Let's go pure EV...

[Tipper]

Is there any feedback from the 'Test Team' in the Netherlands?

 

[Claymore]

Like Tipper I was hoping to see some enthusiastic reports from current users that I could use to convince 'er indoors that this expenditure was justified but there seems to be some sort of wall of silence.

As they say in deepest Amsterdam....que passe?

JimB

 

[jaapv]

I'm not on the test team, but I have a box installed. It works as advertised, I have not seen an orange arrow since, and the car does drive more pleasantly although I still have to tweak the settings, the ICE comes in too easily for my taste at present. I am less impressed by the ICheater. It does not work reliably in my car, but I cannot complain, as it was thrown in for free...
But then, I have decided that I prefer warm feet over silence anyway.

 

[anko]

Is there any feedback from the 'Test Team' in the Netherlands?

I really think it is the best thing that I have done to my car.

To be honest, when towing my caravan I must turn it off (turning off ECO mode is enough to do this). Otherwise, even with the engine running in Charge mode, you are limited to approx. 52 - 54 kW which often is not enough while towing. Or you would have to push through the kick-down barrier all the time, which feels not good. But, once it is turned off, the car drives like it did before.

To be honest, when I am out on a trip that is close to my EV range, I used to be / still am very easy on the throttle anyway, just to make sure I get across pure EV. So, for these trips, there is not much added value. And my daily commute (40 km) qualifies as such a trip.

But for the trips well within EV range, this little gimmick has converted my car in a totaly different car. It brings a smile to my face every time I drive it. Where I used to drive it like my 84 year old dad would, I now drive it like I drove other cars before. And my wife starts yelling at me again. Great stuff.

For trips well beyond EV range, it still has a lot of added value to me, as I like to see my engine start not before my SOC is at least half way down. Also I don’t want to see my engine run for just 30 seconds after a too fast roundabout exit or a too fast traffic ligt departure, and then be turned off again until the battery is depleted. So, I want to have a little control over when the engine runs and when not. And in order to have this control, again I had to drive it like an 80 year old, until my SOC was down far enough. But not anymore. Great stuff.

Be aware, personally I am very focussed on preventing (unnecessary) cold starts and reducing tailpipe emissions. More than on reducing electricity consumption. When you don’t care about cold starts, don’t bother. When you don’t care about tailpipe emissions, don’t bother. When you are very concerned with total power consumption (fuel + electricity), then perhaps you don’t need to bother either, as your electricity usage probably will go up due to a change in driving style ;-) But if you are anything like me, this is a great tool.

When it comes to heating, there is this:

The tool makes the car believe the interior temperature is at least 13 deg C. In ECO mode, this appears to be enough the prevent the engine from starting as long as you do not se the heater above 21 or 22 deg C (approx. 9 deg gap will be bridged without starting the engine). But in NORMAL mode, this gap is smaller. And you simply cannot start up the car in ECO mode. So, if the car was parked the night before with the heater set to 20, when you start it up the next morning, it will run until you hit the ECO button, with a minimum of (depending on outside temps) about 30 seconds. I have discussed this with Vtechtuning and we came up with the idea to have the box make the car believe interior temperature was at least 20 deg C for a minute or so, giving the driver enough time to hit ECO mode before the engine starts. Ideally this could be configurable to the drivers needs.

Vtechtuning said he would build a new firmware version for this, but I have not heard from him for a week or two. Must be very busy.

 

[anko]

But then, I have decided that I prefer warm feet over silence anyway.

Unless you have a low spec'd model, you can still use the electric heater to provide heat.

 

[jaapv]

I can confirm Anko's observation of electricity consumption up, petrol consumption down. But the electricity consumption does not go up as much as one would expect. I still get close to the same range as I did before in my daily use . However, somehow the guess-o-meter has gone more pessimistic; even with the range I get in reality (40-45 km) it will insist on predicting 35-38 km.

 

[Claymore]

Thanks for that, I presume there will be more discussion on the Dutch forum as most of the folk who took up the offer should be on there, I'll have a look and see if google translate makes any sense of it.

JimB

EDIT: Very little info there regrettably.

 

[Tipper]

Thanks guys, some good feedback there.

Just need to get the price down now! :lol: Maybe a 'Group buy'....?

 

[jthspace]

Thanks guys, some good feedback there.

Just need to get the price down now! :lol: Maybe a 'Group buy'....?

+1

 

[Claymore]

+1 at the Dutch price of 200 Euros.

JimB

 

[jaapv]

Which was not very useful as it was not tax-deductable. The official price is.

 

[Tipper]

Tax deductible? You company car users want it all even though you have already been provided with a £30k+ free car!
Just wait until you have to pay your own way when you retire...early...voluntarily off course! :lol:

 

[jaapv]

Not that voluntarily. Have you figured out how much you need for a decent income with the present interest rates?

 

[greendwarf]

Not that voluntarily. Have you figured out how much you need for a decent income with the present interest rates?

Nothing - if you are a smug baby boomer with a gold plated inflation-proof, government backed, final salary scheme. Having already retired twice from full-time work, I'm now on my third for still working part-time at 67 - that's how we bought the PHEV.

:lol: all the way to the bank :lol:

 

[Tipper]

Voluntarily redundant at 48, company pension from 50. :mrgreen:
Worked as a consultant engineer for 4 years, started own completely different business until serious illness (heart failure caused by heart infection) stopped play in 2005 aged 53...now 64.
Not 'worked' since 2005.

Maybe that's why I have not much sympathy for company car drivers! :lol:

 

[Claymore]

I too am kinda welling up thinking about these poor folk who have to work and fiddle around with everything to make ends meet...all those poor bookies and dentists!

I took the offer I couldn't refuse in 1999.....also with index linked pension and all that and now with kids gone (but definitely incapable of being forgotten) and no mortgage, life (other than, like others, the occasional coronary interruption) has never been better.

But now that's the sun's come out the need for a 300 + Euro switch has diminished somewhat....when does the summer sale start?

In any event I think I've now got 'er indoors trained to enjoy preheat on the way to the shops and the cold prospect of a very nice hot bean to cup coffee when we get home.

Up to 86 mpg overall now!

JimB

 

[jaapv]

Not that voluntarily. Have you figured out how much you need for a decent income with the present interest rates?

Nothing - if you are a smug baby boomer with a gold plated inflation-proof, government backed, final salary scheme. Having already retired twice from full-time work, I'm now on my third for still working part-time at 67 - that's how we bought the PHEV.

:lol: all the way to the bank :lol:

Yeah - well, I seem to have missed out on the smug gold-plated bit.

 

[greendwarf]

Not that voluntarily. Have you figured out how much you need for a decent income with the present interest rates?

Nothing - if you are a smug baby boomer with a gold plated inflation-proof, government backed, final salary scheme. Having already retired twice from full-time work, I'm now on my third for still working part-time at 67 - that's how we bought the PHEV.

:lol: all the way to the bank :lol:

Yeah - well, I seem to have missed out on the smug gold-plated bit.

I'm hoping (?), now I'm a widower, that some gold-digger will wipe the smile off my face.

 

[maby]

I could have retired years ago if it were not for the boat habit - standing under a cold shower tearing up fifty pound notes! Cocaine would be cheaper...

 

[simonrh]

I could have retired years ago if it were not for the boat habit - standing under a cold shower tearing up fifty pound notes! Cocaine would be cheaper...

My mother used to throw that quote at me quite often when i was sailing