Saturday, January 21, 2012

MINI E #140 is gone :(


Life has been to busy lately. So much so I've neglected to update this blog much and have concentrated more on Facebook. Speaking of such, please join our ActiveE group by simply searching for ActiveE in the search box at top of any Facebook page after you login. This is the public forum for ActiveE drivers and folks interested in the car.

This past Monday, I drove MINI E #140 to Long Beach MINI and traded it for an ActiveE. The final mileage count was 50,047 gasoline free miles.

The journey continues with the ActiveE, Part 2 of a 3 part process leading to the i3. It should be a fun ride. Please join me on my new ActiveE blog.

Here's a final video with our MINI E.

Friday, September 23, 2011

Just passed 45k miles....ActiveE just around the corner.

Life has been a blur lately between our little girl starting Kindergarten and work. The MINI E continues to run great and I just passed 45k miles. I can't believe it's already been almost 2 1/2 years with the MINI E. Heck, that's half our daughter's life. I never thought I'd be driving an electric car full time and enjoying it so much. Thanks to BMW, that's now a reality. And the best part, the time saved by not gassing up the car, changing the oil, getting tune ups, driving in the carpool lane etc has been fantastic. The other thing that's fantastic is the upcoming ActiveE. 700 cars will soon be on the road. We look forward to driving one of those 700 cars for two years and then on to the i3. The future is quite exciting!

Tuesday, August 30, 2011

MINI E rolls along awaiting the ActiveE

Everything's been great with the MINI E. Other than a quick one day trip in to the dealer for a battery fan replacement, it's been trouble free. Approaching 44k gas free miles.

A few months back Tom Moloughney, Peder Norby and myself participated in a video shoot for BMW. You can see the full pieces by clicking here.
Yesterday BMW released some more footage from this shoot also featuring the three of us. You can view those clips by clicking here.

It's been a blast participating in the MINI E Field Trial. It's given me an entirely new perspective on mobility. I look forward to continuing the journey with the upcoming ActiveE and then on to the BMWi3.

Wednesday, June 15, 2011

Can't believe 2 years have past already....

Saturday May 30th 2009 we picked up #140 at Long Beach MINI in Long Beach, CA. What a fun two years it's been. Almost 40,000 miles later, the folks we've met and the joy we've had from driving gasoline free is hard to put into words.

Tom Moloughney and Peder Norby both posted a wonderful wrap up of their two year experience on the BMW Activate The Future website. Rather than repeat what they've said, I'll hit a few other points.

Our daughter was 3 1/2 when we picked up #140. Her eyes lit up like Christmas morning when Kari and I returned home with the car. I'd been telling her about it for weeks, showing her pictures online and needless to say she was as excited as we were to take delivery.

A little back story on Hailey, she's Daddy's little girl, and we're both very blessed to have her in our life. Each day since she started walking, she would zip to the garage the moment she'd hear the garage door start to open, stand in the doorway waiting for me to back in to the garage and then run over to give me a hug. She was always very good and wouldn't budge from the door way till I had our Ford Freestyle SUV fully parked and then once I turned off the ignition, she'd run to give me a hug. Unfortunately, I would have to hustle her back in to the house as the garage was full of exhaust and the last thing I wanted was for her to be breathing exhaust. Once the MINI E arrived that all changed. No exhaust. Hailey immediately made the connection with no prodding from us and quickly started saying she no longer wanted to ride in "stinky gas cars." Since that first day, Hailey's rode in the MINI E countless times and every time she has a big smile just like her Dad.

I'd heard that the older you get, the faster life goes by and when you have a child, watch out. I quickly discovered this is indeed the case and time becomes more and more precious. What does this have to do with driving the MINI E? Well, in our Ford, every two to three days I'd stop by a gas station. Each stop took me 15 or so minutes between filling up, getting back on the freeway and continuing on my way. With the MINI E, I leave the house every day with a full tank and those 15 minutes are now spent with my family. Not breathing fumes while filling up is an added bonus.

Before the MINI E, I dreaded my daily commute. Now, it brings a smile to my face. The instant torque and quietness provides an exhilarating, put you back in your seat driving experience. The strong regen braking allows you to use just one pedal most of the time. One pedal driving that isn't a golf cart...Wow! (and yes the brake lights pop on when the regen kicks in) No gears mean no hesitation or jerking around...just smooth acceleration until you ease off the pedal. This combined with the thumbs up I receive from other drivers makes driving a joy.

Finally, knowing that I've played a small part in showing other folks that yes, it's possible to drive an electric vehicle on a daily basis for most of your driving and that a whole generation of upcoming drivers will have the option of choosing to drive electric, has made it a privilege to have taken part in the MINI E test program.

Tuesday, May 24, 2011

BMW ActiveE Lease FAQ :)

As the miles climb, now at 38,200, we look forward to the upcoming ActiveE. Today BMW sent out a FAQ with answers to many questions. Double click each page to enlarge.