Locked-Down Chargers at Work

 

When I started working at a new job in 2016, I noticed the site was equipped with several level-2 charging stations that were made by ChargePoint.  So, I decided to take a closer look one day and discovered that the chargers were available only to employees of the main tenant at the site.  (My tiny company was not that tenant.)  It seems that discounted charging was one of the perks at that place.  After a year, the main tenant moved to a new site where they consolidated multiple office buildings into one, leaving behind the dedicated chargers.  After the tenant was gone, I would visit the chargers periodically to see if they had become open to the public (they hadn’t).

A level-2 EV charger like the ones by my office.

By this time, I was not the only plug-in car at my office, and I could see other EVs in the surrounding parking lots.  We could all benefit from these chargers being made available to everyone, so I started asking questions.  First, I reached out to ChargePoint to find out how to get these chargers made accessible to the public.  They pointed me to the company who had them locked down.  Next, I convinced our own office manager to reach out to the former tenant about making the chargers public.  They responded that the chargers were never their responsibility and to reach out to the property manager for the office buildings.  So, I directed our office manager to reach out to our property manager, who was very unresponsive.

I pestered our office manager to continue asking about the chargers and we finally were able to get in touch with someone who would talk with us about it.  The property manager agreed to unlock the chargers and make them publicly available.  After a few months, the chargers were on the ChargePoint network and available to everyone.  Of course, we were now paying full price for electricity to charge, but we had access.  By the time the chargers came online, there were at least eight plug-in cars from our office that often made use of the level-2 chargers.  I used them a handful of times when I would forget about a late-afternoon commitment and my charge level wasn’t quite enough to make it (comfortably).  It was worth the effort to bring this equipment back online.

Scheduled Service

 With a gasoline (or diesel) engine in your car, you need to plan for a number of service events.  The oil and filter need to be changed every 5,000 to 10,000 miles.  The transmission fluid and engine coolant need replacement every 30,000 to 40,000 miles.  In California, a smog check is needed every other year.  There are air filters and fuel filters that need replacement every two to four years.  The tune-up happens less frequently today than it did 40 years ago but hasn’t been eliminated.  There are spark plug cables, belts, and coolant hoses that wear out over time.  These service items are specific to internal combustion engines.

Electric vehicles share a number of service requirements with gasoline powered cars.  Tires wear out.  Wiper blades need replacement.  Brakes wear down (albeit, much more slowly).  Power steering and brake fluids need to be maintained.  Bulbs burn out and need replacing.  The cabin air filter needs replacing.  All of these maintenance items happen every 18 months to three years.

The service announcement in my car's app

There is one service item that is specific to electric vehicles: changing the coolant for the main drive battery (except for Nissan’s Leaf).  This has a similar service interval to the other common service items above.  The net result is that an electric vehicle needs servicing about every two years.  Compare that to the gasoline engine car that needs to be serviced at least twice a year.  It’s easier to remember to bring your car in for service twice a year.  Remembering to get service every other year is more of a challenge.  I relied on my smartphone to remind me for the Mitsubishi i-MiEV.  My BMW i3 keeps track of the passage of time (and miles) and informs me when the next service appointment is due.  Oddly, because the service is so infrequent, it almost seems more inconvenient than expecting two service appointments each year.  Of course, it’s not – it’s just more of a surprise.  I don’t miss worrying about when to plan for my next oil change.

Driving to Moss Landing by the Coast

When the temperatures in San Jose exceed 92F degrees, the weather is too uncomfortable to do much of anything. This is also the time that many (many) folks head to Santa Cruz, choking its streets and parking, not to mention the highways leading there. So, to escape the heat, I looked for a spot away from the crowds that would be easy to get to and well within the range of the BMW i3 (round-trip). Seaside was just about at the limit of my round-trip range and I’d have to drive over a 1000’ peak along the way, so I preferred someplace a little closer to ensure plenty of range for the round-trip. I settled on Moss Landing, which was only 53 miles away.

My drive to Moss Landing

Moss Landing turned out to be a great spot to visit. It attracted many fewer people than the beach towns (in part because there is very little business there). So, parking and beach access are both fairly easy. The weather was delightfully cool (around 71F degrees). It felt refreshing to escape both the heat and the crowds and take in the beautiful coastal scenery.

As for the car, I learned a few things about EV efficiency. If you drive in warm weather, the batteries are more energy efficient. If you drive at lower speeds along the backroads, the motor is more efficient. And while the drive up to the peak used more power than flat lands, the car was still doing pretty well during the climb. Plus, pulling away from the turns is a kick in an EV with ample torque. I forgot that on the trip down the mountain, not only would I not be using much electricity, but I’d be generating electricity too. By the time I returned home, the entire round trip used only about 2/3 of the battery’s capacity, including some use of the A/C. (On one trip in particular, the range remaining plus the distance traveled added to more than 170 miles.) I’m planning on returning there soon.

Honey, Will You Fill up the Car?

Sometimes, the last one in a couple to go to bed ends up filling up the car. (That would be me.) With the gas-powered car, that meant getting suitably clothed and shod, driving to the gas station, standing outside while the gas pumps into the tank, cleaning the windshield, possibly checking the oil, paying, and driving home, parking, and returning to prior state of clothing. All told, it was probably a 20 to 25 minute ritual from start to finish, including two wardrobe adjustments. With my EV, if I needed to fill up away from home, it would take the better part of an hour for a fast-charge. 

Living in a house with a driveway (and a garage), I am able to install an EV charger at my home. This is a tremendous convenience. Now, filling up the car involves putting on anything suitable for walking outside, plugging in the car, and walking back inside. I usually plug in at night so the car can charge while I’m sleeping. By morning, the car is waiting in the driveway fully charged and ready to go. Usually, the car reaches a full charge in about three to five hours, so charging at night is the most convenient for me.

My home Clipper Creek charger

While I no longer need to check the oil level, there are still two car maintenance tasks that I used to do at the gas station that are slightly less convenient at home. The first is cleaning the windows. Over the years, I have become adept at cleaning the windows using the gas station squeegee. Now I have to use a bottle of Windex and a cleaning rag – and to remember to do so. The squeegee does a slightly better job with less effort. The second is pumping up the tires. Luckily, I have been driving EVs with narrow tires that are fairly easy to pump up using a bicycle tire pump. I can’t imagine trying to pump up all four of the tires on a pickup truck using the bicycle pump. Luckily, this is not a task I need to do with every “fill-up”.

The Tesla plug adapter and my longest drive

When I bought the 2017 BMW i3, I found myself visiting Napa Valley (about 100 miles away) every other month. I had friends that would join me on occasion which made the trip more fun. I discovered there were DC-fast chargers installed in three locations in the valley along my route and I could recharge for my trip home in about 40 minutes. I also found level-2 chargers at several of the wineries in the area, and sometimes I would add one of those wineries to my itinerary just to take advantage of the charging, getting my car juiced while I got juiced.

One day I was shopping on Amazon and found an adapter that allows me to charge the BMW i3 using a Tesla destination charger. I knew this would open up access to more of the wineries with only Tesla chargers, as well as some hotels. The price wasn’t too steep, and I could store the adapter in the i3’s “frunklet” (a tiny front trunk area that holds the level-1 charger and tire repair kit). Shortly after I received the adapter, I headed to a local Tesla destination charger and plugged in my car. It worked. Now I have a plan-B for when I’m traveling. This would soon come in very handy.

On one of my next trips to Napa Valley, I decided to visit one of the few Zinfandel producers remaining in Napa. (Most wineries converted to Cabernet Sauvignon because of its success there.) Storybook Mountain Vineyards lies at the northern end of the valley, which is furthest from my home to the South. I plotted the route in Google Maps and the distance was 126 miles. Driving conservatively, I knew I could make it there without charging, but I couldn’t go much further without plugging in. Storybook Mountain Vineyards was listed as a winery with an EV charger, so I could charge there before heading back. (My tasting appointment didn’t allow me enough time to charge en-route.) When I arrived at the winery (with 14 miles remaining), I noticed the EV charger was a Tesla destination charger. I nervously connected the car and adapter to the charger and the car started charging. I relaxed and enjoyed my wine tasting experience and ate a sandwich afterward. The 90+ minutes boosted my charge enough to drive almost 50 miles, so I had plenty of electricity to complete my winery visits before charging up at the DC-fast charger on my way home.

One-pedal-drive and the brake lights

When driving any car, as you apply the brakes using the brake pedal, a switch connected to the pedal is “closed” and the brake lights are turned on. The point of this is to signal the driver directly behind you that you are slowing down. This signals the following driver to also slow, or change course, to avoid a collision. (I once had to repair the switch in my brake pedal and learned a little about this.) Similarly, when stopped, keeping your foot on the brake makes it clear to other drivers that you are stopped on the road so they can prepare to stop.

After driving my new BMW i3 for a while and adapting to using the one-pedal driving technique, it occurred to me that I didn’t know what was happening with the brake lights when I would slow down or stop (using the regenerative brakes). At first, I tried watching other i3’s around me to see that their brake lights came on (and they did), but I couldn’t tell whether these drivers were using the brake pedal or just the regenerative braking from the motor. I tried applying the brake pedal while coming to a stop (to ensure the brake lights lit), but that made my stops jerky and uncomfortable.

Finally, I figured out a way to learn more about how the brake lights were activated. The Ford F-150 sometimes comes with a large, “chrome” grill. When one would pull up behind me as I approached a red light, I was able to check my reflection in the grill to determine when my brake lights would be on. I learned that once the regenerative brakes are engaged roughly 40% or more, the brake lights come on. They stay on until the car comes to a stop (because the “brakes” are no longer engaged). So, if I slow gradually, the brake lights stay off. If I brake abruptly, like approaching a traffic signal, the brake lights stay lit until the car stops. For many safety reasons, I have learned you should keep your foot on the brake pedal while stopped at a traffic signal. This prevents the car from rolling and signals the cars behind you that you are not moving.

Learning to drive “one-peddle driving”

Anyone who has learned to drive a stick-shift car will tell you it takes a little while to train your feet to manage the clutch work, braking, and accelerating when you first start. With an automatic transmission, there is no learning curve like this. With an EV, there is just one speed (gear) so there is no need to shift. In the Mitsubishi i-MiEV, the (software) engineers managed to emulate the behavior of a gasoline engine coupled with an automatic transmission. Namely, when your foot is off the gas and the brake, the car will propel itself at very low speed. This is especially useful when backing into a driveway – just start moving, take your foot off the pedal, and let the car “coast” into position. The BMW i3 changed all that.

When my brand new 2017 BWM i3 first arrived, I took it out for a spin around the block. The first thing I noticed was that taking your foot off the pedal caused the car to come to a stop. This makes sense because regenerative braking is slowing the car, and bringing the car to a stop maximizes the energy generated. It didn’t take me long to adapt to driving forward like this. I quickly learned how far back from a stop sign to remove my foot and let the car come to a stop on its own (except downhill). The trick was trying to back up. All my (driving) life I had learned to back up by providing a pulse of motion, then allowing the car to coast backward until I was ready to stop, when I’d press the brakes. That’s not how it works with one-pedal driving. In order to coast in a car that employs one-pedal driving, you need to train your foot to learn the pedal position of the neutral spot, where neither acceleration nor braking occur. (This is similar to learning the spot in the clutch travel where the transmission engages.) Before I learned where this spot was, I would give the car a nudge to start moving, then remove my foot from the pedal and the car would stop right away. This was confusing and frustrating. (I have a 60-foot driveway and it took about five tries to back up all the way to my garage.) Once I learned the neutral spot in the gas pedal, I was able to nudge the car into motion, adjust my pedal to the neutral position, and allow the car to coast into position. Then I simply remove my foot from the pedal to stop. This technique has now become second nature to me. So, which style of driving do I prefer? With a gasoline engine, I have always preferred a manual transmission with a clutch. You have much more control of the speed when driving through the hills. Between the Mitsubishi and the BMW, I find I much prefer the i3’s one-pedal driving to the i-MiEV’s. You actually have more precise control over when the energy is applied to or removed from the drive wheels, giving more precise control in the hills. And because the car has rear-wheel drive, using the motor this way for braking does not rob traction from the front wheels the way that the brakes do. I am hopeful that all of my cars in the future will also provide an option to use one-pedal driving. On top of the driving dynamics, it reduces brake pad wear dramatically (which also reduces the metal particle emissions during braking).