Another day of fun on the road. At the moment, my “normal” car has a dead battery, and the SUV has a problem with the gear shift stuck in park. I had some diary-free coffee ice cream waiting for me at the local ice cream shop with only one way to get there…
The prior trip downtown enlightened me as to the shortest route, traffic, hills, breaking, speed of various gears, and how to compensate for the terrain. I decided to go the route that took me 3.5 miles to get home (according to google map directions). The total trip would be estimated at under 7 miles, with a mile of range left for extra cushion.
Teddy and I hopped into the car and we were on our way. There were a few things I did to help us go further listed in the extending range page.
Keeping an eye on the speedometer, second gear tended to top out at 18 mph, and third brought the speed up to 32 mph. Ideally, I would like the car to go faster, but not until I make more adjustments to the breaks and change over to radial tires.
The late summer heat tends to build up, and the windows don’t give much ventilation. It would be preferable to have later models where the window can slide down into the door. I may get a little fan with a 12v adapter.
I arrived at the town center gazebo and parked across from the Front Royal visitors center. The trip downtown felt pretty comfortable and I knew what to expect with the drive compared to the maiden voyage. I had more than half of my battery capacity left, and was at ease knowing I wouldn’t have problems going back home.
Teddy and I got our ice cream, and there was plenty of room behind the seats to put our coveted ice cream. We walked around the park area a little before we headed back home. The ride back was better as well. Rather than hearing the motor struggle and losing speed as the battery lost its voltage, the car operated just fine given the new strategy of driving.
Arriving home, we pulled in and voltage meter in the instrument cluster on the dashboard was showing the fuel at two thirds capacity. I hooked up the battery chargers which reported three batteries at 12v, one at 12.1v, and the accessory battery at 12.6v. The chargers combined registered as using 313 watts on the KILL A WATT meter. The batteries were fully recharged the next day, within 18 hours after the trip.
| Waypoint | Odometer | Distance |
|---|---|---|
| Home | 1,041.5 | |
| C&C Frozen Treats | 1,045.4 | 3.9 |
| Home | 1,049.3 | 3.9 |
| Total | 7.8 |
| Recharge | Energy | Cost |
|---|---|---|
| Rate | kWh | $0.0985 |
| Total | 2.62 kWh | 26.6¢ |
| Per Mile | 336 Wh | 3.4¢ |
The Chez 