... arrived home with the BMW i3-REx:
Left 5:53 PM (EDT), Arrived: 5:10 AM (CDT, add one hour)
- 9:31 - driving duration
462 miles - distance
4.6 mi/kWh
49.8 mph - speed
Starting SOC: 100%, Ending 72%
Fuelings
- $5.10 - 1.75 gal
$4.35 - 1.50 gal
$3.29 - 1.45 gal
$3.65 - 1.48 gal
$3.89 - 1.53 gal
$3.70 - 1.55 gal
$3.88 - 1.58 gal
10.84 gal - 462 miles -> 42.6 MPG
@65 mph - 1.48 gal - 60 miles -> 40.5 MPG, Knoxville to Cleveland TN
@55 mph - 1.584 gal - 70.3 miles -> 44.5 MPG, Bridgeport TN to Huntsville AL
dynamic cruise control tripped out three times, two driving into sunset and one at ~10 PM
"Check Engine" light self-cleared with 10 miles
Put car on free, public charger while eating supper, added ~7% SOC
Commercial charger could not be made to work ... found credit card charged for no electrons (Green Mountain)
Still learning the car and systems. So far, no surprises. Taking a nap before trying Level 1 charging at home. Eventually, electrican for better home charger. Also test the Whole Foods and other chargers.
. . .
Reading the owners manual and just tested the automatic, parallel parking (car perfect, driver thought it was done ... car corrected driver.) Also mastering key-fob.
. . .
I've had our BMW i3-REx for a little over 24 hours and used these chargers:
EVgo (Green Mountain Power) - charging station did nothing and even failed to read two credit cards. Calling the 1(877)494-3833 support and giving credit card information failed to charge … but there is a $10.67 VISA charge. Apparently they are good about charging credit cards but not the car.
Public EV stations at Hilton - my first, successful charge, no fee while eating supper in Biltmore.
Huntsville Whole Foods - no charge, reported ~4kWh after over an hour
Level 1 charging at home - find the first outlet is not properly grounded. However, the second outlet works fine. Using the middle, 10A, charge rate, for now. Will investigate the dryer outlet. All will be thermally checked to make sure the new load is not causing other issues like setting the house on fire.
I have the car and know where the BMW dealer is. I'll figure out the 'last mile' problem and drop the car off for a charger checkout.
At the Whole Foods charger, I just needed a few things, ~10 minutes which is not long enough to get a good charge. Since my wife told me I needed a hair cut, I asked the clerk and she had no idea. So I had a nice walk around the area and found a salon that had an opening. I began to realize a free public charger now defines my 'neighborhood.' Over time, I will learn what services are in walking distance. I'll also investigate using my inline skates to expand the area.
. . .
This article led to:
- About a month into ownership last year, I authored two posts dedicated to my initial likes and dislikes.
Under "likes" I would add two strangers have admired the car: (1) a gas station attendant Friday afternoon, and (2) a man in a car stopped aside me at a light. Contrast that to what happens when driving a Prius. So I've taken an open attitude to showing off the car. I'm not selling it but letting folks know there is an alternative.
The "dislikes" are amusing as some I found but others won't surprise me so much:
- under 100 miles EV - since it was under 100 miles, he bought the REx version only to discover, it is very handy. I bought the car because of the range extender which is 'right sized' for cross-country drives. It exactly matches standard day driving at 75 mph. At 70 mph, perfectly fine without eventually draining the traction battery and I'm happy with cruising at 65 mph, the usual posted speed limit which fully preserves the battery SOC.
No SOC - fixed as I drove with a three digit, SOC, 99.9%
No Battery Temperature - still a problem but driven like an 11 year Prius owner, not critical for my purposes.
Glide - not a problem for me because the cruise control is great! I don't operate use the accelerator except to get over 20 mph when the cruise control takes over. But then that is how I drive our Prius too.
glare - I drove west into the sunset. I never noticed it.
no AM radio - heck I'm a podcast guy as AM/FM and satellite have been bought and sold to folks with an 'agenda' and lack of imagination and character. I prefer to choose my content on the Internet.
thin tires - really a function of roads. I'm more concerned about the replacement cost. Also there are both 19" and 20" versions and the front and rear tires are different. I will be looking at alternatives and a full-size spare. I don't like one flat trashing the tire and pressure sensor with 'goop.'
key fob functions - it is what it is and don't choose are car because of the fob … heck I'm Ok with a physical key. However, I do like holding the unlock will roll down the windows.
regen braking - finally that d*mn creep I've been pissed off at Toyota for is GONE! It does regenerate to a complete stop and is non-linear. I plan to measure it with an accelerometer so I can better predict where the car will stop.
locking connector - when I pulled up to the free charger, there was a guy eating ribs at a bench. He mentioned a 'joke' of disconnecting the charging cable. At the time, I did not realize locking the car would lock the connector but when I got back from supper, he was gone and the car still charging. I like the lock even if it means not being 'friends'.
Regen stops on fast turns - hummm, good to know. I've not experience it but on my first cross-country drive, I'm trying to reach home, not shake-off a tailgater. But I drive on cruise control so I'm not likely to experience this.
software bugs - at work I have to use a Windows laptop management by another government contractor.
charging - I had always planned to use a home L1 while investigating options.
As for the technical details about the car, I found a link to the BMW technical information service. For $250 I can get 30 days access and start downloading the service manuals. So far, sounds like regular integration and test.
. . .
My first test drive and take it home:
- 462 miles (740 km)
- 710 ft (216m)
2786 ft (849m)
680 ft (207m)
trip speed of 50 mph (80kph) (door-to-door)
- included an hour supper break
multiple, 1.5 gallon refills every hour (also wife's bladder range)
42.4 MPG (Plus grade, 89 octane)
So last night, I parked with ~42% on the battery and range remaining just under 40 miles. So I used the 110VAC wall outlet cable and a 25ft, 15A cable ($40) to plug into the utility room outlet. I lost two hours because I didn't notice the power fault, the ground and neutral problem, of that outlet.
I re-ran the extension cable into the back, kitchen outlet leaving the door cracked and got a solid 12 hours, 92% SOC and range of 82 miles. Now this reading will soon decay because when charging a battery stops, the battery voltage soon decays to a steady state value, true value. Given the EPA lists the battery range as 72 miles, '90% isn't good enough, it is PERFECT!' (former GE manager Dick Hicks when a software manager tried to report progress,'90%, next week 92%, 93%, 94%, setback 92%').
Knowing my weekly driving habits, I expect to have no problem with the reduced rate (1 kwHr). One advantage is charging efficiency since the electrical losses house-to-car vary by the square of the current. A faster charge rate is less efficient and tends to induce more heat. For the summer and fall, no problem, giving more time to design a better home charging system.
Our kitchen is closest to our car parking area and has a 40A circuit breaker protected oven and electric range. So I'll install a junction box with a current detector on the range/oven side that operates a solid-state, relay on the 220VAC lines. However, I'll also wire a 110 VAC plug for Level 1 when cooking. The operational scenario:
- stove and oven OFF - Level 2 charging available to an installed, external box, and Level 1 outlet
stove or oven ON - Level 2 charging turned off but Level 1 continues to work, car set to reduced mode
default charging when home - Level 1 at 1kWhr mode. In exceptional cases such as planning more errands around town, turn off the stove and oven and use the Level 2 charger
So far, I have only one suggested enhancement. When the car is off and the windows are down, the rain sensor should trigger rolling up the windows. Also hitting and holding "Lock" on the key fob should roll up the windows. This way in Alabama if no shade around to park, we can keep the interior dry while letting the solar heat out.
. . .
The data suggests there is an unexpected drag, likely rolling, with this particular car. The service history shows the passenger side front tire was replaced and the driver side, inner tread, is down to the wear bars. Before taking it to BMW, I'll buy a lifetime alignment contract from Firestone and have the measure everything. Then I'll head over to BMW to see what sort of pro-rated tire replacement I might get. I'll also have the Firestone alignment metrics.
I could find no evidence of an accident repair in the vehicle history but ...
The adventure continues ... still grinning.
Bob Wilson