The Green Car Club unites owners and enthusiasts of environmentally cleaner cars.

An Electric Experience

NESEA members have been some of the first people to purchase electric cars—both battery electrics and the new hybrids. We asked three NESEA members—Mike Bianchi of Madison, New Jersey; Nita Norman of Hanover, New Hampshire; and Buck Robinson of Stratham, New Hampshire—to describe their experiences owning a battery-electric or hybrid-electric car. Three Maine residents are also highlighted – Regina Gagnon of Shawmut; Shirley Lamson of Saco; and Gerald Maraghy of York – with stories from The Natural Resources Council of Maine.

Five Years Driving Electric
By Mike Bianchi

While people at the seventh Tour de Sol in 1995 were wondering whether an electric car would ever work for them, I decided to buy one and find out. At the Tour stop in Lexington, Massachusetts, I made my down payment on a brand new electric car. Did I do the right thing?

Actually, I was pretty sure it would work for me. I had done my homework, much of it at previous Tours, where I had seen all manner of electrically powered vehicles. I realized that I would get limited mileage per charge, but I worked only three miles from home, shopped in nearby towns, and intended it to be both my "town car" and my hobby. I was pretty sure an EV would match that mission.

I chose the Force EV, built by Solectria Corporation. It was a car I had seen repeatedly at the Tour. It had performed reliably and was built into a zero-time chassis (unlike a retrofit to a used car). It had refined controls, regenerative braking, and demonstrated excellent efficiency.

The homework paid off. The car performed to my expectations in almost every way. It was quiet, required little maintenance (change one quart of gear box oil every two years, inflate tires), and had few problems. My only modification was to add a BADICHEQ battery management system.

I've driven 15,000 miles. My other car sat in the garage for weeks at a time. In fact, we are now a two-car family. Joan drives the gasoline car to work and I use the electric. I rent when we both need to go long distances. Renting last year cost about what insurance would cost for a third car.

Most people don't notice that the car is electric, since the only external indications are the license plate (AMPS2GO), the Solectria Force logo, and the lack of a tail pipe. And the lack of any noise! I like being able to hear the birds singing as I drive past.

For five years I have driven in a quiet, cool (and kool), and emission-free car. Fuel cost has been 2 cents per mile. I enjoy knowing that the air is cleaner and cooler than it would be otherwise. Someone else could have the 425 gallons of gasoline I did not burn.

The Green Flash
By Nita Norman

Space-alien green or cool and gorgeous? Opinion splits on the color but on performance my "Green Flash" is unanimously rated spectacular.

As the first Honda Insight in our bi-state multi-town area, the Flash has attracted lots of admiring attention. It’s fun to be locally famous! At home and on the highway we enjoy smiles and waves of recognition, toots, and thumbs-up of approval.

Flash has just passed her first birthday, with just under 10,000 miles and a lifetime fuel efficiency of 61.3 miles per gallon—excellent since most of my driving is short errands with the adverse factors of stoplights, hills, and cold weather. On long trips—New York, Washington, Maine, Montreal—Flash easily registers well over 70 mpg. I love to mention that I’ve never yet taken Flash to the gas station. All of her 15 fill-ups have been done by my husband in exchange for occasional driving privileges.

Like all Insight owners, I’m thrilled to be reducing my personal pollution. Even more important, it’s a great outlet for my missionary zeal on matters environmental. The Flash has appeared at Earth Day celebrations, auto shop classes, and various environmental gatherings in Maine, New Hampshire, and Connecticut. Our parking-lot encounters are now far beyond counting. But the hundreds of hours my husband and I have invested in explaining my wonderful car we both consider time well spent. The Insight in indeed a rootin’-tootin’, low-pollutin’, good commutin’ motorcar.

Ode to My Toyota Prius
By Buck Robinson

This is the story of one man’s love affair with an automobile. Not since Mr. Toad went bonkers about 100 years ago at the prospect of owning a "Motor Car" has one driver been so completely enamored with an automobile as I am with my Toyota Prius. And keep in mind that I am not a prospective owner but an actual owner (actually a lessee) with six months and over 6,000 miles behind the wheel.

Why do I love the Prius so much? In warm weather it delivers an attention-getting 52 miles per gallon at 50 miles per hour. The mileage drops off from there as the speed increases. In all fairness, and to my great disappointment, the mileage also drops off about 15% in the winter. It starts immediately in cold weather and also has great traction in snow with its front-wheel drive. Its 2,700 pounds are nicely distributed between the motors (gas and electric) in the front and the nickel-metal hydride battery bank in the rear.

The Toyota Hybrid System switches from electric to gasoline and back and forth—or both at once—as necessary in a totally seamless operation. Regenerative braking recaptures 30% of the car’s kinetic energy and puts it into the battery bank. Coasting does the same thing. When the Prius comes to a stoplight or is stuck in traffic, the gasoline engine automatically shuts off. This can be a bit unnerving in the beginning, but the car immediately starts again as soon as the accelerator is touched.

I must confess to feeling a bit virtuous when I drive my Prius, especially because it is a Super Low Emission Vehicle (SULEV). If I had to describe the experience of owning a Prius in two words, I would say "no compromises." If I had just one work, I would say "unbelievable."

Prius Helped Teach Driver to Be More Fuel-Efficient
Regina Gagnon – Shawmut, ME

When she first got her Toyota Prius, Regina Gagnon was sometimes caught off-guard by the silence as the conventional gas engine shut down and the electric motor kicked in. The quiet of driving a hybrid electric vehicle took some getting used to, the central Maine resident admits. "I’d roll the window down and listen to the ‘no noise.’ The only thing you could hear were the tires crunching on the ground."

The other major difference from a conventional car, like the Toyota Camry her family drove for ten years before they got the Prius, is the digital display on the instrument panel that reports current gas mileage and the average mileage at five-minute intervals. Like many Prius owners, she reports that this feature has helped teach her how to be a more fuel-efficient driver and would even help the driver of a conventional vehicle save on gas.

As the family’s usual designated driver, Gagnon finds the low end of the car’s mileage performance is around 38 in cold weather when she makes the 10-mile commute between her home in Shawmut and Waterville. "I kind of kill my mileage there," she says, noting that on long-distance trips at highway speeds she gets up to 55 mpg. On average, the mileage is 48 mpg. For comparison, she says, under the best circumstances her Camry got 33 to 38 mpg.

In most respects, Gagnon finds the Prius much like any other car of its size. She’s learned to handle it in crosswinds and reports it starts right up in cold weather, has good traction in snow and has a good heater. There’s plenty of leg and headroom front and rear to accommodate her six-foot son. If she has any complaint, it’s an old beef she’s had with a number of cars – "There’s no place for a woman’s handbag!"

The Prius is "A Joy to Drive," Even in Winter
Shirley Lamson – Saco, ME

When Shirley Lamson of Saco heads out for errands in her Toyota Prius, her son just shakes his head. Nicknamed "the Jetson Car" by one of Shirley’s sons, the Toyota is an anomaly in Saco where it was the first hybrid car sold. It’s also an exception in the Lamson family where the boys all own large vehicles. Shirley, herself, replaced a GMC Jimmy with the Prius. She hasn’t looked back since.

"I bought the Prius because of its fuel economy, lower emissions, comfort – even in the back seats – and quietness," Shirley said. "The car is a joy to drive," she said, even in the winter.

While Shirley had previously owned a small car, she was hesitant to drive the Prius in snow. When a family member had to go to the airport in a snowstorm, Shirley discovered the Prius could handle snowy weather just fine. "It was an awakening as I drove through sometimes unplowed roads without any problem," she said. "It’s a great little car!"

"I’m Not a Cutting Edge Kind of Guy"
Gerald Maraghy – York, ME

A 6 foot tall, 230-plus pounds, Gerry Maraghy marvels at the space in his Honda Insight. "I went to a National Scout Jamboree in Virginia and filled the back up with a foot locker, sleeping bags...and I could still see out the back window. A friend of mine was going down in a Suburban and we both filled up in New Jersey. His took 20 gallons and mine took 5.6 and we were essentially hauling the same stuff," Gerry said.

"People comment that (this technology) is the wave of the future. I say, look around you – it should be the wave of the here and now," says Gerry. He chose the car because of its "impressive miles per gallon, ultra low impact on the environment, conventional handling (with no plug in), comfortable roomy interior and great looks exterior."

A graphic designer, Gerry works for a hospital in Brunswick that uses pneumatic tubes to move x-rays, lab samples and other materials quickly from one department to another. His boss has dubbed Gerry’s Insight, "The pneumatic tube of Route 1."

Despite typical winter weather conditions, Gerry says he’s had no trouble making the 75-mile commute from home, even during the snowy winter of 2000-2001, and his Honda is "amazingly stable."

"Unless these guys in 4 x 4 trucks are driving off-road – which I bet 9/10th of them aren’t – driving a big vehicle doesn’t make sense economically or environmentally," Gerry said. "I’m not a cutting edge kind of guy but when I originally looked at the Insight when they introduced them to the U.S. in 2000, they had already been using them for three years in Japan. I’ve had no problems with either the car or the dealership."