Driving Experience

So what is it like to drive an electric car? It’s definitely different. For some people, it will be intolerable. But not everyone values their cars in the same way. There’s not a lot to enjoy about driving when it comes to a congested city and this is where the electric city cars really come into their own.

If you’ve seen one on the roads then it’s more likely that you have seen a quadracycle as opposed to a car. Forgive me if I sometimes euphemise car for vehicle. In previous years this would have been like calling a golf cart a car. This is not the case any more. Here, we’ll explore the driving experience of the REVAi.

For the last three or four years, competitive quadracycles have been running off lead-acid batteries. They’ve proved cheap enough to keep the vehicles well under the €20,000 mark. Improvements in range or speed, at least in the case of the REVAi, actually come down to advanced power management by two onboard computers.

Drivers of the previous REVA models (the DC then the AC) were used to getting variable ranges. This was down largely to inefficient driving. Now there’s a small lightening-bolt on the dashboard of the REVAi. It turns red when the car is being driven in a way that reduces the range and can lead to some interesting driving habits.

The driver has the choice to ignore this. The onboard computers don’t lock you in and this keeps the car versatile. You can drive aggressively and there’s a ‘boost’ setting that allows for more power. A power managed electric motor doesn’t seem to offer the same explosive power as we’re used to. But then again, flooring it off the lights on boost will generally match the initial acceleration of a car. It might even surpass it.

Something very weird happens next. While everyone is busy changing gear, you’ll notice a more versatile take-up. The speedometer’s needle climbs to jover 20kmph with an unfamiliar fluidity. The acceleration levels off soon enough and trying to climb into the upper echelons of 50-70kmph is a different story. On slight declines, the rate of acceleration can be pleasantly surprising but there’s a sense of futility that comes with aggressively pushing the car into this territory, especially on a hill. What’s more, drive this way and you’ll notice your SOC (state of charge; the fuel gauge) dropping at a worrying rate. The range will effectively be cut in half and it’s a form of experimentation that’s best left to the end of the driving day.

So the REVAi is capable of some aggression. But to be honest, you find yourself not bothering most of the time and this is not just down to the vehicle’s limitations. We all know that a determination to go at 60-100kmph pits us against the vast majority of a city’s speed limits. But more importantly, in the face of lights and traffic, we’re usually just unable to reach such speeds.

Getting the stated range out of a REVAi doesn’t depend on keeping this red light off at all costs. I’ve generally found that the REVAi has a range of about 60km. It seems that you can afford for it to be on sometimes, but then you probably have to be more mindful of getting the lightening bolt to turn green. This is its regenerative braking (popularised by hybrid cars). When you take your foot off the accelerator, the battery can reclaim some of the momentum. ‘Green lighting’ can apparently charge 20% of the battery but this takes some atypical use of the accelerator and the brake. Whether or not this is part of the 75km range is unclear.

There are some strategies to moving off efficiently. One is to stop with a small gap between you and the next car. You lightly press on the accelerator a slightly before the car directly in front starts moving. Time it right and you’ll be in a good position by the time your section of traffic is in motion. You’ll notice better and more versatile acceleration than the cars around you.

Likewise, coming into a traffic light takes a bit of getting used to. When we learn to drive, we’re told not to rush up to the lights. Regen braking takes this to a new level. Eventually, you get used to controlling your deceleration almost perfectly and it leaves you with an unusual sensitivity for balance in any car.

Even if you do loose a degree of freedom on the road, you gain a degree of liberation from the traffic. Letting the speed build efficiently stops you dashing and there’s a particular smugness about pulling up beside the car that rushed into was ultimately just going to be a red light.

You’d hardly be blamed for thinking there are places in Dublin where the traffic lights are deliberately unsynchronised. There is nothing more frustrating than charging towards the green light only to have to brake heavily. Often enough, this is how we let the traffic really get to us and it can become a fairly toxic mix - hazardous, uneconomical, enraging and, sometimes, blatantly illegal.

Driving a REVAi efficiently often means being far more relaxed on urban roads. If the ability to climb immediately from 60 to 120kmph is an absolute must, then such a driver would probably find the REVAi’s limitations intolerable. But not everyone feels this way, especially in the context of a city.

There are points where a quadracycle’s limitations do become abundantly clear. Driving on an open dual-carriageway means keeping in the slow lane. Once again, if it’s the end of the day and the SOC shows there’s plenty left, then you can drive aggressively and you’ll keep up for the most part.

But there are places, such as 80kmph zones, where you’ll probably only reach this if there’s a slight decline. It’s quite remarkable how such a decline can assist the acceleration. But by the same token, inclines weigh significantly on the power.

Bigger hills will test your ability to keep above 40kmph with no red light showing. Unless it’s a very significant hill (or you’re on the last 10% of your charge), it seems that it’s OK to edge in-and-out of the red light to sustain your speed. But there may well be times where you’ll feel you have to lay back on the accelerator to keep the range in tact.

EV dealers in London, in response to criticisms over speed, liked to point out that you rarely get past walking speed in the city. This is a relic of the older quadracycles like the DC and AC REVAs. It undersells the capabilities of the REVAi which has shown a marked improvement. Lithium-Ion conversion apparently entails a further performance boost.

It’s probably more appropriate to consider this a medium as opposed to a low speed vehicle and it’s tempting to see what the car can do on an open stretch of open road. There is a point, probably over 65kmph, when a quadracycle starts to stop feeling car-like in a very bad way. The REVAi isn’t crash tested as this kind of speed so it’s not to be zealously pursued.

If this is a serious safety concern, then it should be tempered with just how deliberate you have to be to put yourself in this position. On a flat you’d have your foot to the floor for quite a while. Otherwise, you have to actively seek a decline. It’s the same story as with the motorways - it can be done, but it’s not advised.

The REVA Electric Car Company likes to point out that in 50 million miles driven worldwide, not a single fatality has been reported. This kind of record makes it arguable that the compromise exists on both sides - if quadracycle compromises certain speeds, then the alternatives compromise our safety. Some commentators would have us believe this is the other way around, but a recent study has offered good proof that quadracycles are safe (the link for this is pending).

It’s something of a truism that a medium speed vehicle isn’t for those who place importance on going at high-speed. It should also be pointed out that a quadracycle isn’t for the commuter who’s routine involves large stretches of high-speed carriageway.

Only a specific type of person will appreciate this kind of driving paradigm. But in a congested city, it’s quite possible that this includes the majority of us, if not at least a sizable portion.

It will be a few years before they competitively price an EV that drives no differently to a car. But it’s conceivable that, in the meantime, a lot people will get used to driving quite differently.

People already use these for piece of mind, whether it’s to do with emissions or just cost. But it comes hand-in-hand with the cultivation of some fairly relaxed driving. It’s petrol free, but for many people it will also be rage free.