[mally2]

Believe me I am waiting for an hopeful Ioniq 3/2 lol

Good one

[EV Fan]

Originally Posted by shankar.balan

I also have installed it on my Dad’s Glanza and indeed it makes a massive difference in not bottoming out. Why shouldnt it work for the Kona too?

I don't remember clearly but apparently Kona already comes with quite a stiff setup so i am not sure how much these buffers do to change it.
The 2 takeaways that i remember were:
The alignment went for a complete toss, repeated attempts by some of the experienced 3rd party or the Hyundai folks, could not fix it.
Hyundai has already made some modifications to make the Kona manageable for Indian roads and this did interfere with the buffers. Result was some kind of premature wear or failure of related suspension or steering component (don't remember which one exactly).
Honestly, loads of mechanical jargon were thrown around and I etched the instruction that buffers or even spacers are a strict no no.

Originally Posted by shankar.balan

I really want to be comfortable that they will work just as well in the case of the Kona.

I am not sure though, maybe other Team BHP Kona owners might be able to shed some more light. But i strictly would suggest doing some Kona specific research, if you are serious about the car but banking on Rogerab.

Originally Posted by shankar.balan

It does (despite that 170mm ground clearance) bottom out on some of the Elephantine and Sharply inclined, non-banked, un-marked Speed Breakers of Bangalore, if one misses seeing the obstacle and doesn’t slow down to crawl speed.

Scrapping the air curtain in front is quite common. But scraping the battery's metal plate in the center is what we have to avoid, the under-door sills sit higher above the metal plate.

Originally Posted by shankar.balan

The anxiety about ‘range’ - basically going Bangalore to Ooty via the Sigur Ghats on a single charge.

Not happening, unless you are trying to eek it out or hypermiling. Better do a 80% topup especially when going up. Coming back down you can start a bit lower, to recuperate and get the free charge provided by nature.

Originally Posted by shankar.balan

Perfect proportions. Small footprint, Compact, manoeuvrable with a well weighted steering. Good luggage room. Solid build, Good handling. Responsive. Comfortable. Not too big of a screen and all. Tactile feel and great switch gear. It has a Spare in these days!

This feels exactly how the OP - "GKR9900" fell for it.

Originally Posted by shankar.balan

The fear about buying a 5 year old product,especially when they have already released its newer and improved Version 2/ Gen 2 in other markets, with a much bigger battery and better range and all that.

Old yes but i also felt that the next gen/mature products were quite toned down by manufacturers (Or in other words a well balanced performance).
Where as the Kona can be all over the spectrum - I felt that the Kona actually had a higher range of customization on the drive/dynamics than even the Ioniq (fortunately/unfortunately based on perspective) & far higher efficiency.

Originally Posted by shankar.balan

This is an interesting circumstance for any prospective buyer to be in at this moment.

You really have to love this oddball blindly to fall for it.
If it's brain over heart then there are going to be far better EV's, bound to enter the market pretty soon. You might want to wait.
Or the Ioniq almost a no brainer especially since you already like it.

But do keep an out on the registration costs, they are zero (in most of the states) or comparatively very less, as of now. Unsure when the governments are going to get rid of those.

[GKR9900]

A story of 3 Konas - ThriKona


Me: Hey dude, what do you call when 3 Konas meet?
EV Fan: What dude?
Me: A ThriKona!
EV fan: ……..

This was a conversation that we had right about the time of delivery of my car. Ever since me, Srikanth and Vimal got to know each other, we wanted to have a small trip to bring our steeds together, take a photo and name it ThriKona. As luck would have it, the day came sooner than later as Republic Day was just around the corner. So about 2 weeks back, we decided to meet up and have a drive together.

But there were some logistical nuances. I was from Ernakulam, Vimal was from Chengannoor (100 kms away from my place) and Srikanth was from Bangalore. And January 26th was the window. So the place of the meet up had to be relatively accessible for each one of us. Nelliampathy, a popular hill station at Palakkad was fixed as the spot.

This spot was picked because:

1. It was kind of in the middle of Me and Vimal on one side, and Srikanth on the other.
2. With the legendary EV Fan a.k.a Vimal by our side, we could unwind and figure out the range drops expected while making a hill climb, without worrying too much.
3. The drive itself. With winding ghat sections and imperfect tarmac, roads to Nelliampathy, especially upto the Sitharkund viewpoint would be a different experience compared to our normal urban routes.

The plan was for all of us to drive down to Nenmara, which is a town that lies at the base of Nelliampathy, climb up the hill, spend some time there and get down. Srikanth and EV fan would then head out to Bangalore and I would go back home. Now if we were doing it in an ICE car, that’d be the end of the planning. Climbing up a hill in an EV, especially when there are no fast chargers at the summit was a worrying aspect. As many of you might already know, climbing up an incline is a major range-killer. EV Fan had already warned us about this. So we had to figure out a charging plan for each of us.

Now technically speaking, the round trip for me would be around 268 kms which would be a breeze in the Kona as it consistently delivers about 350 kms on a single charge. But this was in the plains. Throwing in some fast highways and a 1 km incline changes the equation. Or so I thought, because during one of our discussions, EV fan mentioned that much of the energy lost going uphill can be recuperated while going downhill using regen. Ultimately it came to exactly that as detailed later.

My route map

Srikanth was the one who would have to drive the most as he had to come down from Bangalore. So he decided to come to Coimbatore (370 kms from Bangalore) on the previous day, crash at his cousin’s place and top up the charge in his Kona to 100%. Coimbatore-Nelliyampathy round trip was around 200 kms. And then he would be heading back to Bangalore the next day. In total, he would be doing almost 1000 kms in a few days.

Everyone knows Vimal as EV Fan, and for someone who eeks out unreal efficiency numbers from his Kona - 500 kms in one charge - we were least bothered about making a plan for this guy. Vimal is 100 kms away from my place. He would be driving down to meet me en route and together we would go to Nelliyampathy. From there, he would go to Bangalore with Srikanth. That’s a total distance of about 700 kms for him. After the meet up, I would be heading back home.

Now to figure out the charging strategy. The problem with having a group EV drive is that all of us can’t charge simultaneously at one station, especially at remote locations like these. Technically speaking, me and Srikanth (as he’s starting from Coimbatore) shouldn’t worry too much as we would have hardly used up around 20-25% battery by the time we reach Nenmara. Both of us being first time EV owners and that too for hardly a month, the climb up the Nelliampathy hills kinda worried us. Because Vimal would be driving 200+ kms by the time we reach Nenmara, he might require a top up. So a few charge clusters around Nenmara and the nearby town of Vadakkanchery was identified. The KSEB charging stations were shortlisted as the likelihood of them not being functional was less compared to others.

The plan went something like this:

Vimal would be starting first, joining me en route and both of us proceeding together to Vadakkanchery. There’s a KSEB charging station adjacent to a substation there.
PLUGSHARE LINK: https://www.plugshare.com/location/461981

Vimal can put his Kona for charging there. About half a kilometre away, there was a BPCL charging station.
PLUGSHARE LINK: https://www.plugshare.com/location/517425

I could plug in my Kona there. There’s also a Saravana Bhavan next to it. So me and Vimal could’ve breakfast there while my car charges. Meanwhile, Srikanth can come to Nenmara, top up his Kona at the KSEB charging station there and have breakfast there.
PLUGSHARE LINK: https://www.plugshare.com/location/455299

By the time he’s done, me and Vimal can catch up to him. Sounded like a good plan as all 3 cars can get topped up at around the same time, but at different locations.

But in life, rarely do things go according to plan.

Judgement day!

Fast forward to 26th morning, Vimal started the journey at around 3.30 am from his place. I left home by around 6 am to meet Vimal en route. By around 6.30am, we caught up with each other.

Meeting EV fan along the way in his blue marble!


After a bio break and a quick snack, we headed out to Vadakkanchery, our first pit stop. Along the way, we decided to try out a case control study. The reason EV fan is so efficient with his Kona is predominantly his driving style. It’s very disciplined and defensive. I’m a bit more spirited with the pedals. So we decided to have a comparo with both of us sticking to our usual driving styles. I shot off to the Vadakkanchery KSEB charging station. The time I gained doing this stunt can potentially be used for topping up my Kona to some extent. And when Vimal comes in, I can unplug, he could plug in and both of us could go have breakfast. We went ahead with this improvised plan.

Morning drives especially while going through the winding 6 lane roads starting from Mannuthy, is just pure bliss.


Although I had to factor in some time for charging ahead of EV fan, couldn’t resist myself from taking a few pics while on the road.

By around 8 am, I reached the Vadakkanchery charging station.

Distance covered from home: 86 kms
Charge left: 74%
Consumption: 7.8 km/kwh (128 wh/km)

[Out of the 86 kms, I was enthusiastic for the latter 70 kms and was not even reminding myself to be efficient. My usual is about 9.5 - 10 km/kwh (100-105 wh/km), so this drop wasn’t too surprising]

However, soon hiccups started appearing one after the other.

Hiccup no.1: I pulled over to the first charging point, unlocked the port, took the charging gun and only then did I realise that the gun was different from CCS2. It wasn’t even fitting the charging port of the Kona. Reversed the car and pulled it over to the next charging point.

Hiccup no.2: Ensured that the charging gun is compatible, but the machine doesn’t show anything on its display. For a moment, I was wondering if it works or not. I decided to proceed and only then did I realise that there’s no money in the KEMAPP - the exclusive app for KSEB chargers. KSEB chargers used to work with chargeMOD previously, but it didn’t in this case. Only after topping up KEMAPP did I realise that there’s no separate QR code for KEMAPP. I circled the machine a couple of times, but none could be found. Scanned the chargeMOD QR code and I could proceed further, but unfortunately forgot to select gun 2. It was set to gun 1 by default. Charging didn’t start. By this time, EV fan had arrived. After playing around with the machine, figured out that we are supposed to tap on the display of the charging machine to get it to show something. On the machine’s display, QR code for both guns were present. I unplugged my Kona, and EV fan’s Kona was plugged in. Once his car started charging, we decided to revert to our original plan of going to the nearby BPCL charger and have breakfast.

Hiccup no.3: The BPCL charger was hardly 5 mins away from the KSEB one. As expected, it was inside a fuel station. Pulled over to its front and we couldn’t find the app for the charger. No instructions written anywhere. On enquiring at the office desk, a guy came out telling that Hello BPCL app needs to be installed. Did the same sequence of events again - installed the app, topped it up and finally charging started. Our happiness was short-lived though, as soon the charger disconnected. The app was still showing ‘initialising session’ and the requisite amount was deducted from my wallet, but the machine had other plans. Had to push the emergency stop button and do the steps again only to fail 2 more times. Each attempt required an emergency stop to disconnect the charger and refund the amount back to my wallet.

Meanwhile, Srikanth had already reached Nenmara KSEB charging station and was having some trouble setting up the charger there to top up his car. Fortunately, he was able to sort it out through a phone call with Vimal.

Now, because we didn’t have much time constraints and were on a leisurely trip with more than enough charge left, we weren’t the least bit bothered. We were disappointed because there were a few people at the station in a Madhya Pradesh registered Harrier who were keenly interested in EVs and our charging shenanigans. Judging by the look on their faces after seeing how me, Vimal and the fuel station guy was sweating it out to make the darn charger work, I seriously doubt they will consider an EV soon. But I can see that for someone who is on a tight schedule or has a single-digit charge percentage, hiccups like these can be seriously concerning.

As we spent a considerable amount of time at the BPCL charger trying to make it work, we decided to change our plan. Vimal’s car was topped up till about 90%, I was still at 74%. Srikanth is currently charging his Kona. As it would take me and Vimal around 20 mins to get to the Nenmara station, we decided to proceed to Srikanth’s location. He could charge till we get there, after which I can top up my Kona, during which all of us can have breakfast together. And we ended up doing exactly that. My car was charged to 100% during our breakfast break. Win-win!

Cars of a feather charge together


So now that all ours’ and our steeds’ bellies were full, we decided to start our convoy to Nelliampathy.

Nenmara to Sitharkund view point in Nelliampathy is almost 35 kms. 6 kms into the journey, the uphill climb starts at around Pothundy dam. The climb itself is about 1 kms in altitude through scenic winding ghat roads.

We started our journey from Nenmara making our way across lush green fields on both sides.




Soon we reached Pothundy dam and started our uphill climb. As I had charged up till 100%, decided to give the beans and drive up in my usual manner. The plan was to get an idea about consumption figures if one chooses to not hold back on the accelerator while going uphill. And boy! It was a spectacle in itself.


As already stated, by the time I reached Nenmara, my consumption was already down to 7.8 km/kwh thanks to some enthusiastic drive through the highways. When the hill climb started, one starts to see how the consumption figures deteriorate. From 7.8 km/kwh, I was down to 6 km/kwh in no time. And from there onwards it was a steady drop to 5 km/kwh and then to 4 km/kwh. I thought it would stabilise around 4, but nope! By the time we reached the summit near Sitarkund view point, my consumption figures were at 3.7 km/kwh (270 wh/km). This 35 km stretch cost me 24% battery. Srikanth and Vimal were a bit more lighter on the throttle and they ended up with better figures than mine - 4 km/kwh and 5 km/kwh respectively if I recollect correctly. All of us were in sports mode with AC set to 24.5 degrees and ventilated seats set to fan level 2.

Off-roading a softroader

We parked our cars at a secluded spot, so that we could take a few photos.




We went to the viewpoint, spent some time there and took it all in. Had some chat about our cars and life in general. After some refreshments which were made available there, we decided to start our downhill journey. The downhill drive was quite an enlightenment. I could literally see how regen worked. I consciously avoided hitting the brakes except in emergencies. Almost the entire downhill drive was made by a controlled descent using the paddles. By the time we had finished the descent, my battery was up from 76% to 80%. And this is what my consumption looked like!

Beat that EV fan!

Along the way, we stopped at a few places taking some pics.



There was a point at the top where I had clicked a photo of my XUV500 4 years back. So couldn’t help clicking another one with the Kona at the exact spot.

Soon we were back to Nenmara. ThriKona drive was drawing to a close, at least for me. I was to head back home. As it was already late evening, Vimal and Srikanth decided to drive to Coimbatore, rest there, and drive back to Bangalore the next day. I would have loved to join them, but couldn’t as I had a few commitments at home. I thanked the guys for joining in for the drive and making it such a memorable one and headed back home. Decided to again not hold back on the throttle and reached back home by around 9 pm.



The entire drive lasted around 275 kms with an average consumption of 8.1 km/kwh (123 wh/km). This included proper 6 lane highways where speeds well in excess of 100 km/h were done, a 1 km climb up and down a hill station, and rough roads or sections of no roads. Ground clearance also was tested, but with some caution, we were lucky our cars never scraped anywhere. The Kona beautifully handled all these with poise. Even if I hadn’t recharged in between, I would’ve completed this trip with almost 15% to spare. I came back mighty impressed and with some newly infused confidence of driving an EV for longer distances.

I believe that rather than the cars, it is the infra that requires a significant upgrade as of now. The hiccups I mentioned earlier could pour doubt into those who are not inclined towards EVs. But once you drive an EV, I seriously doubt you would be able to go back to an ICE car. In my mind, an EV is nothing but an alternate fuel powered mobility option, and it’s bloody good at that!

[shankar.balan]

Originally Posted by GKR9900

[b]A story of 3 Konas - ThriKona
[/planning. Climbing up a hill in an EV, especially when there are no fast chargers at the summit was a worrying aspect. As many of you might already know, climbing up an incline is a major range-killer. EV Fan had already warned us about this. So we had to figure out a charging plan for each of us.
crash at his cousin’s place and top up the charge in his Kona to 100%. Coimbatore-Nelliyampathy round trip was around 200 kms. And then he would be heading back to Bangalore the next day. In total, he would be doing almost 1000 kms in a few days.

Everyone knows Vimal as EV Fan, and for someone who eeks out unreal efficiency numbers from his Kona - 500 kms in one charge - we were least bothered about making a plan for this guy. Vimal is 100 kms away from my place. He would be driving down to meet me en route and together we would go to Nelliyampathy. From there, he would go to Bangalore with Srikanth. That’s a total distance of about 700 kms for him. After the meet up, I would be heading back home.

Soon we reached Pothundy dam and started our uphill climb. As I had charged up till 100%, decided to give the beans and drive up in my usual manner. The plan was to get an idea about consumption figures if one chooses to not hold back on the accelerator while going uphill. And boy! It was a spectacle in itself.
Attachment 2566764

As already stated, by the time I reached Nenmara, my consumption was already down to 7.8 km/kwh thanks to some enthusiastic drive through the highways. When the hill climb started, one starts to see how the consumption figures deteriorate. From 7.8 km/kwh, I was down to 6 km/kwh in no time. And from there onwards it was a steady drop to 5 km/kwh and then to 4 km/kwh. I thought it would stabilise around 4, but nope! By the time we reached the summit near Sitarkund view point, my consumption figures were at 3.7 km/kwh (270 wh/km). This 35 km stretch cost me 24% battery. Srikanth and Vimal were a bit more lighter on the throttle and they ended up with better figures than mine - 4 km/kwh and 5 km/kwh respectively if I recollect correctly. All of us were in sports mode with AC set to 24.5 degrees and ventilated seats set to fan level 2.
Attachment 2566751
Off-roading a softroader

We parked our cars at a secluded spot, so that we could take a few photos.
Attachment 2566765
Attachment 2566762
Attachment 2566750

We went to the viewpoint, spent some time there and took it all in. Had some chat about our cars and life in general. After some refreshments which were made available there, we decided to start our downhill journey. The downhill drive was quite an enlightenment. I could literally see how regen worked. I consciously avoided hitting the brakes except in emergencies. Almost the entire downhill drive was made by a controlled descent using the paddles. By the time we had finished the descent, my battery was up from 76% to 80%. And this is what my consumption looked like!
[
The entire drive lasted around 275 kms with an average consumption of 8.1 km/kwh (123 wh/km). This included proper 6 lane highways where speeds well in excess of 100 km/h were done, a 1 km climb up and down a hill station, and rough roads or sections of no roads. Ground clearance also was tested, but with some caution, we were lucky our cars never scraped anywhere. The Kona beautifully handled all these with poise. Even if I hadn’t recharged in between, I would’ve completed this trip with almost 15% to spare. I came back mighty impressed and with some newly infused confidence of driving an EV for longer distances.

I believe that rather than the cars, it is the infra that requires a significant upgrade as of now. The hiccups I mentioned earlier could pour doubt into those who are not inclined towards EVs. But once you drive an EV, I seriously doubt you would be able to go back to an ICE car. In my mind, an EV is nothing but an alternate fuel powered mobility option, and it’s bloody good at that!

Well done!
This gives a lot of confidence apart from being very interesting and visually pleasant with the Trikonas around!
Drives like these are the only way to figure out stuff in real life.
Please help me with the following as I have forgotten because it is a long time ago that I went around the Nelliampathy Hills and Vandiperiyar and all and I am sure that all the roads would be much better and wider now.
1. Whats the route you took Coimbatore to Nelliampathy and back?
2. Where does the climb start and end?
3 How long is the climb?
4. How steep is the climb?
5. Was there much traffic and how did that change the efficiency?

Thanks a lot in advance!

[ex-innova-guy]

Thanks for sharing about this drive so candidly. As time passes I am sure the infrastructure would develop but real world user review like yours are definitely needed and important. Wishing ThriKona's many more such drives together.

Can't help but quote these 2 pictures from Dr.AD's thread where the Beemers posed in a similar fashion.

Attachment 2453755
Attachment 2265501

[rajeevsulu]

This is me with my cousin's Kona in Yercaud. I was never a fan of ev's till I did this trip. Man, am I impressed? I never drove on the trip but i was very very impressed. Lovely vehicle and he reportedly saves 10 k every month. He is a heavy driver and has completed 10 k kilometers in 3 months
Cheers

[electric_eel]

Originally Posted by GKR9900

A story of 3 Konas - ThriKona


Me: Hey dude, what do you call when 3 Konas meet?
EV Fan: What dude?
Me: A ThriKona!
EV fan: ……..

That was a fantastic write up. By the way in a high range drive you can (almost) beat EV_Fan in his own range games. Last time I checked he has not (yet) found the cheat codes for the laws of physics and the energy on the climb component can only be changed by weight reduction. Since all of you have the same car this will not matter.

This trip also confirms (experimentally) an important point regarding range: For any meaningful conversation on range you should only look at round trip efficiency as it evens out the effect of terrain. By extension, you can estimate the deviation in efficiency (from round trip driving) for a trip from A to B only by looking at the elevation gain/drop between the end points A and B and not worrying about the nature (climb/drop) of the road in between.

[GKR9900]

Originally Posted by ex-innova-guy

Wishing ThriKona's many more such drives together.

Can't help but quote these 2 pictures from Dr.AD's thread where the Beemers posed in a similar fashion.

Thanks mate! Hope to do a few more Thrikona drives in the future. And those beemer pics look dope!

Originally Posted by rajeevsulu

This is me with my cousin's Kona in Yercaud. I was never a fan of ev's till I did this trip.
Cheers

My love affair with EVs also started on seeing a grey Kona that a colleague used to own. One drive in the Kona and you are an instant convert.

Originally Posted by electric_eel

That was a fantastic write up. By the way in a high range drive you can (almost) beat EV_Fan in his own range games. Last time I checked he has not (yet) found the cheat codes for the laws of physics and the energy on the climb component can only be changed by weight reduction. Since all of you have the same car this will not matter.

Haha! I am sure EV fan is smoking his head somewhere meticulously calculating how to better his already impressive numbers. For him, minimalism is the name of the game and I wouldn't be surprised if he shaves off his head or something to gain a weight advantage and improve his efficiency further. Talking of which, he was already carrying excess weight compared to us. He had a cycle, tent (and God knows what all else) which were tucked inside the rear cabin of his Kona. His efficiency numbers would have been higher had it not been for this.

Originally Posted by shankar.balan

Well done!

1. Whats the route you took Coimbatore to Nelliampathy and back?
2. Where does the climb start and end?
3 How long is the climb?
4. How steep is the climb?
5. Was there much traffic and how did that change the efficiency?

Thanks a lot in advance!

1. Route was Coimbatore- Palakkad-Nenmara-Nelliyampathi and back for Srikanth.

2. Climb started around Pothundy dam.

3. It was about 25kms long

4. It was 1km steep.

5. Being a holiday, traffic was there. The roads were not the best. Up until Pothundy dam, it was ok. After that, the tarmac wasn't always even. But towards the peak and till Sitharkund viewpoint, some sections were very bad. Efficiency dropped considerably while going up. While coming down, at certain sections due to narrow roads and high traffic, we had to spend a considerable amount of time lying idle and maneuvering at low speeds. Spent around 1 hr charging as we were having breakfast and talking. The initial BPCL charger debacle costed us around 40 mins. But even after factoring in all this, an average consumption of 8.1 km/kwh was rather surprising for me.

[evtdtorque]

Originally Posted by GKR9900

1. Route was Coimbatore- Palakkad-Nenmara-Nelliyampathi and back for Srikanth.

2. Climb started around Pothundy dam.

3. It was about 25kms long

4. It was 1km steep.

5. Being a holiday, traffic was there. The roads were not the best. Up until Pothundy dam, it was ok. After that, the tarmac wasn't always even. But towards the peak and till Sitharkund viewpoint, some sections were very bad. Efficiency dropped considerably while going up. While coming down, at certain sections due to narrow roads and high traffic, we had to spend a considerable amount of time lying idle and maneuvering at low speeds. Spent around 1 hr charging as we were having breakfast and talking. The initial BPCL charger debacle costed us around 40 mins. But even after factoring in all this, an average consumption of 8.1 km/kwh was rather surprising for me.

Wonderful writeup Gokul. Emotional to read this thread and very happy to be part of Thrikona Meet with you and EV_Fan
Additional details on efficiency figures on my black Kona :
Bangalore-Coimbatore 375km stretch with 8 km/kWh with consistent 3 digit speeds
Coimbatore- Nenmara 100km with 9.7 km/kWh with relaxed driving
Nenmara-Nelliyampathy 35km with 4 km/kWh for uphill with heavy traffic
Nenmara-Nelliyampathy-Nenmara 70km with 7.5 km/kWh for roundtrip with heavy traffic
Coimbatore-Bangalore 375km stretch with 8.4 km/kWh. Got better figures even though return trip to Bangalore is with incline as I was accompanied by EV_Fan and got useful tips

[wocanak]

Originally Posted by GKR9900

Haha! I am sure EV fan is smoking his head somewhere meticulously calculating how to better his already impressive numbers. For him, minimalism is the name of the game and I wouldn't be surprised if he shaves off his head or something to gain a weight advantage and improve his efficiency further. Talking of which, he was already carrying excess weight compared to us. He had a cycle, tent (and God knows what all else) which were tucked inside the rear cabin of his Kona. His efficiency numbers would have been higher had it not been for this.

I am also wondering if the car color makes a difference in A/C power consumption, yours being white could consume less.

[electric_eel]

Originally Posted by wocanak

I am also wondering if the car color makes a difference in A/C power consumption, yours being white could consume less.

Now that you said it do not be surprised if in the next Thrikona drive the blue car becomes white or worse comes painted with reflecting paint all around it. One idea for the next trip: take a picture with the three cars forming the edges of a triangle (taken from above).

Also wondering did you attract a crowd (other than the folks at the petrol pump) asking you things about EVs. While nexon evs are rather common here in Palakkad, I rarely see konas here that too three of them together.

[evtdtorque]

Originally Posted by electric_eel

Now that you said it do not be surprised if in the next Thrikona drive the blue car becomes white or worse comes painted with reflecting paint all around it.

Color of car definitely makes considerable impact on efficiency along with having CR70 film for glass area. In our discussion, there was comment on inside temperature being 5-7 degree more in black car compared to white car parked in sunlight. During day drives, black car AC would be working more to keep cabin cool at same temperature. Having said that I saw 5-8% being consumed for climate on my black Kona on both long drives with ACC set to 24 deg and ventilated seats ON. Not worth making more changes in car to save this 5% further, but be aware of this factors to overcome range issues in emergency.

Originally Posted by electric_eel

Also wondering did you attract a crowd (other than the folks at the petrol pump) asking you things about EVs. While nexon evs are rather common here in Palakkad, I rarely see konas here that too three of them together.

It did attract crowd, there were questions on range, efficiency etc.. whenever we stopped. Whoever spoke seems to be already having some details on EVs, they were happy to hear positive statements.

[GKR9900]

Originally Posted by wocanak

I am also wondering if the car color makes a difference in A/C power consumption, yours being white could consume less.

Exactly as Srikanth has mentioned below:

Originally Posted by evtdtorque

In our discussion, there was comment on inside temperature being 5-7 degree more in black car compared to white car parked in sunlight.

This was one thing that we discussed during the meetup. Although we couldn't do any objective testing, the temperature inside my car felt much lower than the other two while parked in the open sun.

Originally Posted by electric_eel

Now that you said it do not be surprised if in the next Thrikona drive the blue car becomes white or worse comes painted with reflecting paint all around it.

Trust me! He is already on it

Originally Posted by electric_eel

One idea for the next trip: take a picture with the three cars forming the edges of a triangle (taken from above).

This was something that we had discussed initially but forgot about once the trip was underway. I even went scouting for a drone to make the shot. Will definitely try next time.

Originally Posted by electric_eel

Also wondering did you attract a crowd (other than the folks at the petrol pump) asking you things about EVs. While nexon evs are rather common here in Palakkad, I rarely see konas here that too three of them together.

As Srikanth has mentioned, our little convoy did spark the interest of some onlookers at various points. I distinctly remember this one time when we stopped to get the photo of all 3 cars, when a young guy popped his head out of a moving bus and shouted 'Nice car brooooo!' Was quite a fun moment!

[EV Fan]

Consumption & efficiency figures:
While The Blue marble was trailing behind the lightning fast Vella Kona and the agile Black Knight, it was no laggard. and more than matched them with its fluid rolling efficiencies.

Nenmara-Nelliyampathy 70 km Round trip - 10.8KM/KWh
4.7 km/kWh for uphill and 3% charge gain while coming downhill
Bad roads and loose stuff in the boot is a match made in hell.




Chengannur-Bangalore 1350 km Round Trip - 11.28KM/KWh
10.2KM/KWh going uphill to bangalore and 13.9KM/KWh coming downhill
A 13 hour drive thanks to the primarily single carriageway highways of Kerala.


[/ATTACH]

The biggest heartache was all the racket thanks to the bad roads. Even where both of you guys were gliding over, i was technically tackling them to minimize all the bouncing around.

Originally Posted by evtdtorque

Wonderful writeup Gokul. Emotional to read this thread and very happy to be part of Thrikona Meet with you and EV_Fan

Looking forward for more of these getaway's. As shankar.balan mentioned, it reminded me too of the Italian Job.

Only thing is, i was the only one carrying the gold

Originally Posted by GKR9900

Trust me! He is already on it

Your advantage of Vella (White) Kona is not lost on me. Test runs to negate your advantage were already on, if you didn't notice the sun shades.
And the answer to your question, Chengannur to Nelliampathy in single charge is difficult. Might need switching off the AC & hypermiling.

Originally Posted by electric_eel

This trip also confirms (experimentally) an important point regarding range: For any meaningful conversation on range you should only look at round trip efficiency as it evens out the effect of terrain.

Very true and something that i have been following, but i can also understand why some of the folks are concerned about the dropping range during uphill climbs.
While i do try to address their concerns about tackling uphills, somehow the advantage of the downhill regen is completely lost on them or just plain overshadowed by the uphill anxiety.

[EV Fan]

Originally Posted by shankar.balan

2. Where does the climb start and end?
3 How long is the climb?
4. How steep is the climb?
Thanks a lot in advance!

Adding visual reference on elevation data for better understanding.
As GKR9900 indicated, its a 1000m elevation gain from Pothundy dam.

The climb included a few short dips/downhills also. Hence the figures of
Elevation Gain/Loss - 1391m/-494m



The roads were bad and the traffic would come to a deadlock in certain narrow sections or hair pins. Definitely worse off than Ooty or Munnar sections if i remember correctly.