Please note, Flash Forward has been cancelled due to the postponement of BCIT's EVolution '22 Festival of Learning until sometime in 2023.

Below is our original news release for this event.

Electric Vehicle World Record Pursuit
‘Flash Forward’ at EVolution ‘22 The largest gathering of electric vehicles anywhere!

Vancouver, BC August 4, 2022 – for immediate release

The future is electric. A vision of when all vehicles are zero emission is set for September 25, 2022 at BCIT’s EVolution ‘22 where, among 45 other attractions, the largest gathering of electric vehicles worldwide will be attempted.

Electric vehicle growth has exploded in the past few years with British Columbia leading North America in per capita adoption. BC first quarter 2022 zero emission vehicle registrations were at 17.1% - the highest in Canada, and if you just take the census metropolitan area of Vancouver that number bumps to 21.6%.  The same thing has happened with personal e-mobility.  E-bikes, scooters, skateboards and unicycles are booming too. “There is no better place than in Greater Vancouver to hold this come together event for EVs (Electric Vehicles)” said John Stonier, Spokesperson for the Vancouver Electric Vehicle Association (VEVA). He continued “A common trait of electric vehicle owners is that they love to share their knowledge and passion for this technology – Flash Forward will provide the largest aggregation of e-vehicles ever attempted.”

The event will be part of BC Institute of Technology’s EVolution ‘22 that promises to be the biggest electrified vehicle show of the year.  Being held September 25 at BCIT’s Burnaby campus, attendees will be able to discover and learn the realities about our evolving EV Ecosystem as they engage in over 45 “edutainment” attractions with something for everyone in the family – and it’s free to attend. “We want to break down all the ‘mythinformation’ about EV culture and empower the public to become informed consumers who can support the growth of sustainable energy and electrified transportation in all its forms.” added Bryan Fair, EVolution ’22 Event Director. 

VEVA is calling out to all electric vehicle owners to participate in this free event. It will be an unprecedented opportunity to meet other EV owners and will include awards, prizes and special offers to be announced shortly.

Both individuals and businesses are invited to register their attending vehicles in one of five categories representing the full spectrum of electric technology on our roads today.

The five vehicle categories are:

1.       Battery electric cars, trucks, motorcycles (registered in BC by ICBC or other Prov/State’s DMV)

2.       Personal e-mobility: bikes, scooters, skateboards, Segways and unicycles.

3.       Hydrogen fuel cell vehicles

4.       Electric vehicle conversions

5.       Plug-in hybrid with minimum 30km all electric range

According to Electric Autonomy, Canada’s leading news outlet for electric vehicles, the world record was set in October 2021 in Quebec with 733 vehicles. The question will be, which category will have the most attendees? For that, the e-mobility motoring public will decide.

But things are moving fast in the EV world.  A California event happening August 6^th could bump this record.  Will British Columbia EV drivers meet the challenge? 

Registrations for Flash Forward are open now at https://veva.ca/.

About the Vancouver Electric Vehicle Association

VEVA was formed in 1988 as a non-profit society to promote the use and adoption of electric vehicles through educational programs and outreach to the general public, other not-for-profit organizations, business and government leaders.

VEVA membership is open to the public and engages both individual and business members with monthly member meetings to hear the latest news and developments related to electric vehicles, and also through twice weekly Meet-ups/on-line discussion forums, and in person events throughout the year.

Media Contacts:

Harry Constantine, President                                  president@VEVA.CA
John Stonier, Spokesperson, Past President           media@VEVA.CA     1.778.775.8456
Bryan Fair, BCIT, Event Director, EVolution ‘22 evolution22@BCIT.CA

By John Stonier, VEVA President, published on Medium. 

The 1957 Chevrolet Bel Air.

Blasphemy! How could you corrupt the original factory composition of a car and still consider it a “classic”? The sound of combustion and the smell of gasoline are intricately connected to the joy of owning an antique or classic car. The feeling of explosive power. Originality counts.

Or does it?

Is electrification physically practical?

Ten years ago, one-off conversions from combustion engines to electric motors still utilized lead acid or early lithium-ion batteries and a limited selection of motors and power electronics. While viable, the resulting range and power of those early conversions was limited and unimpressive.

Continue reading  the full story here.

By George McCrae, VEVA Member*
With thanks to fellow EVers

*Editor's note:  George McCrae was a founding member of VEVA in 1987, and prior to that was actively involved in the 1912 Detroit Electric's appearance at Expo86, and subsequent transfer to VEVA years later.

Having a favourable attitude to electric powered vehicles, a decision was made to purchase a battery electric vehicle (BEV) to meet city transportation needs and sell my gas SUV. A used EV was suggested as an economic choice for a reliable second vehicle with shorter range in city driving. An older (2015) Nissan Leaf with a 24Kwhr battery at odometer 76,000Kms became available at a reasonable price point but with limited service history and out-of-warranty. This may be a similar situation for other buyers, and therefore the experience of evaluating reliability and condition may be of value to the reader. This article will be posted in two sections: Battery and Range evaluations; Mechanical Inspections and Auxiliaries.  

Battery and Range

The private Owner represented the main battery, also called the traction battery, as in good condition with a forecast range greater than 120Km, but that the vehicle front bumper and hood  had been damaged in a parked incident and was classified as Salvage by ICBC. There  appeared to be no damage to the interior of the engine compartment and the sale was completed without further tests. At home, charging of  the traction battery with the Nissan Level 1 EVSE, sometimes referred to as the ‘wall charger’ (15A max at 120VAC or trickle charging), basically meant overnight so a higher rated power supply  was advised. The common rating for Level 2 (240VAC) is 32A, but the house source was limited to 20A. Fortunately a 16A 240VAC EVSE was found and reduced the charging time for 20% to 80% of battery capacity to 2.5 hours. Charging at a Level 2 public station would be about 1.5 hour, or less by using their DC fast charger.

To  evaluate the traction battery, an assessment was recommended and available from Nissan or a service garage but it was decided to procure LeafSpy Pro software and a common auto data port connector (OBD2 dongle) suitable to a cell iPhone. Even with the high odometer reading the result was positive as  the battery State-of-Health (SoH) was 86.4% and the indicated 12 of 12 bars on the dash status was valid. One cell is reading slightly below the average but is manageable.

Picture below: LeafSpy Pro screenshot

Deterioration of SoH of about 2%/year is common so the battery has stood up well and credit must go to previous users. Information on Lithium-ion batteries suggests strongly that the working charge range be between 15% and 85% State-of-Charge (SoC). At a SoC of 85%, the working range with this battery is about 90Kms, adequate for city tripping but realizing that  temperatures below 10C ambient  will reduce this range.

Upon checking the 12V lead acid battery that is critical to the starting and functionality of accessories, it was not charging to full capacity and failed when load tested at 100A. A new 50Ahr battery was procured and installed. To guard against a future failure a digital voltmeter plugged into the cigarette lighter socket was procured to allow frequent observation of status. Some owners have reported 12V battery failures at less than three years and some have had six or more years of satisfactory service.

Mechanical Inspections and Auxiliaries

Reading various forum sources, like mynissanleaf.com, and FaceBook groups, led to a decision to replace the reduction gear box oil. This service is available from Nissan dealers but alternatively an auto repair shop was chosen to drain and replace the oil as this allowed an inspection of the brakes and tires while on the hoist. The drained oil was black from magnetic particles.

Picture below:  Old vs new reduction gear box oil (76,000km)

Otherwise all was found to be in good condition and unlikely to require attention for 25,000Kms.. The brake fluid was tested for moisture content and found to be clear and dry.

All the multiple lights, instrumentation, key functions, etc., were checked and found serviceable. For personal reasons, a suitable trailer hitch was installed, a small interior space heater with a light actuator was procured for winter conditions, and a second remote key fob was purchased and programmed. 

It is critical to have an Owners Manual to fully learn and use the many user friendly features, and can be sourced from Nissan on the Internet. Although the S model does not have the sophisticated Navigation package, it does have a good reverse camera. So at an attractive depreciated cost for purchase, taxes, servicing and optional equipment, a reliable and efficient emission free car for city needs, a nugget, has been acquired. Good luck on your acquisition. Photos of LeafSpy available on request.

George McCrae, VEVA Member
Cell/text: 778-773-4365

VEVA is proud to be working with the Green Technology Education Centre on their GenZ Electric Vehicle Education Project working with high school students a recent competition was held to create a tik tok video:

Gavin Phillips and Small Things Add Up

Posted by Arden Henley | Mar 16, 2021 | climate change, e-vehicles, energy, GenZ Electric Vehicle Education Project

Students from Kalamalka Secondary School in Vernon, BC and Hugh Boyd Secondary School in Richmond, BC are learning more about how electrified transportation can help save the planet in GTEC’s GenZ Electric Vehicle Education Project. During February and March groups of students from both schools have been competing online to create a responses to the Project’s Challenges. One of the challenges was to create a 15 second TikTok video about Electric vehicles.

Kalamalka’s Gavin Phillips won this week’s challenge with this superb 15 second video below –

https://youtu.be/LrIM91vdi0Y

See full article here:

https://www.gteccanada.ca/gavin-phillips-and-small-things-add-up/

Nearly seven in 10 Canadians intend to make their next vehicle purchase an EV: KPMG Survey

https://electricautonomy.ca/2021/03/03/canadian-poll-ev-adoption/

The 2021 SCRAP-IT rebates are now available!

https://scrapit.ca/

NOTE used scrap-it cars built after 2002 must now burn more than 7.2 litres per 100 km to qualify.  Cars built before 2002 all qualify.

Check out their website to enter your VIN # to check qualification

Excerpt from Scrapit.ca  below:

Does My Old Vehicle Qualify for an EV Rebate?

In our 2021 program not every vehicle can be scrapped for an EV new or used rebate.

Please be aware that you still need to meet the 6 months insurance requirement as outlined on the Scrap Your Car page.

Our funding agreement for 2021 requires that vehicles scrapped through our program meet fuel efficiency guidelines. For vehicles model year 2002 or newer, the vehicle is not eligible to be scrapped in exchange for a SCRAP-IT rebate if the vehicle has electric drive train components (e.g. hybrid, plug-in hybrid, battery electric and hydrogen fuel cell vehicles), or if the vehicle has a Fuel Consumption Rating of 7.1 L/100km (city) or better as listed in Natural Resources Canada Fuel Consumption Guide (based on the year the vehicle was manufactured).

This is a full day conference that starts at 2:15pm Pacific Time Thursday November 26th (Nov 27th in Australia, across the international dateline)

Registration https://aeva.delegateconnect.co/pages/registration
International General admission is AUD$45 (~CAD$43)

Our President, John Stonier will be speaking on the International EVA discussion panel at 3:15pm November 26th with other EVA representatives

A round-table discussion looking at the question of how EV Associations can best support and promote the EV transition according to their local conditions.  Hear from EVA representatives from around the world on what they do and how they work. Discussion lead by AEVA national Vice-Chair, Clive Attwater. 

• Kathryn Trounson Chair - Better NZ TrustAuckland, New Zealand
• Clive Attwater National Vice-President - AEVAHobart, Tasmania
• Christina Bu Secretary General - Norwegian EV AssociationOslo, Norway
• Alister Hamilton Chairman and Executive Director - EVA ScotlandEdinburgh, Scotland
• John Stonier President - Vancouver Electric Vehicle Association (VEVA)Vancouver, Canada

The million-mile battery is here, but it is not new.

Battery Day — September 22, 2020 — promises to be memorable for the future of electric vehicles. Its scheduled “great reveal” for sector-leader Tesla is just one in an impressive string of innovation that continues to break the mold of auto-making.

Continue reading here.

Published by Electric Autonomy
By Stephanie Wallcraft

BC Hydro is rethinking its charging stations to meet the needs of present day mobility-impaired drivers as well as the trailer-towing electric SUVs and trucks of the near future

When mobility-impaired EV drivers pull in to use public charging stations, it takes no time at all to see that their needs have not been factored into the design of many of those stations.

Featuring VEVA member Jacques Courteau.

Read the full article here.

By John Stonier, President  Vancouver Electric Vehicle Association
Published March 30, 2020

In the 10 years since electric vehicles (EVs) began rolling off production lines, we’ve passed the early adopter stage. Hundreds of thousands of buyers have enjoyed the many benefits of electric transportation: superior performance, low operating costs, and virtually no maintenance costs. Most say they’ll never go back to internal combustion engine (ICE) vehicles. And now further technological advances, models, and improved utility are combining to increase cost savings and drive mass adoption.

There are many environmental and social reasons to go electric, but I’m going to address the practical, economic issues that have been a concern for many. We now know that EV cost savings are real and sustained. 

Continue reading the full article here  as part of Innovating Canada's Future of Transportation series.