Business Trip to Nanki Kushimoto: Part 1

This is I, an employee. Today, I will report on our records from the business trip that two of our employees took in the spring of 2021.

A Journey of 570km with Ultra-Compact Mobility

The destination is Kushimoto Town in Wakayama Prefecture, a town located at the southernmost tip of Honshu with a population of about 15,000. We received an inquiry from someone willing to cooperate with our EV sharing system and the zero travel proof of concept in this area. To deliver the vehicle, we will take on the journey of about 570km from Tokyo to Kushimoto Town, tackling it non-stop for 7 hours with our BMW i3.

BMW i3 (photo taken by us)

Our BMW i3, being a used model from 2014, has a slightly smaller battery capacity compared to newer models. It can travel about 120km on a full charge, and being a compact vehicle for four passengers, we are conducting experiments assuming ultra-compact mobility.

Reference Article: What is Ultra-Compact Mobility?

Reference Article: What is Zero Travel?

This vehicle was purchased for urban driving only, so traversing a distance of about 570km is different from the originally intended use. How many times did we need to charge, and how long did it take to arrive? Please watch our unexpected journey.

Departure, and Heading West on the Tomei Expressway

At 7 AM, we gathered at a certain location in Setagaya, Tokyo.

About 570km from Tokyo, heading west on the Tomei Expressway

We enter Mie toward Nagoya South Junction, aiming for the southernmost town on Honshu by descending the Kii Peninsula.

Charging along the way is essential. There is no way to reach our destination without charging.

Therefore, I checked for charging locations in advance and planned the long-distance trip carefully and realistically.

Above: Route to the location / Below: Charging spots to the location

The first charging spot was Ashigara Service Area on the Tomei Expressway, and we arrived without any traffic in about an hour.

Basically, rapid charging in Japan lasts up to 30 minutes, and the power output depends on the charging point, but our BMW i3 recovers about 70% in roughly 30 minutes.

(The charger output at Ashigara SA on the downtrack is 40kW, maximum current value: 100 A)

The second location is Shizuoka Service Area in Shizuoka Prefecture. (I forgot to take a photo...)

And the third location is Nagashino Shirakawa PA on the second Tomei Expressway. We smoothly entered Aichi Prefecture.

At this point, it was just past 12 o'clock. Shizuoka Prefecture is indeed very wide from east to west.

Incident Occurs

After leaving Nagashino Shirakawa PA, we set the next charging relay point at Wangan Nagashima PA in Kuwana City, Mie Prefecture. This PA is adjacent to Nagashima Spa Land. It's about 80km from Nagashino Shirakawa PA, and the dashboard showed about 80% remaining battery with approximately 110km range. Based on the displayed numbers and our previous experience with three charging sessions, we expected to reach it without any issues.

However, the incident occurred over the sea.

While traveling on the Ise Bay Expressway near Meiko Triton, a sudden discomfort and bad premonition struck me as the driver.

No matter how much I pressed the accelerator, the vehicle slowed down.

However, the dashboard displayed a battery level of 20%, with about 25km left.

It was about 10km to the planned charging PA.

Hurriedly steering to the shoulder, I drove about 500m at around 30km/h when suddenly,

Finally, Complete Stop...

Here I am on the expressway, and moreover on a bridge over the sea. I feel completely terrified.

I quickly called for roadside assistance.

Later, I found out when I took it to the dealer for repairs that there seems to be an issue with the connection between the speedometer and the actual SOC (State of Charge). EVs released in the early days need careful attention... I hope that the EVs released recently have better technology.

The tow truck arrived safely in about 30 minutes...

I was taken to Wangan Nagashima PA where I had originally planned to charge.

To be continued