Plug Me In

My Chevy Volt will roll 52,000 miles sometime in the next few days. I'm still in love with this great car, if indeed one can say that one is "in love" with a machine like a plug in electric vehicle (PEV).

Last Friday I was in Rochester Hills and parked at the charging station in The Villages at Rochester Hills. There are two spaces for electric vehicles to park but the cords on the charging station are really long and can easily reach a third space.

I parked, plugged in and went about my errands. When I returned to my Volt, there was a note in the door of my car. "Please plug me in. . ," it said.

So, for the first time, I got to figure out how to plug in a Nissan Leaf.

One of the things I love about driving an electric vehicle is the camaraderie that develops among owners. Those of us who drive PEVs have stories to tell of miles per gallon, miles per charge, kilowatts used, carbon avoided.

I look forward to a day in the very near future when three PEVs lined up in front of one charging station will be a rarity because we will all be using some form of alternative, non gasoline powered vehicles and "plug me in" will be what we do when we park our cars.

Chevy Volt Approaches 45,000 Mile Mark

Packing up after another football weekend

My Chevy Volt will soon be at the 45,000 mile mark. The Volt has taken us on lots of football weekend jaunts to East Lansing to follow the Spartan Marching Band and the MSU Spartans this fall.

I receive a monthly diagnostics email from Chevrolet that gives stats for the Volt. Here are some of the stats from an email received today.

Fuel economy: 58 mpg
Electric consumption: 33 kW-hr/100 miles

Electric Miles: 839
Gas Miles : 1729

Total Miles: 2,568
Percentage on Electric: 33%

Estimated Gallons of Fuel Saved: 67 gallons
Estimated CO2 Avoided: 1,306 lbs

I would guess that someone has walked up to us about three times in the last month just to ask how we like the car. I try not to let that conversation get too long, but I am really, really pleased with the performance of my Chevy Volt.

Today I realized that I haven't kept the "CO2 Avoided" figure in my head. That number in today's email -- 1306 pounds for the last month -- is amazing. That's over half a ton of junk NOT put into the air. Considering what the photos of Harbin, China, the city that has been in the news because of thick smog, look like, the realization that these PEVs (plug in electric vehicles) are taking some of the pollution out of the air is encouraging.

Needless to say, the Volt is a pretty incredible car.

98 Panel Solar Array

The 98 solar panels now installed on the restored barn at Graywood Farm will soon be able to charge my Chevy Volt and provide electricity for power needs on our farm. The Volt uses about 10 kilowatt hours of power from one charging session to travel from 35-40 miles.

The panel installation is almost complete. Next the electricians will go to work, hooking up the power system with inverters that will convert the DC power that comes from the panels into AC power that can be used for lighting and other uses.

It's kind of amazing to realize that the power of the sun is strong enough to power a car.

Copyright 2013
Wanda Hayes Eichler

Chevy Volt Sunset

I had to make a run into the Detroit suburbs today so that meant that on the return I was driving along the Lake Huron coastline right about sunset. I pulled off at one of the M-25 roadside parks along the shore just south of Forestville, Michigan.

The clouds were billowing gray and white and silver. A rainbow danced in and out, depending on the angle of the light. Lake Huron's waters were marbled in shades of blue and gray from the cloud reflections.

In all of that fantastic light I got the thought, "Gee, the Chevy Volt hasn't been on the blog for several months. Wonder what it would look like in the sunset hour?" So, dear readers, here's the result. My over 37,000-mile-2012-Made-in-Michigan Chevy Volt, glowing in the magic hour at sunset.

Now that's Pure Michigan!

Copyright 2013
Wanda Hayes Eichler