"Can you drive that electric car in the rain?" and other ???

[Aeolus]

I'm getting used to a lot of questions about my LEAF, and the occasional argumentative busybody who wants to repeat some crazed right wing talking points.

I've got answers ready for a lot of the questions, many of which are just unclear on one concept or another, but what do you do when someone seriously asks a question that just comes out of the blue. Was this guy remembering Ben Franklin's experiments with kites and lightning as rendered in some cartoon?

And why, as someone else asked, would it be more difficult to drive an electric car in the snow than a regular car? Not that I'm going to be driving any vehicle if it snows in coastal Southern California.

So what's the funniest question you get about your LEAF, or the one that just leaves you shaking your head?

 

[richard]

So what's the funniest question you get about your LEAF, or the one that just leaves you shaking your head?

"When are they going to put generators on the wheels so it charges itself while it drives?"

 

[padamson1]

And why, as someone else asked, would it be more difficult to drive an electric car in the snow than a regular car?

Given what both of my Toyota hybrids do in snow this is actually a very sensible question. The electric motor puts instantaneous torque resulting in loss of traction anytime there is any slickness on the road surface. The SW in the 2004 Prius induced the anti-skid in such a way that it basically cannot move in the snow. They improved it with MY 2010 cars, but it still skids very easily, combined with the light weight of the Prius and crappy OEM tires means no snow driving. The Hybrid HighLander with its weight, 4WD, and better SW did OK, but it still lost traction a lot more than my MDX did when starting from a standstill.

Thanx to the batteries the LEAF is heavier, so I guessed it might do better, but I wasn't going to buy my LEAF until I saw it work in snow and wet leaves. Fortunately there are videos of both a LEAF and Volt doing satisfactorily in snowy conditions, so I ordered after the CWP was available. I have yet to try my LEAF in snow, but I still have my son's Audi A4 at the house just in case.

 

[KevinSharpe]

here's a Renault Kangoo that we drove in the "rain" a few days ago...

http://a.yfrog.com/img29/3906/lbd.mp4

 

[Anonymous]

And why, as someone else asked, would it be more difficult to drive an electric car in the snow than a regular car? Not that I'm going to be driving any vehicle if it snows in coastal Southern California.

Well, to be honest, this IS a valid complaint I have about the two EVs that I have. Although it has to do with the TIRES, not really the drivetrain...

My Xebra is a 3-wheeler, with one wheel in front. This by itself makes it a horrible car for winter weather. Couple that with a pathetic attempt at a heater, and this is one seriously miserable winter car. Not to mention the flooded lead-acid batteries drop to less than half the range in the cold weather, and there are no crash-safety features on the vehicle so if I do get in an accident I'm pretty much dead.

The Leaf has horrible tires. Dry pavement seems to do OK (not great, not good, just OK) and in the wet weather they have a lot less traction than I would like for around Seattle. When/if the snows come, this will be parked along side my Xebra and forgotten about until the snow melts. Thankfully that should be about 24 hours at a time in our climate... I'm actually considering finding some decent all-weathers or maybe snow tires for it. Given the right tires, I bet the Leaf COULD be a very good car in the snow with the evenly balanced weight due to the batteries. (I need to read up on the winter driving threads on this forum in the near future)

 

[charlestonleafer]

Oh! I've got you all beat! I live in South Carolina, so I've only had the car a week and have heard a lifetime of ridiculous comments, but this takes the cake. I had a truck driver come into my office while my leaf was charging out front. He asked how far it went on a charge, how long it took to charge, how much it costs, the usual stuff. Then it gets good:

Truck driver: "so when it runs out of charge, you just put gas in it?"
Me: "no, no gas ever, couldn't even if I wanted to"
Truck Driver: "have you ever tried?"
Me: "what do you mean?"
Truck Driver: "have you ever tried to put gas in it?"

I was so stunned I could only come up with "no, I haven't tried"

 

[smkettner]

I had a few keep asking about carrying gas. I said the only way to carry gas would be to keep a gas can in the hatch area. I added that I don't recommend it unless in an emergency your friend with a gasoline car had run out and called you for help.

My favorite is "what happens when you run out of charge" I reply... same as any vehicle that runs out of fuel. There are some warnings and then it will just coast to a stop.

 

[FairwoodRed]

I'm actually considering finding some decent all-weathers or maybe snow tires for it. Given the right tires, I bet the Leaf COULD be a very good car in the snow with the evenly balanced weight due to the batteries. (I need to read up on the winter driving threads on this forum in the near future)

I have a set of Bilzzaks that are mounted on rims for my former Mazda6. If you haven't driven with blizzaks, you're missing out. They have all of the traction of a studded tire with none of the drawbacks. I'm planning to see if they will bolt up to the Leaf like my reasearch says they will. If anyone in the Seattle area is interested in how they fit/drive, PM me and we can talk on the phone or meet up.

 

[Electric4Me]

So what's the funniest question you get about your LEAF, or the one that just leaves you shaking your head?

"When are they going to put generators on the wheels so it charges itself while it drives?"

Answer: "As soon as they mount a catch can behind the tail pipe on ICE cars to recapture the gasoline."

 

[BrendanDolan]

When I work at Green Fairs showing the car off, I hear a ton of funny questions. I don't mind the usual seemingly oddball questions, but I get rather annoyed with people who hang around for 5 minutes who want to debate why the car makes no sense to anyone.

"Seems alright, but you can't drive to Los Angeles with it from here."

"Correct, and my Corvette doesn't tow my boat well, and my Kenworth Semi is next to useless when I race around Laguna Seca." :lol:

 

[adric22]

"When are they going to put generators on the wheels so it charges itself while it drives?"

Actually, I've been asked about that so often, and been in so many argument, I produced a video just to debunk this.
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fJKRpqnbdFg[/youtube]

 

[TonyWilliams]

I got one Saturday, " Why don't they just hook up an electric motor to the alternator of regular cars and make a cheap electric car?"

One guy several months ago asked if I had put any passengers in it yet (as if it would not go anywhere then).

Then the usual, "Can it go 500 miles a day?" "Is it a hybrid?" "What's the gas mileage?"

 

[evnow]

"When are they going to put generators on the wheels so it charges itself while it drives?"

Actually, I've been asked about that so often, and been in so many argument, I produced a video just to debunk this.

Thanks for the video.

Conservation of energy - though it seems obvious to us - isn't actually that obvious. For eg. Newton didn't think of it !

 

[aqn]

My favorite is "what happens when you run out of charge" I reply... same as any vehicle that runs out of fuel. There are some warnings and then it will just coast to a stop.

Actually, I think the LEAF behaves better than ICE cars when running low on fuel: it gives three levels of warning. In an ICE car, one would probably get only only one "low fuel" warning which would last from "low fuel" all the way down to "no fuel".

 

[highcountryrider]

"How long does it take to charge?"

About 20 seconds. Plug it in; go in the house; eat dinner; go to bed.

 

[JeffN]

I've got answers ready for a lot of the questions, many of which are just unclear on one concept or another, but what do you do when someone seriously asks a question that just comes out of the blue. Was this guy remembering Ben Franklin's experiments with kites and lightning as rendered in some cartoon?

I've owned a Volt for almost a year now but I'm on a business trip and rented a LEAF for 3 days.

Yesterday, before getting here, I read through parts of the 2011 LEAF owners manual that I had previously downloaded. I noticed it has warnings that you must not handle the charge plug when your hands are wet or when you are standing in water or snow (page CH-2). It says you also shouldn't charge the car when there is lightning nearby.... So I guess you can drive in the rain but not charge it.

 

[amtoro]

...It says you also shouldn't charge the car when there is lightning nearby.... So I guess you can drive in the rain but not charge it.

Those are the same warnings than come on the first page of any electrical appliance's manual. The lightning part is just common sense... like turning off the computer, cable box, etc when there is a bad thunderstorm in your town.

Funny thing is, some appliances are made to be near water and handle water, still, they warn you of it; Like the LEAF (an appliance that takes you places)

 

[amtoro]

One I have heard many times: "How often would you have to plug it it?"
I reply, "how often do you plug in your cell phone?"
Almost no one remembers well, so they answer their own question saying "when it is low" or "at night"

Also, the usual argument that electric cars are going to overload the entire country's electrical grid and cause an apocalyptic disaster.
When I explain that their clothes dryer uses twice as much power, they (sometimes) shut up.

 

[aqn]

I've got answers ready for a lot of the questions, many of which are just unclear on one concept or another, but what do you do when someone seriously asks a question that just comes out of the blue. Was this guy remembering Ben Franklin's experiments with kites and lightning as rendered in some cartoon?

Yesterday, before getting here, I read through parts of the 2011 LEAF owners manual that I had previously downloaded. I noticed it has warnings that you must not handle the charge plug when your hands are wet or when you are standing in water or snow (page CH-2). It says you also shouldn't charge the car when there is lightning nearby.... So I guess you can drive in the rain but not charge it.

Actually, to be quite correct, you can charge it when there is lightning. (Watch in vid, at 3:21, 3:59, 4:07 and 4:40.) You probably should not handle the charge gun when there is lightning though .

 

[aqn]

One I have heard many times: "How often would you have to plug it it?"
I reply, "how often do you plug in your cell phone?"

That's a good response!