Search results

Indeed, there's no need for a battery to equal the energy densities of gas or diesel, given the much higher overall efficiency of an electric powertrain. A specific energy of about 1-1.5 kWh/kg will be enough for almost all applications, vs, the ca. 12kwH/kg. of gas. We're nowhere near that...

Try Frank Sinatra :D

Thanks for posting that, Tony. I'd seen it over on TMC and had linked to it somewhere, but was unable to find it again for some reason. Now, does anyone know if an ETL-listing is acceptable in the U.S.? A couple of decades ago we used to sell PV modules that were ETL-listed (none were U.L. at...

:lol: Man, it took me a while to remember just where that was from. Just to be on the safe side, let's all agree not to ask Tony to play a game of solitaire ;)

If I understand the terms of the settlement correctly, the trigger for evGo to start backfitting Combo plugs to all the sites without them is after there are UL-listed (I think - see below) Combo quick chargers available from at least two different companies. They then have six months to...

The heater in the 2013-2014 LEAF S (and all pre-2013 model LEAFs of any trim) was a pure resistive unit, which can easily suck 20-30% of the range, esp. if you're also using the defroster. Some owners have seen even greater range losses, up to 50% in well below zero conditions this past winter...

Since it would be an option, you wouldn't be forced to buy it. But after your first winter spent bundled up, having to wipe the window with a cloth to see out because you can't afford to run the defroster if you want to reach your destination, chances are you'd say "Okay, this is ridiculous...

I've been convinced for some time that until BEV batteries get a lot bigger, or else insulation and heating/defrosting get a lot more efficient, offering a fuel-fired auxiliary heater for BEVs is the way to go in climates where the current heat pumps and resistive heaters are energy hogs. For...

Very favorably priced if the Plugshare info is correct - $0.22/kWh + $0.35 transaction fee. That makes six CCS locations in California, 2 Norcal and 4 SoCal.

I suspect too stiff a suspension would have been likely to cause car-sickness and/or kidney damage :D in cars with such short wheelbases, as they pitched over freeway truck-ripples. My '69 Datsun 2000 Roadster (89 inch wheelbase?) certainly did. Handled like a go-cart, though. I think...

For those who are interested, here's the slides from the presentation of that report: http://avt.inl.gov/pdf/prog_info/SAEHybridSymposium2014.pdf Note that the vehicles are only charging twice per day: Tony essentially broiled his second LEAF's battery (which unlike the Spark isn't...

They seem to have contracted with SemaCharge to operate them, just donating the land, so I think they're covered.

Presumably MOUs and Co-Ops are exempt, whereas IOUs aren't. Either that, or they are okay because they're contracting with SemaCharge to operate the system, and they're just providing/paying for the locations and installs. Since they've been publicly working on this for at least a year...

Plugshare has a problem at the moment. To view SAE Combo stations you have to deselect "High Power Stations" and view "Public Stations" with "SAE combo" selected on the "Settings" page. Doing so, you'll see that there is currently one Combo station in the Bay area at VW ERL in Belmont. And...

Re the highlighted section, you're right that they did it to keep the cost down, but wrong about the rationale. The Spark EV has a 3.3kW charger because it's the same one used by the Volt, i.e. they can increase production and cut the price while keeping the separate parts count down. Assuming...

You are asking two separate and mutually exclusive questions in your original post. There are plenty of CHAdeMO QCs in parts of Northern California, but Sparks can't use them, only the currently much less common SAE-Combo. Again, see this thread for a full explanation...

Do you have a link for this? I couldn't find anything on their website, and only a normal J1772 is listed there on Plugshare.

There's a few more reasons. Colder air is denser, so drag increases. And wet roads boosts rolling resistance. Oh, and at lower temps tire rolling resistance is a bit higher as well.

I don't think that's 0-60 times, I believe that's power/mile, (IV=P)*M at 60 mph on the X-axis, versus city range on the Y-axis. As I read it, it shows the 3.87 has better city range but uses more power at 60 mph than the 3.87 [Edit: 3.17] , which is exactly what I'd expect from the difference.

Agree that an individual's duty cycle is the key to range. For me, the Spark's better range at realistic freeway speeds would be the deciding factor. For what the car is, I can see little practical benefit to a faster 0-60 time, or even improving the 0-30 time. I don't think there's any need...