She said but I thought you were trying to get EV miles only. I said the goal is to reduce our gas usage!! She had to leave soon but turned the charging on on the Volt so she got another 3 miles added before she had to leave (20 minutes). If I'd known she needed the car I would have not had hot rodded the Volt to/from work <grin> and would have charged immediately when I got home. She could have easily gone all electric then instead of using a few tablespoons.

sounds like QC would have eliminated that entire conversation

 

[grommet]

For any sites that are "pay" now, I almost never see a Volt charging. When it was free, it's was very common.

At Stanford Shopping Center, one common Volt visitor just parks in one of the 2 EV parking spots, leaves the charging door open... but doesn't plug-in or charge. 350Green owned EVSE, so they charge $2/hr... $2/min. Yay? (FYI: The spaces don't specifically say "charging only.")

 

[thankyouOB]

who knew Volt drivers would buy a car with a complex second engine to not use it.

of course, it makes sense if you are a one-car family and need to have a rangeless doggie for trips.

 

[mwalsh]

At Stanford Shopping Center, one common Volt visitor just parks in one of the 2 EV parking spots, leaves the charging door open... but doesn't plug-in or charge. 350Green owned EVSE, so they charge $2/hr... $2/min. Yay? (FYI: The spaces don't specifically say "charging only.")

Oops. I accidentally broke off your charge door. Sorry about that.

 

[LEAFer]

Went to a movie Tuesday. A nearby shopping center has a half-dozen or so 120V receptacles spread around actually labelled "EV Charging Station" (!). Specifically planned to use the Volt and walk the 1/2 mile (and back) to the movie. Parked. Plugged in. No juice ! Had lost enough time (talking to store owner about popped breakers) that we decided to drive to the movie theater.

Ordinarily the round-trip from home can "barely" (think hypermiling) be accomplished without use of gasoline. But I had driven "spirited" since plan A was to be plugged in during the movie. I get "cranky" when Volt switches to CS mode, unless it's obviously a pre-planned long-distance trip.

After the movie we returned (as planned) to the shopping center to do normal grocery shopping. We stopped by one of the other "EV Charging Stations". Plugged in. Worked. The 45 minutes was sufficient to get us home on ZERO gasoline (yes, I "drafted" on way home, but otherwise drove "normal"). Nice. Happy.


Edit:

who knew Volt drivers would buy a car with a complex second engine to not use it.

of course, it makes sense if you are a one-car family and need to have a rangeless doggie for trips.

Annualized Proforma: 3 people, 3 cars, 38k miles, 2k miles of which use about 50 gallons of gasoline. The 36k electric miles are fed from a SMUD Greenergy program (100% renewable energy) for $6/month.

 

[scottf200]

Came home from work last night with 13 EV miles left on the battery. Plugged in the car for the 3am scheduled charge. Turns out the wife had an appt to get her hair down about 13 miles away. She said can I take the Volt and I said it only has 13 miles left. She said OK I'll take my <all ICE car>. I said no way still take the Volt because you can go half way on EV and it gets better miles than your <all ICE car>.

She said but I thought you were trying to get EV miles only. I said the goal is to reduce our gas usage!! She had to leave soon but turned the charging on on the Volt so she got another 3 miles added before she had to leave (20 minutes). If I'd known she needed the car I would have not had hot rodded the Volt to/from work <grin> and would have charged immediately when I got home. She could have easily gone all electric then instead of using a few tablespoons.

sounds like QC would have eliminated that entire conversation

True for the the specific of that conversation but then I have to convince her to drive without heat and like a little old lady. <grin>. I like the above practicality and convenience (p&c) conversation MUCH better. As well I couldn't have QC/440v in my home and it was raining and cold out. Like I'd make her stop to get a charge in that. Not.

 

[Herm]

Someday soon, our workplace may begin charging ... to charge. I wonder at what point the now many Volt drivers using my workplace's charging stations will continue to so.

It would save him about $3.80 in gasoline to charge, so it depends.

 

[Nubo]

At Stanford Shopping Center, one common Volt visitor just parks in one of the 2 EV parking spots, leaves the charging door open... but doesn't plug-in or charge. 350Green owned EVSE, so they charge $2/hr... $2/min. Yay? (FYI: The spaces don't specifically say "charging only.")

Some people either just don't think boorish behavior has any consequences, or they're simply oblivious. I'm absolutely not advocating retaliation, but you just don't behave like this in public. Just like you don't give your waitress a hard time before you get your food. :lol:

 

[smkettner]

I enjoyed the term "gas anxiety"

 

[GaslessInSeattle]

I wonder if it's being cheap. The volt tackles the primal fear of being stranded and/or being prevented from going where you want to go. IMHO, that is the main mental stumbling block keeping people from going pure EV with today's limited range. I would like to put a different spin on it, that Volt owners are discovering something they didn't know before owning, that they really like driving electric and are compelled to plug in as much as possible because they are so delighted with the experience, and how inexpensive & green it is. I think this is actually a good thing for the electric drive movement. It's only a matter of time before EV pack size increases and those PHEV drivers give up the ICE all together! Puritans like me don't like admitting that the shift is going to take a while, but it is a step in the right direction of getting folks familiar with the concept of EV's, and I think that's worth applauding.

I honestly thought that mant Volt owners wouldn't bother plugging in because they'd be lazy. Now I realize that many ARE plugging in because they're cheap.

 

[Reddy]

Gasless...Exactly! If I owned a Volt, the stark differences between driving on ICE vs. EV would help me chose EV as much as possible. Hey, the more EV miles the merrier. Go Volt drivers! Perhaps soon, people will realize that EVs really are better and buy the 100% electric car next time. I dislike the gas station so much that I would change my driving behavior just to reduce the ICE. Yes, for most people the cost probably also plays a part since each and every time you hop in the vehicle you are reminded that the EV costs $0.015/mi and ICE costs $0.15/mi. Either vehicle (Leaf or Volt) basically works the same for me since I have very few days where my daily drive exceeds 40 mi. However, the Leaf came first and was cheaper.

Reddy

 

[IBELEAF]

I hate buying gas, but I love having it as a backup and to be honest I enjoy EV experience more on Volt then I ever did with Leaf just because I have that stinky gas to back me up