EV Purist No More--Enter the REx!

This EV is unlike the others!

Hi! My name is Steve, and I was born electric on August 15, 2012.

You highly intelligent, super savvy readers may be questioning my sanity. Or, at the very least, fact-checking. And those dubious thoughts are spot on. The above picture is me putting gas into a new kind of EV: a BMW i3. And those understanding of the i3 know that, in 2012, the i3 only existed as an internal tension at BMW between the maniacal engineers that thought a mass-market car could be made extensively with carbon fiber and the bean counters that believed BMW i was a financial money pit destined to ruin Team Bavaria. Eureka!

EV Bloodline

Our first three EVs were all-electric Nissan LEAFs. 

Back in the summer of 2012, we started replacing our gasoline-fueled family hauler fleet. The second LEAF came eight months later, making us an all-EV household. My wife and I defiantly and definitively proclaimed that we would never again visit a gas station. Then in 2014, I traded my beta test 2012 LEAF for a ready-for-market 2014 LEAF.  We were seemingly set with two very capable EVs in our garage: a 2013 Nissan LEAF SL and a 2014 Nissan LEAF SL. 

Then the electric vehicle market expanded +1 in Washington state. BMW started selling its i3 in the State the latter half of 2014. By Christmas, I had one on an extended test drive. When we turned the i3 back over to the BMW dealership, we were conflicted. The i3, with its onboard gas generator, or Range Extender (REx), was far more capable as a transporting vehicle. However, Nissan's LEAF, with its CHAdeMo-equipped quick charging, was far more capable as an EV. 

Fallen LEAF

Carbon Fiber Reinforced Plastic (CFRP) Passenger Cell

Unless you are a bot scouring the Interwebs, you have correctly surmised that we ended up buying an i3. On March 12, 2015, we traded in my wife's 2013 LEAF for a BMW. The i3 is unlike any vehicle on the road: carbon fiber, suicide rear doors, and series-hybrid purity.

The features and headlines that make the i3 such an emotionally appealing vehicle are all present in our bimmer. Yes, there are plenty of bits to get excited about with the car. However, the deciding factor in selling a LEAF for the i3 was the REx option. 

For the past three years, we have traveled far, but not wide, in a LEAF. We have shown that all-electric travel is quite possible the 1,500 miles between Kamloops, British Columbia and the U.S.-Mexico border. But EV travel (sans Tesla EVs) is only practically doable in a narrow 200 mile east-west corridor along the entirety of the West Coast.

Road Trip! A Coram Family tradition.

My wife and I have a long history of road trips...long before we had EVs, long before we had kids. Now that we have EVs and kids, we have naturally invoked our parental obligations of perpetuating traditions with our Littles. And, we've all but exhausted the territory that we can travel to by LEAF. From here on out, the i3 will be taking over as the primary road trip car. With that in mind, I wanted to prepare a day trip for the i3 that would serve as a suitable first, of many, REx adventures.

One of the great tests for EVs lies in day-tripping to the Olympic Peninsula from the Seattle area. I've done this trip twice with my children. The first attempt, ended in failure. The second a success, as we made it to Hurricane Ridge, a spectacular mountain region south of Port Angeles. What makes EV day travels to the Olympic Peninsula challenging is that the last ferry on the Kingston-Edmonds route departs at 11:00pm. In addition, there is not DC quick charging support, and only a limited number of Level 2 charging stations in the region. Basically, the furthest west a current generation LEAF can go in a day, from where we live in Lake Stevens, is Port Angeles.

The i3 REx faired much better. This is our report...

Topping off the 1.9 gallon gas tank! 

We pulled out of the garage at about 7:00am, and made the ferry crossing and drive to Port Angeles by mid-morning. And after charging at a Sun Country-branded Clipper Creek High-Amp Level 2 (HAL2) charging station for a bit over an hour, we topped off the gas tank and continued west: Destination Cape Flattery 70+ miles away.

We made it to Neah Bay after about two hours of driving; WA-112 is not an interstate. The typical travel speed was about 45mph, and we had to watch out for the occasional herd of elk!

A herd of a few dozen elk crossed the road we were driving on!

The Makah Tribe, in the Neah Bay region, have started supporting electric vehicle tourism with several recent EVSE installations. The first, a HAL2 and dual Tesla High-Power Wall Chargers (HPWCs) are located in the town of Neah Bay. The second, another HAL2 and dual HPWCs are located at the Hobuck Beach Resort.

Both locations are glorious, in scenery and in EVSE support. In between these two gems, is a marvel in its own right: Cape Flattery. The Cape Flattery experience is second to none. It provides quintessential Pacific Northwest ocean views and kid-friendly hiking abound.

So, after trekking around Cape Flattery in the early afternoon, we let the kids play on the mile-wide Hobuck Beach, which has sand more reminiscent of a Hawaiian coastline than the typical pebbled Northwest affair.

Hobuck Beach: End of the road

By late afternoon, we were heading back east, towards Port Angeles, the Kingston-Edmonds ferry, and eventually home. Pulling into the garage at just past midnight, we were all exhausted, with both kids soundly asleep in the back of the i3. What was different about this trip: We covered 340 miles in a day (using less than 5 gallons of gasoline), and the kids were dead-tired because we had so much adventure outside of traveling in the car.

Tuckered out after a day of fun.

Road trips will forever be different for us, now that we have an i3 with REx. Whereas before, with a LEAF, every moment of the trip was in service of charging. The motto, "if it ain't movin', it better be chargin', " was not coined by somebody driving a hybrid, or Tesla for that matter.

With the i3, we will be able to drive all-electric, all the time. Or, if we wish, we can utilize the REx to take us where no Coram has gone before. Now, that sounds like an EVenture!

We love our new i3!

Exploring Olympic National Park in a Nissan LEAF

On Veteran's Day last year, I attempted to drive our Nissan LEAF on a day trip to Washington state's Olympic National Park with my two small children. The EV driving was stressful, and we never made it to our destination: Hurricane Ridge.

Fast forward a half year. While reading excerpts from one of my heroes, John Wooden, I came across what Wooden described as "never flinching at failure." (p.18) Wooden described this persistence, "If you are not making some mistakes, you're not doing anything--not trying to make things happen," and later, "act, initiate, and be bold in execution rather than hang back in fear of failure." (p.19)

For those who have plunged themselves into electric vehicle ownership during this early adopter phase, there are really two camps. One, the EV driver who is only comfortable in driving within a tight radius around home and work. The other encompasses the pioneers of the EV movement. These are the EV drivers who are determined to make driving electric work in their lives, and push the envelope to do so. There are failures, yes. If folks are not pushing the envelope--in whatever the endeavor--change...growth...progress will never happen.

Wooden's words worked. I was inspired, and ready to take on the world! So, naturally I started plotting how I could overcome one of my own (EV) failures. I remembered that attempt back in November wherein I nearly stranded my kids and myself at least two times in one day, and failed at reaching our ultimate destination.

Driving from the Seattle area to the Olympic Peninsula in a Nissan LEAF presents some unique challenges. Getting to and from the peninsula was first on my planning agenda. Washington State Ferries, the largest ferry system in the U.S., does not have 24 hour service on the ferry route that I needed to take to get over to Olympic National Park. One of the mistakes I made on my last attempt to the Olympics was to plan the trip with the idea that I just had to make the last ferry of the night. This time, though, I switched my thinking; I planned everything around catching the first ferry run of the morning.

Topping off the charge before driving onto the ferry.

We left home at 5:30am and pulled into a local PCC Natural Market by 6:00. With the ferry departure at 7:10, there was about 45 minutes of Level 2 charging to be had before getting underway again. This "top off" was very important because I was able to make the drive to the town of Port Angeles without stopping for additional charging.

On board the Puyallup, the largest class of ferry in the Washington State Ferry fleet.

The town of Port Angeles really can hold its own as a destination location. It is wedged between the Strait of Juan de Fuca and the base of the Olympic Mountains. The two, or so, hours that we were in Port Angeles were great. It was yet another time that we had an opportunity to be "stuck" in a town that I would have unfortunately driven straight through when our family had an ICE (internal combustion engine) vehicle.

With about a 95% charge, we departed Port Angeles with our sights set on Hurricane Ridge and Mt. Olympus. The 17-mile drive to Hurricane Ridge was from sea-level (literally) to more than 5100'. Using LEAF Spy, an app for Android devices, and my trusty OBD-II bluetooth dongle, I logged data for comparing the expenditure of energy going up the mountain as compared to how much energy was recaptured via regenerative braking on the way back down.

Hurricane Ridge, Olympic National Park

The drive from Port Angeles to Hurricane Ridge consumed 160 "GIDs" of energy. A GID is a Nissan LEAF-specific measurement of battery charge that represents 80 watt hours. After walking around for a while to enjoy the sub-alpine meadows, we loaded back into our LEAF for the return trip down the mountain and eventually home. 

On the decent we regenerated 40 GIDs--just 1/4 of the energy that was used to climb the mountain! I was really surprised that more energy was not recaptured on the 17 mile decent. I suppose, though, that I shouldn't have expected otherwise, as my previous record of downhill power regeneration only netted 24 GIDs on a similarly steep decent from Mt. Baker in Washington state's Cascade Range.

The hills are alive with...blacktail deer!

Our remaining trip home went smoothly, and was almost uneventful. The one hiccup came while charging in the town of Sequim. After plugging into a Level 2 charging station in the alley behind Nikola Broadband, we hoofed it across town to a burger joint. And just after we sat down with said hamburgers, I decided to check the LEAF's charging status via a smartphone app called Carwings. The status update was disheartening, as it showed that the car was plugged in but not charging. After wolfing down our food and trekking back to the car, I was surprised to see that the car was still charging! I think that the issue actually stemmed from the lack of cell phone service in that neck of the woods. The LEAF's onboard communication couldn't even catch the requisite 2G wireless network needed for the Carwings service to work properly. While I was just glad that the car was charging, I couldn't help but think of the irony that proper cell service was not available in the parking lot of a wireless network provider. Go figure.

***

With our trip now completed, I have again returned to the wise words of John Wooden. The kids and I were determined to make our trip to Hurricane Ridge happen. It was a wonderful lesson of perseverance as an EV pioneer. It was a wonderful experience, too, as a father.

Wooden, J. (2006). The Essential Wooden: A Lifetime of Lessons on Leaders and Leadership. New York, NY: McGraw-Hill

(EV) Tour a National Park for Veterans Day!

For Veterans Day last year, I took Charlie and Sabrina to Anacortes, WA to honor our service members.  It was a wonderful experience for the kids.  The only rough part of the day was having to park our EV for charging at a Walgreens and then walk a mile each way to the events...in the cold...crying toddler...yada yada.

When Tanya told me that she had to make, something like, 25 Tutu Totes this weekend, I read between the lines and offered to take our kids on a full-day adventure.  With National Parks having fee free days over the Veterans Day weekend, I thought it would be fun to check out Mt. Rainer.  After all, I had recently watched Ken Burns' The National Parks: America's Best Idea, making me feel that it was a civic duty to take our children to the Parks. It didn't take long to determine, though, that getting our LEAF up to either Sunrise or Paradise was completely out.  I've already detailed why the North Cascades National Park was out, so I had to figure out how to get us to the majestic Olympic National Park!

Looking at the park map and at the EV charging infrastructure on the Olympic Peninsula, Hurricane Ridge was the most accessible kid-fun place to get to.  I got the all-clear from Tanya as she left the house heading for the fabric store.  The kids and I finished getting ready, and as we were heading out, I realized that I forgot to grab the bluetooth diagnostic tool from my car.  This particular device, paired with a powerful app called LEAF Spy, is absolutely critical when pushing the range limits of the EV.  However, I was more concerned about bringing the iPad.  So, with Sabrina and Charlie loaded up in the car, I ran back inside and grabbed the babysitter.

Shortly after leaving the house, I called Tanya to figure out where she was.  My worries got the best of me...I did want that bluetooth tool!  I swung by The Burlington Coat Factory (fabric store?), and pulled the device from my 2012 LEAF.  It was about 11:00am, and we were on our way!

We did a 20 minute charge to 90% at the Level 3 CHAdeMO quick charger at Campbell Nelson Nissan in Edmonds, then we headed to catch the ferry.

Just missed the ferry!

Waiting for the next ferry.  Is that the Sprinkler Dance???

Charlie signing "more". With a look like that, what does he see?

We zipped along the Penninsula and pulled into Wilder Nissan in Port Angeles at 2:15 with a Very Low Battery charge.  I was already getting worried, because we effectively had only about two-and-a-half hours of daylight left.  After plugging into the Level 2 electric vehicle supply equipment, we tried finding some food.  Besides a movie theater next door, there was nothing!  When I called Westside Pizza for a delivery, the employee on the phone appeared a bit amused with my plea for a delivery at the Nissan dealership.

Happy Kids=Happy Dad

We pulled out of the Nissan Dealership exactly two hours later at 4:15pm with a 63% charge.  The drive up to Hurricane Ridge (5200') from Port Angeles (sea level) was going to be cutting it close with only a 63% charge, however the math showed that it was possible.  So, when we got about halfway to Hurricane Ridge and saw that the park was closed with a locked gate and declaring sign, I started having fantasies of punching Smokey the Bear much like Chevy Chase gave Marty Moose a blow to the nose in National Lampoon's Vacation.

Sorry, folks!  We're closed...uh-huh, uh-huh, uh-huh!

Charlie was clueless to the disappointment, but Sabrina was clearly bummed that we would not make it to "Hurricane Bridge", as she put it.  To make amends, I decided to stop off at the McDonald's in Port Angeles for the kids to get a treat and me some coffee.  However, I did not heed my own mantra learned from driving in the BC2BC this past summer:  "If the car is parked, it better be plugged in."

Forty-Five Minute Layover at Mickey D's

From McDonald's, we headed back to the Nissan dealership in Port Angeles to Level 2 charge.  I needed some time to crunch numbers, looking at elevation profiles, and checking the ferry schedule.  The mountain was a bust, but we had to figure out how to get home!  Enter...the iPad!

Screen time for the kids-->giving me some screen time with my phone to figure out the drive home.

After about an hour of charging at the Nissan dealership, I was really starting to get nervous about making it to the ferry.  There was a 9:40pm sailing, then another, final, departure at 11:05pm.  Sabrina and Charlie were troopers, but they were starting to wear on each other.  And me.  Making it to the 9:40 ferry had to happen!  Charging at the dealership would've worked just fine, but poor cell service was making the ferry departure planning, mapping, and range calculations nearly impossible with the slow connection.  Adding to my problems was that the lack of cell coverage was just destroying my cell phone battery, even with the phone plugged into the auxiliary outlet in the car.  A LEAF driver without cell service and ample cell phone battery charge is as good as dead when pushing the limits of the car.  We pulled out from the Nissan dealership just before 6:00pm, heading for a high-power Level 2 in Sequim.

No charging in Sequim tonight; Model S beat me to it.

With charging in Sequim out, I had one last available charging location in the town of Gardiner before all was lost and I surrendered to finding an exterior 120v outlet on the side of somebody's house to trickle charge all night long.  Wild Birds Unlimited in Gardiner, WA is pretty much an EV oasis.  Once there, I knew that there were very few contingency plans as the LEAF would not have more than about 10 miles of range left.  

After arriving, it took 10 minutes to find the EVSE in the dark.

Clipper Creek portable unit.

Once I saw that the electric vehicle supply equipment was a 25amp portable Clipper Creek unit, I knew that I was in a real bind.  I expected to be able to pull 30amps while charging; the difference was statistically minimal, but I had to catch that 9:40 ferry!  I plugged in the LEAF at 7:25pm at Wild Birds Unlimited, and watched in pain how the car was charging slow enough that making the ferry would be impossible.  

Over the past year, I have become quite skilled at eking the most miles out of a given charge in our Nissan LEAFs.  Typically, the trick is to drive as slow as possible.  Actually, to drive slower than what one thinks is possible is pretty much the trick.  The dilimea I was looking at was a new sitiuation, though.  There needed to be a Range Hero drive from Gardiner to the Kingston ferry terminial, and had to be done while making some "speed limit" driving time.  The stress while trying to figure out of whether or not to try for the 9:40pm ferry was crushing.  

At 8:45pm, I got out of the LEAF, stood in front of our car with my hand on the plug handle.  For the next minute, I just stared at the EV plug and said to myself that we would not make it.  At 8:46, I quickly unplugged and dashed into the car.  We had to travel 33.5 miles to the ferry, and the navigation in the car provided a speed limit driving E.T.A. at the ferry as 9:30pm.  

There is not much that can be said for the driving between Wild Birds Unlimited and the Kingston ferry, other than I utilized every "hyper-miling" technique that I could think of:  slow, very slow on the uphill grades; driving on the shoulder when possible with hazards flashing; gliding...rather, bombing down the downhill grades in neutral; and driving off-center in the lane to avoid the pooling water in the lane ruts.  

We pulled up to the ferry kiosk at 9:36pm, and ended up with a 2.8% charge remaining when the car came to a stop on the ferry deck.  Departure followed literally just moments later.  

Luckily, there are a handful of EV charging stations just off of the ferry in Edmonds.  While still on the ferry ride, though, Tanya and I exchanged text messages and decided that she would come rescue our kids in Edmonds while I charged.  

Pulled in with a 2.5% charge.  Phew!

Rescue arrives at 10:35pm.

I'm not sure if it is a good thing, or bad, but I tend to arrive at destinations with an absolutely minimal battery charge remaining.  After Tanya left, I stayed charging in Edmonds for another hour.  When arriving home at 12:22am, there was the exact same 2.5% charge remaining that I had when pulling into Edmonds.  Tanya almost had to perform her second rescue of the night!