In September 2021 we had a very small gathering for this year’s National Drive Electric Week (NDEW) for obvious reasons. Instead of inviting all the vendors and exhibitors we only sent invites to the local dealerships to bring an EV or two so they could do the test rides. Our personal EVs were there mostly for show and tell – which is one of the main ideas for the NDEW event around the country! Where else can you see all the different makes and models of electric vehicles in one place? How else can you get your questions answered from “the horse’s mouth” of the people that live with and drive these cars every day to work, school, and the grocery store? The big news this year is just how serious other automakers have gotten with making EVs with over 200 and 300 miles of range. Thanks to all the new fast chargers that are getting installed every single day on our highways, road trips are getting easier and faster thanks to new EVs with faster charging speeds (measured in kilowatts: kW) to fill the larger batteries (capacity measured in kilowatt-hours: kWh). We noticed again this year just like we do every year we have these public events that the cars tend to sell themselves as soon as you mention it only takes about 9$ to “fill up”. And when we show how little we pay for maintenance (a jug of windshield washer fluid, a cabin air filter, and tire rotation as an example of routine maintenance) it becomes a no-brainer that everyone is saving money by driving electric. It just so happens to clean the air as well – especially when you install solar panels on your house to charge the car on pure sunlight for fuel! About 20% of our Space Coast EV Drivers club have done this and talk about how they did it, how much it cost, and how much they are saving every month. Our next monthly meet up in November will be on Saturday Nov 13, at the David R Schechter Community Center in Satellite Beach from 1030 am to 12 and will be a food drive for the Basket Brigade. More information can be found on our Upcoming EVents page.

Here’s some photos from NDEW 2021: https://photos.app.goo.gl/ReY3aSB48my3xhh9A