Electricana - New Plymouth 27th Feb 2021
Electricarna 2021 was held on Saturday, 27th of February at Central School in New Plymouth. It was extensively advertised via social media, and Steve Hobo-Tuck, as the main organizer for the Trust, did two radio interviews prior to the event and there were stories in local and national media.
Electricana is scheduled to coincide with Americana – a gathering of vintage American petrol cars. And pleasingly members of the media attended Electricana and highlighted a case history of a recent convert to an EV from an ICE car! The weather was beautiful for people to be out and about - a lovely sunny day with a few puffy white clouds providing welcome shade from time to time.
The event had support from several local organisations which is just terrific, not only the indication that such events are valuable to the community but the public also get to see EVs as work vehicles. They were Venture Taranaki and New Plymouth District Council attending as part of ‘Taranaki 2050: A pathway to a sustainable future’ initiative. The NPDC brought 2 EVs along and Powerco brought along a Hyundai Ioniq and a VW E-Golf. Last but not least Sustainable Taranaki were in attendance, and offered information regarding sustainable living – a great partner to driving an EV.
And on the bike front there were three two-wheelers along, one family E-bike with enough power to carry a mum and two preschoolers, a white E-Scooter which is like an old style Vespa, and Mitch Pearce brought along his completely self-designed E-motorbike, so we had a good range of 2-wheeled electric transport options.
Rides and drives were offered from in front of the school, and the drivers were kept busy for 2 hours from 1pm and in that time gave rides to 40 people, who were very happy to have a ride in a Tesla Model 3; although drives were on offer non were taken.
The general feeling was that the people who attended were genuinely interested in EVs, in fact a local EV dealer got three sales out of the afternoon! This demonstrates that potential EV buyers love getting questions answered by EV owners, and there is nothing like experiencing a ride in an EV to get the juices pumping and the wallet opened! Previously this event was held in the New World carpark close to the ChargeNet charger but the uptake there had been pretty casual. A dedicated EV location worked its magic!
Our thanks go to Central School for offering the venue and to the magnificent volunteers – all 12 of them – who willing gave their time and cars to make this a great afternoon! The vehicles on display were:
Nissan Leaf 24kW (3)
Nissan Leaf 30 kW (2)
Nissan Leaf 40 kW (3)
Tesla Model 3 (5)
VW E-Golf (3)
Hyundai Ioniq
Kia Soul, complete with carrier and two e-bikes
2014 Tesla Model S
Zoopa Nova Electric Moped
Pearce Arrow electric motorcycle (home made by Mitch Pearce)
GSD Electric bicycle with carrying frame
Kia Soul, complete with carrier and two e-bikes
Hyundai Ioniq
Nissan E-NV200 van - Premier Heating
The Trust is always trying to gauge the level of interest of EVs at such gatherings, and although this is not always highly scientific the numbers are valuable. Of 120 people roughly that spent time chatting to the volunteers this table is the outcome!
Knowledge of EVs
Yes
No
A. Have you RIDDEN in an EV before?
8
2
B. Have you DRIVEN an EV before?
4
6
C. Do you know someone who owns an EV?
8
2
D. No to all the above questions
0
0
Q - Why can’t you buy an EV?
I don’t think I can afford one
6
4
I have charging/range anxiety
6
4
I don't know how long the battery will last
4
6
I’m not sure if it’s better environmentally
3
7