Trying out a few different electric cars and vans...

[MB]

I had the opportunity to put a few electric vehicles through their paces yesterday at speeds of up to 70mph at Rockingham Racing Circuit. It seemed impolite to decline and it was interesting to see whether I could still drive fast around a circuit, having not driven competitively since March 1991. (The answer by racing driver standards, by the way, is an emphatic ‘no’, although I was still able to lap faster than most people on the circuit).

Having driven around a few laps in a couple of BMW saloons and a Lexus, I felt suitably warmed up and ready to try the electric vehicles.

First up I tried the new Microvek Fiat Doblo conversion. First impressions were good: a full five seat car with all normal car mod cons. The electric motor drove through the Fiat five-speed gearbox.

Unfortunately, there was very little boot space - instead there was a huge box in the boot containing the lithium-ion batteries.

Starting up driving around the track, I was impressed. The car pulled strongly from a standing start and was comfortably able to hold its own against a lot of the cars on the track. Unfortunately going down to turn two the car suddenly lost all power and I coasted to a halt in one of the run off areas next to a marshalling station.

I switched everything off and back on again and then the car behaved again. I subsequently found out that because I had changed from second to fourth gear, the motor switched itself off so that it didn't damage the gearbox. I didn't quite understand this - at the time I was driving at around 50mph and 4th gear should have been accessible at this speed. Once the system shut down the car had to be stopped before restarting. Not particularly good. Imagine that happening on the M25?

The other big problem was the handling. By removing the weight of the engine from the front and putting the lithium ion batteries in the boot - fairly high up and behind the rear wheels, the handling became pretty abysmal. Mind you, it couldn't have been that bad - I overtook a VW Caddy on the outside of the banking and a Citroen C1 along the back straight having got my power down quicker out of the previous corner.

Overall, I have to say I was impressed: here was an electric car with the performance of a petrol car, which drove in the same way and was easy to use. Some faults need to be fixed on it to bring it right up to the mark, but it is a very good starting point.

Honour being satisfied, it was time to try the next car. This was a ZEV conversion on a Peugeot Expert Tepee Long. Like the Fiat Doblo, first impressions were good, benefiting from the gazillion euros of development money poured into the car by Peugeot. Like the Microvek, however, the car suffered with problems with the electrical conversion.

Handling was good: the batteries are fitted under the floor which meant the centre of gravity was low. The ZEV conversion does away with the gearbox completely and the gear leaver is replaced by a forwards-backwards switch on the dashboard.

Unfortunately, in the case of the ZEV, this is a mistake. The car is geared to reach 70mph, but as a result has almost zero mid range acceleration: from 30mph it took nearly a minute to reach 70mph. I can imagine van drivers using the van derivative of this car getting very frustrated with the performance even when the van is empty, let alone with a full load.

Then it was off to try a Modec commercial vehicle. I’ve driven these before and despite being the slowest vehicle on the track – with a top speed of 50mph – it was also the best sorted electric vehicle I tried.

First impressions are of a really clear view of the road, with lots of space and a comfortable driving position. As you pull away, you hear this incredible whine from the motor – it sounds like a jet turbine warming up! Stick this motor into an electric sports car and nobody would ever complain about the lack of an engine noise – it sounded wonderful!

Acceleration off the mark is brisk and the van pulls well up to its electronically limited top speed of 50mph. It handles well too – I would suggest it is better planted on the ground than a Ford Transit. Whilst I was never able to overtake anyone in the Modec, I could easily keep up in the corners: we went into one chicane with a Lexus and BMW ahead of me and the Modec gained considerably against the other two cars. Another lap and I’m sure I could have past the Lexus. White Van Man rules, but this time his steed is electric.

After the track action, it was time to go and look at the exhibition and to try out the Aixam Mega City on a coned-out driving area in the car park. Unfortunately, the area was too small to get a proper impression of the car: you press the go pedal and it goes, you press the stop pedal and it stops, so a full test will have to wait for another day...