Happy Letters (about my site mostly - just to make me feel better)

01-Dec-2014

Really appreciate your sharing your experiences as you do. I'm sure the website has helped more flks than you will ever know. I'm sure it taks more time than anyone thinks. So again, thank you. Your effors are greatly appreciated!

Jim F.

13-Jan-2012

Dear Darell,

Spent a night reading on your EV website, learned a lot about the EV1 and the RAV4EV, and had a lot of fun.

Thanks, hope you will maintain the website

Yours
Christiaan D.
Holland

23-Apr-2011

Darell:

Thanks again for your informative pages on installing Yakima racks on a Prius.  I just drove home from purchasing my second Prius, a 2007.  (46k, $15k) One of the main selling points for me is that I can install a rack and use your instructions, just as I did on my 2006 Prius.  Many of the marathon canoe racers here in northern Minnesota use this system.  I know of none better.  I'm going to order some new landing pads tonight.

Sincerely,
David H.

30-May-2011

Hello,

Thank you for your awesome website.  I am really enjoying all the great info on it, both technical and philosophical.

Zack W.

25-May-2011

Hello "Evnut"

I just wanted to thank you for the excellent story on the Prius Curt trailer hitch. I'm one of the few people in professional auto racing to drive a Prius, and this augmented how-to is a big help.

Best, Jim H.

29-Nov-2010

Darell,

Thank you so much for your website .... it is SO full of great information. I sincerely appreciate all your work and effort that you have put into it.

William K.

20-Apr-2010

Darell,

You have done a superlative job with the RAV4 website.  Are you considering expanding it with Leaf info?  Or are you burned out, yet?

The RAV4-EV list and your website have made a tremendous difference for the RAV4-EV early adopters.  The first year or two of Leaf ownership may prove trying as well.  After that I figure Nissan will either have figured out how to support them, or will have left the playing field.

Thanks,

David R.

19-Feb-2010

I wanted to thank you again for being kind of the nexus for all the RAV info.  if it weren't for your site, I can pretty much guarantee you I'd not own a RAV. it's bad enough having only two in the DC area, and NO public chargers AT ALL.

28-Oct-2009

Thanks again Darell, you should change your website to EVGod.com!

- Sam

19-Aug-2009

Hey Darell!

I love your website, it’s a great resource for electric cars, and of all the EV webpages on the website, has the most personality! Thanks for your time, and the work you’ve put into promoting alternative transportation.

- JB

21-May-2009

Your web site is invaluable and is truly appreciated by newbies like me.
Thank you!
Thank you!
Thank you!

- Jim S.

28-Mar-2009

Hey, last night for the first time ever I decided to show my dad your website. Firstly, I wanted to formally introduce my family to EV's and I started off by plugging my laptop on the big screen in the lounge room and put up your youtube vid. This was my first time my dad has ever heard the sound of an EV or saw a FULL ev. In the past I have only spoken to him about them and he was completely sceptical as everyone is. But after watching your video it was instant love with the EV1 and EV's. He couldnt get over the sound it makes going down the freeway and how fast it actually went.

Then he asked where can I get one, thats when I showed the pictures of the crushed EV1's. He was shocked and from his words 'it looks like mass murder'. He got furiated at GM for crushing such good cars. So I showed him other cars like tesla and imiev and he promised me that when these cars come out one will be purchased.
It was love at first site for him with the EV.

Just thought id let you know :-). You have a great vid + site!

- Murat

30-Feb-2009

Darell,

Thanks for educating me and our troop! You are opening awareness in ways you would never guess. We did notice you in the background of an interview in Who Killed the Electric Car!

Sincerely, Laureen

22-Feb-2009

A personal thank you so much for all that you have done for me and for the EV community over these many years. I can't imagine what we would have done without you!

- Larry

21-Feb-2009

Hi Darell:

Just a quick thank you for the charging capacitor update on EVnut.com.
Another great addition to the pool of knowledge you have provided. Although your warnings were nearly enough to scare me off, the thought of an out-of-service EV was motivation to contact M.S. for one of his capacitors, as a precaution. I can't tell you how much we appreciate yout efforts to keep us all happily driving our Rav 4 EV's!

Best wishes -- Richard

20-Nov-2008

Your website is outstanding, info not found on other sites, thanks, don't make it dissapear...

-Alex R.

06-Jun-2008

I just wanted to say how impressed I am with your web site, and how fantastic your explanations of how to modify various bits of the Prius are. Really fabulous....and you share it so freely! Great pictures and great links. You sound like a nice person. Well done! I can see that (in the words of Austin Powers) your nuts!....about EV's Me too. I would have loved to have bought a purely electric vehicle of a PHEV.

02-May-2008

I would be curious how many on this list have only an EV for their primary transportation. I actually haven't had a gas car since I sold my Honda Civic in 1994 (got my first EV in 1992).  On the rare occasions I need to go beyond the range of my RAV, I rent a gas car. I've found for me it is much cheaper to rent a gas car when necessary rather than pay the various things required to keep a gas car (smog check, maintenance, registration, insurance, etc) on

When I got my first EV, I kept my gas car thinking I would need it for all the times the EV wouldn't meet my needs. I quickly found (at least for my driving habits) I would only drive my gas car twice a week (had to move it for street sweeping days). I eventually sold it two years later and haven't looked back. Obviously, this won't work for everyone, but I like knowing that I have not owned a gas car for 14 years and have survived just fine :)

jim

27-Feb-2008

Darelldd, please keep ranting. You are an inspiration like no other on this site. Somehow we all need to get you into a decision-making high-ranking position of power to make the changes needed. I quote and point to your website as often as I direct nay-sayers here to PriusChat. Continue being obnoxious. continue being an idiot. I love it and have learned much. I WILL be heading to the Toyota dealer to request that plug-in.

Again, thanks and keep us posted on all the EV dealings out there.

And if you let this go to yer head...well...more power to ya, ha, ha.

-finman (PC)

11.11.2007

Thanks again so much for your help! I'm so glad there are people like you out there to really continue to push for the cause and to make so much informative stuff so easily accessible to the general public. Thanks!!

Erin

07.25.2007

In December 2001, I spotted the notice at EVWorld.com that Toyota was going to allow 300 retail customers, only in California, to buy or lease the RAV4EV. As I was already on a very long list to lease an EV1 and a Honda EV Plus, and I pretty much figured that wasn't going to happen, I immediately went to the Toyota website and expressed my interest. I was on a job in New Orleans in late January 2002 when I got a call from Cabe Toyota in Long Beach, one of the 12 authorized dealers in California to sell or lease the car. I put down a deposit of $500 on a credit card to get the ball rolling, and arranged over the phone for the charger to be installed. I was told that white ones were available right away, or as soon as the local building inspector signed off on the charger installation, but I'd have to wait a couple of months for a silver one. I said I wanted one ASAP!

On March 10, 2002, I drove off the Cabe Toyota lot in my brand new, white RAV4EV. 5 1/2 years and 69,000 gas-free miles later it was one of the best things I've done in my life. It has literally changed my life in so many ways, not the least of which is all of the wonderful people I have met at this site and through Plug In America. Looking forward to adding a Plug-In Hybrid to my "fleet" in the very near future!

Dency Nelson
Hermosa Beach, CA

01.16.2007

Hey Darell, I have to say that your love for everything efficient/sustainable is quite inspiring to say the least! I saw your profile on Priuschat.com and noticed that you have had quite a collection of EV's in the past and are now on to the Prius... and were lucky enough to count one of the EV1's in there. The PV system that you have is also a great addition to the home. Up here in Toronto you don't see quite as many - but I do know a number of people locally that are grid tied. I just wanted to say - keep up the good work! I wish I could run Solar on my roof, bus alas, I rent. But I make the most out of what i have - my entire kitchen and bathroom are lit with LED's (total of maybe 15 watts?) and everything else is CFL or natural light. Keep on pluggin away with the EV's!

07.11.2006

So, I'm just a mainstream, reasonably smart suburban guy, and I'd pay a modest premium to buy a regular car that is an EV. Not because I'm a nut, but because it makes reasonable economic sense and offers non-economic advantages that I value. And if I can figure this out, others can too. So here I am, ready to buy an EV. I hope that sooner or later one of the major manufacturers will be willing to take my money.

-chogman (PC)

04.16.2006

Darell,
I have been on the RAV4 list for a year or so and have been inspired by you and others. Last week I signed a contract with Borrego to put 5 KW Solar PV on my roof. I used the estimate on your website (3 miles per KWH) to factor in enough energy for all of my house electric, heat, and car usage. I don't have an electric car yet but I hope to buy one soon. We have a Prius already. I hope to convert it to the plug in version sometime. Anyway, thanks for being such a role model. I look forward to no CO2 production for the next 30 or 40 years.

Thanks for being a great role model,
- Stephen

03.07.2006

Darell,
Boy DO WE love your site! The links, the pictures! THANK YOU. After surfing for months now, your site is by far the most informative. The plug for the parade is the best laugh I have had in months.
I cry about the EV1 and the scorched earth treatment, but I digress....
[...]
Thanks for such an informative, humorous and fact-filled journey.
I hope to hear from you, and look forward to shaking your hand someday.
Sincerely,

- E. G.
Lead Shop Technician

03.05.2006

Darell,

It is true! I do love your site!

I've been thinking of building one of your portability kits myself. Your design is better than mine by a long shot -- I hope that you don't mind if I copy much of it. Promise to give you the credit!
[...]
Thanks for taking the time to make this site. It is really terrific!
[...]
Thanks for all of your help. You are really helping to make this adventure fun and taking a lot of the stress and guess work out of the equation. If I can ever return the favor
[...]
I have to say it again -- I've enjoyed your site more than any I can remember visiting in recent history. (My words -- not yours!) I've spent hours going down every link and seeing the projects that you have done. Looks like you've been having a terrific amount of fun... Thanks for taking the time to document all of this so that the rest of us (less imaginative) folks, didn't have to re-invent the wheel.

- D. T.

02.24.2006

Darell - Hey, I'm a Prius owner and poster on PriusChat and have read your web page and postings...you are now my hero! Man, what you've done for EVs is incredible. I've learned much and just wanted to say thanks for the EV work and keep it up. My next car should be a plug-in EV...I hope the hydrogen craziness doesn't hamper that!

- Curt

07.25.2005

To all who expressed an interest in my RAV4 ev for sale:

Thanks so much for your interest. Unfortunately, I have already found a buyer- me. After driving my car to the old Helms Bakery a couple weeks ago to charge and visit my mom, my car performed so well that I’m going to work out some way to buy the car myself, and lower my monthly payment by $50 in the process. After having the car for 3 ½ years, I’m surprised to find that the car doesn’t seem to have lost any range. I sure appreciate the information from all the current owners that I have contacted to reach my decision. I’m going to have to start paying more attention to the email discussions on charging options.

I truly never meant to mislead anyone in offering my car for sale. It has been a very tough decision for me, but my change of heart is from the future reliability I now believe this car will have. The recent news and accomplishments from the dontcrush.com people and the possibility of plug-in hybrids have been factors for me as well.

I thank you for your understanding and I sincerely wish all of you the best of luck in getting one of these cars. Hopefully down the road, some fleet vehicles may come available. I’m surprised how many owners either have two or want two!

- W.G.

06.12.2005

Hi, I'm Joe Romm.

I ran the Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy at the US Department of Energy during part of the Clinton Administration and wrote "The Hype about Hydrogen" (Island Press, 2004).

Plug ins are so new for most of us that we haven't done a very good job of putting out basic fact sheets. Heck, I didn't even talk about them in my book. I just got educated by a bunch of people, including Felix. Then I wrote a paper for the National Commission on Energy Policy which helped spur a great deal of interest.

Hybrids that can be plugged into the electric grid (so-called plug-ins or e-hybrids) will be I think the second phase of a two-phase transition that has already begun with the hybrid revolution. The top priority for all of us who want to reduce oil consumption and greenhouse gas emissions in the transportation sector is certainly increasing fuel economy standards. I personally would recommend these standards give some sort of extra credit for meeting the standards with hybrids because we want to enable the second phase of the transition, where dual-fuel hybrids can run partly off of a charge from the electric grid.

Electricity has always been the ideal fuel for driving, because electric motors are so efficient (but range and speed of refueling issues limited the attractiveness of pure EVs). This is especially true in cities because electricity-powered cars have zero in-airshed emissions and 10x to 1000x lower lifecycle emissions of all criteria air pollutants, and potentially zero life-cycle emissions in the long term as the grid gets cleaner.

My top priority has always been greenhouse gas emissions. Here plug ins are an unadulterated home run. Let's use the high-end of actual numbers that Felix Kramer has been getting with his modified Priuses: 250 Watt-hours per mile all electric (this should be pretty typical for modern EVs of that size -- The large RAV4 gets maybe 300 Wh/mi). Let's compare that to what a diligent driver will get with the Prius in warm
climates: 50 mpg (personally, my family does on average about 46 mpg year round).

Let's compare 12,000 miles (the typical yearly vehicle miles traveled), running all electric, which consumes 3,000 kwh, with running all gasoline (i.e. using a regular Prius), which would be 240 gallons.

The lifecycle greenhouse gas emissions from burning a gallon of gasoline is roughly 25 pounds (20 on-site, another 5 in the petroleum production chain -- the number may be slightly higher for reformulated gasoline, and will be considerably higher from oil from the tar sands). So we have 6,000 pounds of CO2 from a Prius.

NOTE: The average new NON-hybridized car would emit 11,000 to 12,000 pounds of CO2. This is the proper baseline for those who are concerned about whether e-hybrids would increase emissions compared to a business as usual case.

The grid average emissions factor for electricity in this country is, roughly, 1.3 pounds per kwh. That yields 3,900 pounds of CO2! So running your E-hybrid on the U.S. grid is 35% better than running a Prius on gasoline and 65% better than an average car.

If the entire grid were coal, you could double that (7,800 pounds), so even in that worst-case scenario, you'd still have far LOWER CO2 emissions from a plug-in Prius than from the average new car on the road running on gasoline.

In California, with its cleaner grid, you'd have under 2,000 pounds emissions from a plug-in Prius. And, of course, people can choose to purchase 100% renewable power.

The nice thing about plug ins is that it gives people a fuel choice, and everyone will choose electricity since even in California, the per-mile cost of electricity is under one half that of gasoline.

Joe Romm

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