edatoakrun said:
Malcom,
Thanks for the report. Do I understand correctly, that you got around 110 miles on just the initial full charge, at 50-55 mph, mostly Freeway? I'm calculating alternatives for my 230 mile drive? home from Petaluma.
Thanks, Ed
Randy and I are glad we could be of pioneering assistance to the LEAF family. This is certainly a horse like no other.
So, Ed, yes, we basically got 110 mile of range out of the brand spankin' new battery. For me it was all freeway except about 5 miles (1 at Fontana, 3 or so at Quality, and 1 at home). The range did float up above 110 at the early start of the trip which surprised me a bit. Randy and I tracked very closely with Randy following me for the first half to Quality Nissan in Temecula. He had 5 mi more range than I when we arrived at Quality (the almost exact half way point on our trip) which we attribute to him hiding in my shadow appx 2-3 car lengths behind. We swapped positions leaving Quality and when we split at I-56 he had only 2 miles more range. Like I indicated, we tried the go as slow as we could and it felt very uncomfortable but we did it anyway. Problem was, with so much freeway merging we were the ones impeding things (CVC violation for sure). But still, we only went below 51 when someone in front of us was slower (truck). I pressed it up to the double nickel because it wasn't safe going so slow. Maybe at midnight but not at 1430 when we left Fontana Nissan. Even at 55... well, you know... this is Southern California after all. There were a few times going up the grade headed south on I-15 after leaving Temecula that we were able to trail a big 'ole truck. We loved finding them and trailing them at their slow speeds Randy once remarked, "You can't be blaming us for this one" making reference to those following behind us. We took what we could get not knowing what to expect. Walking was not high on our desire list for the dark, and getting colder, 51 deg F (10.6 deg C) ride home. Heck, I even brought a scarf but fortunately didn't need it. I did wear my spanking new white leather driving gloves (opened the package as I got in the car to leave Fontana).
For a 230 mile drive, you will most likely need to:
1. Drive in eco mode but be careful not to when you need to make quick moves... like when near merging freeways where you need to flow with traffic for safety or at street intersections where you turn and need to change lanes and need some quick acceleration.
2. Leave the climate control off (though it did not appear to load things too much... still, Randy and I left it off)
3. Check ahead with dealers and friends on your route to coordinate charging.
4. Remember, at 240v, you only get 12 mi per hour of charge... that's all. In 1.5 hrs all I got was an 18 mi boost (but of course we did get a very emotionally valuable, 18 mi boost - Thanks again to Mark at Quality Nissan).
My initial plan was with my good friend Leonard in Temecula. He routed a 120v cord out of his garage for me. I was planning on pulling in there for a 6 hr stint at 120v but could have spent the night. Might be a good idea for you to consider. 230 mi. hmmm... now that's a stretch. My guess is you will need two 1.5 hr stints at 240v somewhere and maybe an overnight at someones house at 120v at the half way point (unless you know someone with a 240v EVSE). Randy and I had it easy. You have the challenge. Maybe paying a freight hauler is a better deal since you trip is so long. If you do pull it off yourself my hat is off to you for being so ballsy. While I know this is not a contest of seeing who has the better story, if you drive the whole distance your story will have certainly topped ours.
One more comment. The noise maker for the pedestrians and the blind (VSP). A non issue. Almost to the point that it's too quiet to be of value for the average pedestrian. For the visually impared and blind folks who have learned to use their ears better than those of us who can easily see, it may work fine. Still, very quiet. It has two tones. One a high pitch and one a low, electric motor sound. Actually sounds fine. You will find you will just leave it alone. Turn on the free (for a time) XM radio and it's like driving your old horse 'cept I need to beef up the bass in this baby. I wanna Rock ! The back up tone is much louder but I'm guessing not loud enough to wake the next door neighbors. We'll see.
Malcolm
