Tim Roberts (Fleet Strategy) drive continues across the Nullarbor, and it safe to say the Mitsubishi is Outlander PHEV is more than pulling its weight and is proving to be a great companion across the journey. During the trip Tim will be covering over 5000km of varied terrain and hopes to test the overall performance of both the traditional and the electric engines.
The recent days have been an eye-opening experience for Tim, highlighted recently with a keynote address by Maj. Gen. Charles F. Bolden (Ret.) and networking with key delegates from The City of Adelaide.
LONG DRIVE ON A SMALL PLANET
This week I attended a keynote by Maj. Gen. Charles F. Bolden (Ret.). Four time shuttle astronaut appointed by President Obama to run NASA. His address was enthralling & enlightening, closing with an impassioned plea for global collaboration within the space science community (it applies to us too).
Mr Bolden noted that in orbit, there are no defined borders & no evidence of politics. As he closed, a looping time-lapse of the Moon passing in front of the Earth played. I watched the clip & realised that Australia was clearly visible . I was struck with the realisation that I could see my entire driving route from Perth to Adelaide.
It’s a long drive through empty country on an otherwise crowded planet. 71% of our planet is covered by water & 7.5 billion people share the land. In contrast, Australia has a population of only 24.6 million, two thirds in the major cities & a lot of emptiness between. Australia is a unique country where road trips & long drives are an integral part of our culture. Simply seeing our continent rotating into view in a video time-lapse is striking, we are a fortunate people. I’m not likely to see the Earth the incredible way that Major General Bolden did on his shuttle missions, even
I’m not likely to see the Earth the incredible way that Major General Bolden did on his shuttle missions, even so his recollections left a big impression.
CENTRAL MARKET ELECTRIC VEHICLE HUB LAUNCH.
Thanks once again to The City of Adelaide and Mitsubishi Motors Australia Limited for the opportunity to drive a Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV across the country and attend the official launch of the Central Market Electric Vehicle Hub.
Lord Mayor of Adelaide – Martin Haese
THE WAITING GAME
Two weeks on the road and I’ve learned a great new way to make friends, plug in an EV and wait.
This morning I pulled into the brand new Central Markets EV charging station in Adelaide to top up the PHEV. Within minutes was deep in conversation with a few curious and impressed members of the public. I really enjoy these opportunities and often feel that we’re yet to deliver a broad and clear message when it comes to the practicality of EV’s.
Of course I got away a little later than planned. I left Adelaide bound for Ceduna on a long leg of my return journey (840km). Fortunately, daylight savings kicked in over the weekend and I’d already consulted my weather app, sunset at Ceduna was 7:38pm, enough time to travel the distance with regular fatigue breaks. I also reduced my cruising speed to 100kmh, even so the journey only took an additional 45 minutes and with regular breaks I still arrived a full 30 minutes before sunset at my destination.
On my trip from Perth to Adelaide I had favourable winds and averaged 7.1l/100km over this section. Without those winds heading back, I maintained the same consumption figures by reducing speed. More importantly, by slightly reducing my speed I also gave myself an additional safety margin with reaction time and decreased braking distance.
More info about Tim’s trip can be found at the Fleet Strategy and Launch Site webesites
