The BMW Group today announced at the Washington Auto Show the first results from a comprehensive study conducted in cooperation with the University of California (UC Davis) and consumers leasing MINI E electic vehicles as part of a year-long program to acquire real world use patterns. The MINI E program is the first large population field test of current generation electric vehicles and therefore sheds a realistic light on both the opportunities and challenges from this innovative new form of mobility.
The UC Davis study results of 57 drivers, combined with updates continually provided from the log books of all 450 users show the following:
– The range of about 100 miles is sufficient for most daily needs
– Charging at home provides enough energy for most daily driving
– Demand for additional charging is centered on the place of work, or where sufficient time is spent during the day (shopping centers, stadiums, etc.)
– Driving the MINI E is a delightful experience and there is no sacrifice of “real car†values
– Unmet demands focus on having enough space for four passengers and more cargo to stimulate even more use of an electric vehicle
“There’s been a lot of conjecture about electric vehicle user demands and being the first to the market with obtaining ‘real world use’ patterns, we’re now able to shed some accurate light on this subject,†said Rich Steinberg, Manager – EV Operations and Strategy for BMW of North America. “What they shared with us is that, for the most part, the MINI E suits their daily driving needs and that they really enjoy driving it. This makes us optimistic that electric vehicles have a role in the future of mobility in America by being a part of the overall vehicle mix.â€
More than 1,800 people and organizations applied to be part of this ground-breaking field trial of 450 MINI Es now on the road in the US. From that, 450 were selected based on specific criteria that included the amount and type of use in which they would engage, home suitability to installation of a fast charging system and desire to be engaged in a field trial that requires continual feedback.
MINI E drivers provide ongoing feedback that has already proven invaluable to the development work being done by the BMW Group’s Project i on what is called a Mega-City Vehicle – the company’s innovative program to develop a volume transportation solution to the demands of the world’s biggest cities in the 21st century. This vehicle is scheduled to be introduced just before the mid-point of this decade.
The self-selected group of 57 that agreed to participate in the UC Davis survey is part of a more extensive research project. Feedback from this program shows that the range of the MINI E enables drivers to use it for most daily driving needs. Reported range under normal circumstances varies between 70 – 100 miles with 45 percent reporting a typical range of 100 miles. MINI E drivers reported an average trip length of approximately 30 miles. Other studies have found that driver’s in the US average about 40 miles per day1. This makes the range of the MINI E suitable for most daily driving needs.
Many households in the study have replaced the primary vehicle of one driver with the MINI E. One-third of the participants have reported driving the MINI E even more than the household vehicle it replaced. The lack of a back seat and a usable trunk, rather than range, is most often the reason the MINI E is not chosen for a particular outing.
Drivers have also reported that driving the MINI E is fun. Most adapted quickly to the characteristics of the Brake Energy Regeneration function and like the feeling of control it gives them in being able to proactively extend the range of their MINI E by how they drive. Brake Energy Regeneration captures energy ordinarily lost on deceleration and coverts it into electrical energy to recharge the batteries. All drivers in the US study said they enjoy using one pedal to accelerate and decelerate. Many reported that once they became acustomed to the BER function, they enjoyed driving their conventional vehicles less.
The study found that keeping the MINI E charged did not pose a problem. Recharging in the US requires four – five hours and, while it wasn’t always necessary based on their driving needs, about half of the drivers in the study report recharging daily as a matter of routine. Additional recharging away from their home charging station by-and-large proved unnecessary.
This first field-trial has provided Project i with invaluable insight as it prepares for its second field trial with the BMW ActiveE. The electric drivetrain developed for the BMW ActiveE will be used in the BMW Group’s first Mega-City Vehicle. The newly developed and more compact lithium-ion battery pack in the BMW ActiveE vehicle features liquid heating and cooling in order to provide a more consistent and predicatable driving range. Smartphone apps will enable the user to remotely check the available range of the BMW ActiveE’s battery. The apps will also enable the driver to begin heating or cooling the interior of the BMW ActiveE and thus the battery while still connected to the grid. This will allow the battery to function at its optimal operating temperature without affecting the range of the car.
The field trial for the BMW ActiveE will begin in 2011. As announced at the North American International Auto Show earlier this month, lease extensions will be offered to a number of MINI E drivers who wish to continue their electric driving experience until the BMW ActiveE becomes available.
<p>I think we have a problem here with the headline and the text. Maybe I’m just being too picky as I’m a professional editor/proofreader, but I don’t see anything on the Countryman here.</p>
<p>Unless the countryman is going to be electric =P</p>
<p>Umm… I’m with holly. While it was nice to read about the MINI E, the title needs a bit of work.</p>
<p>So, they are mum on the data :)</p>
<p>MF are not known for their mad proofreading skillz.</p>
<p>The title issue a few of you may have seen this morning was a minor database issue left over from our server switch.</p>
<p>I think it’s hard to gauge enthusiasm for electric cars from this program, because everyone in it “won” the chance to be in it and is ok with paying the exorbitant lease, so I would think satisfaction with the cars would be a self fulfilling prophesy.</p>
<p>The usage stats are probably pretty helpful though.</p>
<p>This shows the needs of the owners were met. Plug ins down the road for portable pay charge station would increase distance and expand the MINI E range so it could be a weekend rally car( trips & travel) while being a city car. With the decrease in battery size, the back seat will start to exists.</p>
<p>I still can’t help but think these electric cars are a complete waste of time & money. They might “work” for some people, but they will never work for all people. Unless I can recharge the batteries in 5 minutes, these will never be able to compete with internal combustion engines, or hybrid technology. GM’s Volt seems to be the best practical solution, electric while it has a charge, then an on board generator so you can complete your journey without ever worrying about getting stuck.</p>
<p>@JMills, respectfully, this is MINI’s <em>first</em> e-car iteration. First. Only. Never before.</p>
<p>Electric-powered vehicles for the masses are coming, and they will be viewed as more than simply “suitable”, the performance figures will eventually astound.</p>
<p>But it takes experimentation, real-world testing, and time (for technology to catch up with the application).</p>
<p>No one’s twisting anyone’s arm here. MINI, and others, are simply exploring alternative ways to move us around. Hats off to BMW and the rest.</p>
<p>@JMills: There are a number of companies working on setting up battery swap stations and getting a standard formfactor agreed upon. This would fit the existing habits and infrastructure that most drivers have come to expect from the ICE.</p>
<p>And remember that electric cars don’t need to “work for ALL people”. Part of what is holding innovation back is this kind of all-or-nothing, work-at-all-scales thinking. If nanoscience has taught us one thing, it is that a solution at one scale may not be optimal at a very different scale. So if electric cars are best suited to commuting within urban centres (which they are) then that is a great motoring option to have for those that do this sort of driving the bulk of the time. As infrastrcture is expanded between urban centres the e-car can be scaled up accordingly to the regional scale, but again that will not meet all privat vehicle transportation needs – and that is fine. A little more diversity in our automotive technology is long overdue.</p>
<p>It doesn’t take nano-science to teach us that one solution needs to meet all transportation requirements is just hog-wash. Right now, we have tons of different vehicles in the transportation mix. Because not one of them fits the needs of all, we have quite the mosiac. electric cars are no different.</p>
<p>Current electric car technology could meet 90%+ of what I need from a car, for others the number would be less. For my Mom it would be close to 99.9%.</p>
<p>It’s all good.</p>
<p>Matt</p>
<p>100 miles range in SoCal would not do it for me. In our SCMM club, one of the members has a MINI-E and can’t take it to very many events because they are usually more than 50 miles away for him. Put a tow ball on it and make a small trailer with a constant speed diesel engine/generator to charge as you drive.</p>
<p>The aformentioned SCMM member with the MINI-E would also love to take his car to Bonneville if only MINI could see their way clear to disable the 95 MPH governor, which is limited by electric engine RPM, correct? I think running at Bonneville could be a nice marketingtool for MINI USA.</p>
<p>IT takes about 20 hp to move a Mini at 75 MPH. that’s over 15kW! That’s a big generator.</p>
<p>Matt</p>