My introduction to EVs began back in the Summer of 2008 when
I was lucky enough to be at an event with the AC Propulsion eBox, I even got a
chance to drive it, though not very far or fast it was enough for me to realize
EVs were something special. As a car guy
performance is key, after hours of rides in the eBox and a brief stint of
driving it myself I wanted one, simple.
I got my chance the following year when
the MiniE was offered as a field trial by BMW.
When the time came for me to grab one I did not hesitate. I remember the day I picked it up at the
dealer, there it was, just sitting there waiting to be driven. It was a good looking package, subtle yellow
plug graphics, a badge number and a slight hood bulge to clear the electronics
underneath, the interior had attractive yellow highlights throughout. I could not wait to turn it on and drive
it. I quickly signed the papers, grabbed
the key, got in and started to roll away.
I was really careful at first, just eased out onto the street, after
about 100 feet I floored it….whoa!!!!!!
200+HP and 160+ foot pounds of torque went to the front wheels and I was
hanging on….absolutely an amazing silent rush of power, there was no turning
back, EVs would now be in my future. BMW
did this one right, the aggressive regen and one pedal driving took about 30
seconds to adjust to and then it became instinct. Imagine being in 1st gear all day
silently and no vibration, that’s what it’s like.
As much fun as the MiniE was it had its
faults. The MiniE was truly a
conversion, there was no back seat because that was where the 35 kWh battery sat. Pop the hood and there was a golden box with
wires here and there, we were warned not to take it through puddles or car
washes….so what, this EV was still a blast to drive. I loved surprising supposedly quick cars at
the light, sure they could take me past 50 but under that I had the distinct
advantage of instant power, no need to downshift and silent take off that confused
minds. Nothing felt cooler than stomping
the juice pedal at 30mph, breaking the front tires loose and pulling away from
the guy behind me in a rush of electrons.
The MiniE was just raw, meaning it rode firmly, the heater
was just adequate and the AC was so-so, not a lot of storage and this was not a
car for long trips, even if you could find charging stations, it was a bit
tiring to drive long ways.
Best MiniE moment: I went to the dealer to get my plates
and as I got out this guy ran up to me and said "Is that what I think it
is, you actually got one?" He was talking on the cell and continued telling
me he and his friends have been talking all about this car and never saw one,
then he got back on the phone and said "Man you will never guess what I'm
standing next to".
Next up was the BMW ActiveE.
This was the 2nd phase of BMWs EV test program and it was a
converted 1 series. It took me just one
brief test drive to realize this car was far more civilized than the MiniE,
this one would drive on the highways comfortably. The ActiveE was down on HP (170) but up on
torque (184) and it was also up on weight, a whopping 4,000 pounds, but it was
rear wheel drive which made it more sporty.
Fortunately the BMW engineers spent more time tweaking this ride and it
drove extremely well for its heft, it glided along the roads effortlessly and
you could push it hard in turns. It felt
like it was carved from a solid piece of metal as it had frame reinforcements
throughout. This added to the
capabilities of the chassis, it took whatever you could give it.
With that said it was not as fast as the
MiniE but much more refined and it handled like a BMW. The EV also stood out, it had circuit
graphics all over it which I really liked.
To help clear the battery up front there was an aggressive hood bulge
which many 1M drivers asked how I got.
The interior was a light grey leather with blue highlights, very
tasteful. It also had BMWs iDrive system
for gadget fun.
Since the ActiveE was more of a of a drivers EV I took lots
of long trips in the ActiveE, having a standard J1772 did not hurt, and its
refinement meant I was not fatigued after a long trip. I often did 80 miles or more and sometimes I
did that daily for months….in the MiniE I probably would not have been as
excited to do that. In fact, in the two
years I had the ActiveE I did over 30,000 miles, 80% of that in just over a
year until my long commute changed, that is a lot of EV driving and it saved me
$1,000s in gasoline costs. The ActiveE actually
became the main car for me and my family…my red sports car sat in the garage.
Those graphics on the car made it a real stand-out,
unmistakable that this was a special BMW.
Often I’d be approached or even followed, police too, so they could get
a close look at it. Folks in my town
knew me by my car, I showed it wherever I could, it was an amazing experience
all around. Unfortunately the party has
to end and the ActiveE will be going back.
Best ActiveE moment: driving to a Cars and
Croissants, NJ exotic car meet, for the first time with my ActiveE and having 8
to 10 people running behind me before I even got a chance to park and talk to
me about the car.
The ActiveE was a great car but there was something even
better, worlds ahead, just around the corner, the BMW i3.
Admittedly when I first laid eyes on the i3 I was like…oh no
way, how could they make it look like that, it does not scream BMW but econo-hatch. Well over the weeks of seeing pictures and
getting an up close and personal look at the car I began to like it more. There are a lot of details, you just need to
find them. My last concern were those
tires, talk about retro, like 1907 retro, those were some skinny tires, how in
the world can this EV even ride on those.
I soon got a chance to find out and on a racetrack. Yes a racetrack, BMW asked me if I’d be
interested in riding around in the i3 on a racetrack with a professional
race car driver…..ummmm let me think about that…OK!!
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I won’t go into details of that racetrack
day, you can read all about it on my blog www.myactivee.blogspot.com but I
will say I was extremely impressed, as was the pro driver, Erin Crocker.
I can tell you the BMW i3 is indeed worlds ahead of the
ActiveE and makes the MiniE feel like a soap box. It is fast, it has the same power as the
ActiveE but is over 1,000 pounds less in weight. Other than being flung around in the i3 for
hours at its limit I also got to drive it.
As soon as I pressed the accelerator I could tell this was a finely
tuned EV, it just felt right. The power
is linear, the regen steps in seamlessly, the steering is connected to you and
those brakes are incredible. The i3
rides extremely well and yes, even with those skinny tires, it handles like it’s
on rails. The interior is roomier than
you would expect and the carbon fiber details are really cool.
Best i3 moment: track day….all of it
The i3 is packed with tech, from it’s cool features to the
carbon fiber shell to the modern interior to its ability to hold the track. I was seriously impressed. Just one thing was missing, no hood bulge.
The EV had evolved into a seriously interesting daily
performance driver in less than 5 years. My Solar Orange BMW i3 REx will hopefully blend into this background very soon.
