13 Mths and 14Kmi so far, My thoughts to those considering

[damania]

I think top speed is very relevant to everyday driving. What if the top speed of the FFE were restricted to 70mph, or even 80mph, instead of 85mph? For me, I would have gotten something else.

For some of us on LA freeways that use the carpool lanes, the top speed of the FFE can be impeding at times. Most if not all carpool lanes here have restricted entry/exit areas, and for me, merging comfortably into traffic that's going 80mph+ with a small window of opportunity requires achieving a speed slightly above that traffic, merging, then settling into everyone else's cruising speed once fully merged.

There seems to be a psychology to merging into the carpool lanes down here. If you try to merge in while going slower or at the same speed as the carpool lane traffic, more often than not the a-hole in the carpool lane will try to close the gap. But if you're going faster than that a-hole, he usually won't try to cut you off. And there are a lot of a-holes down here in the HOV lanes.

LA drivers out there - does this happen to you, or is it just me?

I know we're way off topic here, but I figured we were already down this rabbit hole many posts ago....

We need dual motors, 1 on each axle to gain some efficiency at higher speeds.

 

[Rogerschro]

[

We need dual motors, 1 on each axle to gain some efficiency at higher speeds.[/quote]

Ford has a prototype electric Fiesta with four wheel motors. I think that is the way to go. all wheel drive, each motor controlling a wheel. Better power distribution, more efficient power transfer, less loss through transmission, greater range of speed, four wheel drive, better utilization of available space for battery, cabin, luggage compartments, and better weight distribution. That may be where Ford is going with their design.

 

[jmueller065]

Ford has a prototype electric Fiesta with four wheel motors.

Actually the Fiesta prototype only has two motors in the rear wheels:
http://jamiegeek.myevblog.com/2013/10/15/in-wheel-motors/

Powered by independent electric motors in each of the rear wheels, eWheelDrive technology offers space under the bonnet that in conventional cars is occupied by the engine and transmission, and in electric cars by a central motor.

(From the Ford UK press release about it.)

 

[michael]

On the subject of top speed, the legal limit matters far less than the prevailing speed that a car needs to handle in its environment.

Just this morning, I happened to take a Volt rather than the FFE due to the need to go a longer distance this evening. At 8 AM, big time rush hour, I was going down the 405 into the Valley at 89 MPH in the carpool lane. That was the prevailing speed, there was a plug-in-Prius ahead going that fast. Everyone was going that fast. If I had been limited to 84 in the FFE, I would have had a line of cars on my rear bumper, drivers pounding on their steering wheels.

The FFE is plenty fast for me most of the time, but I often need to stay toward the right in order to not be a traffic obstacle. In view of its 84 MPH rating, I feel that anything over 80 or so is pressing its design limits. Overspeed? Overheat? I don't know...all I know is they told me it will only go 84.

 

[hybridbear]

On the subject of top speed, the legal limit matters far less than the prevailing speed that a car needs to handle in its environment.

Just this morning, I happened to take a Volt rather than the FFE due to the need to go a longer distance this evening. At 8 AM, big time rush hour, I was going down the 405 into the Valley at 89 MPH in the carpool lane. That was the prevailing speed, there was a plug-in-Prius ahead going that fast. Everyone was going that fast. If I had been limited to 84 in the FFE, I would have had a line of cars on my rear bumper, drivers pounding on their steering wheels.

The FFE is plenty fast for me most of the time, but I often need to stay toward the right in order to not be a traffic obstacle. In view of its 84 MPH rating, I feel that anything over 80 or so is pressing its design limits. Overspeed? Overheat? I don't know...all I know is they told me it will only go 84.

That is just insane, unsafe & illegal. I would never drive that fast. It's way too dangerous. I stick to 65 MPH.

 

[WattsUp]

I was going down the 405 into the Valley at 89 MPH in the carpool lane. ... Everyone was going that fast.

That is just insane, unsafe & illegal.

What can we say, LA is "special".

Where I am, NorCal, I'd say about 80 is the "norm" when traffic is flowing well. I don't feel too pressured to get crazy fast in the carpool lane.

 

[jmueller065]

Where I'm at in MI you'd see 80 mph on a sunny summer day with light traffic, however, traffic is never light enough for that (unless its 3am on a Tuesday).
Typical is 70-75.

Of course the "mad rush" to get "up north" on Friday evening is only about 35 mph due to the # of cars!

(Although there have been a few times where I could get my old F-350 up to 100+ mph...now that was scary!)

 

[Lithium]

Top speed is not limited because of the battery. It's the inverters in the car that can handle only so much load. Cd drag coefficient on the car is low but wind resistance, drag goes up exponentially with speed so the load is much higher at speed. Forget range, think of it in terms of amp draw and watts. An electric motor will take everything it can get from rpm 0 till it melts. The Limiter at 84mph is probably the safe limit of the inverters. The motor will take more, take off those limits and maybe you can push a buck twenty before something melts.
This is true for the Volt also as it's a generator driving an electric drive train.
Volts X Amps = Watts. Watts are the critical factor to survivability of most electrical components. High drag equals high amps to achieve the speed and keep the speed. Volts can be stepped up to drop the amps so the Watts stay the same. Its a balance in the system that has to be kept in check so it runs reliably for a long time.
H

 

[michael]

On the subject of top speed, the legal limit matters far less than the prevailing speed that a car needs to handle in its environment.

Just this morning, I happened to take a Volt rather than the FFE due to the need to go a longer distance this evening. At 8 AM, big time rush hour, I was going down the 405 into the Valley at 89 MPH in the carpool lane. That was the prevailing speed, there was a plug-in-Prius ahead going that fast. Everyone was going that fast. If I had been limited to 84 in the FFE, I would have had a line of cars on my rear bumper, drivers pounding on their steering wheels.

The FFE is plenty fast for me most of the time, but I often need to stay toward the right in order to not be a traffic obstacle. In view of its 84 MPH rating, I feel that anything over 80 or so is pressing its design limits. Overspeed? Overheat? I don't know...all I know is they told me it will only go 84.

That is just insane, unsafe & illegal. I would never drive that fast. It's way too dangerous. I stick to 65 MPH.

I figured some would feel that way, but he reality here is that the carpool lanes have become autobahns when the mainline is moving well. If one dares to drive 65, others will dart around him in the short access areas, cut in right in front, and give a middle finger salute. Welcome to LA.

In the case this morning, the mainline of the freeway was running just as fast. Things aren't the same here as in some other parts of the country.

As a side note, the 65 MPH speed limits were established in the 60's when cars were deathtraps compared to now. Modern cars are fully capable of going faster now than they were then, and with greater safety. Trust me on that...I own two cars from the 60's and they are very hard to drive combined to anything you can get today.

You might also look at "Solomon's Curve" (also called the "crash risk curve"). While subject to some argument (often by insurance and law enforcement groups who LOVE speeding tickets) there is substantial basis to believe that variance from the average traffic speed is a significant factor in collision rate, slower and faster both causing problems.

 

[hybridbear]

You might also look at "Solomon's Curve" (also called the "crash risk curve"). While subject to some argument (often by insurance and law enforcement groups who LOVE speeding tickets) there is substantial basis to believe that variance from the average traffic speed is a significant factor in collision rate, slower and faster both causing problems.

I agree. My background is in Risk Management and I've studied this a bit. Speed differential is a significant factor in collision rates, but the probability of dying in a car accident increases exponentially with speed. So while you may be more likely to have an accident with a higher speed differential compared to other vehicles, your odds of dying in an accident are much lower.

 

[michael]

As an experiment, I placed myself in the carpool lane this morning and set the cruise control at 75. I was the slowest guy on the freeway, even people in the slow lane were passing me. I was the proverbial old fart in the eco-car obstructing traffic and pissing off everyone else.

When a taxi cab came barreling up behind me at a huge closing speed, I chickened out and exited the carpool lane at the next available access area. I went the rest of the way to work in the truck lane (second from the right) at 70, drivers still on my rear bumper pounding on their steering wheels, passing me right-and-left.

As I said, welcome to LA.

 

[NightHawk]

As an experiment, I placed myself in the carpool lane this morning and set the cruise control at 75. I was the slowest guy on the freeway, even people in the slow lane were passing me. I was the proverbial old fart in the eco-car obstructing traffic and pissing off everyone else.

When a taxi cab came barreling up behind me at a huge closing speed, I chickened out and exited the carpool lane at the next available access area. I went the rest of the way to work in the truck lane (second from the right) at 70, drivers still on my rear bumper pounding on their steering wheels, passing me right-and-left.

As I said, welcome to LA.

Haha, sounds like the CHP could make a killing on speeding tickets there if they wanted...

 

[damania]

I have one more "complaint" about my FFE. Sometimes when opening my door by placing my hand on the door handle, the locks go nuts. They can't decide whether to lock or unlock and I hear them doing both, and I'm unable to open the door. Sometimes I have to use my key inside my FOB to get in. It's like the sensor to open and the sensor to close are too close to each other or get confused.

 

[WattsUp]

I have one more "complaint" about my FFE. Sometimes when opening my door by placing my hand on the door handle, the locks go nuts. They can't decide whether to lock or unlock and I hear them doing both, and I'm unable to open the door. Sometimes I have to use my key inside my FOB to get in. It's like the sensor to open and the sensor to close are too close to each other or get confused.

Don't touch the black pad when you're opening/unlocking the door. Just put your hand "inside" the handle to open.

Occasionally, my FFE won't unlock, but I just pull my hand out, wait a beat and try again. Second time usually works.

 

[NightHawk]

Occasionally, my FFE won't unlock, but I just pull my hand out, wait a beat and try again. Second time usually works.

yep, same with mine.

 

[damania]

And who was the engineer who thought of setting the fan to max speed when the user turns on the AC or heater? It should be set to the last used setting. How did THAT get past user testing?

 

[Washingtonian]

If you press the low fan button to start the air it will start at the lowest speed. I actually like the max fan when I want to quickly defrost.