A great way to lower your carbon footprint is by eating plants and reducing or eliminating meat in your diet. It’s just a question of finding a way to do it that works for you.
So, how do you move to more plant-based eating? There are plenty of books and websites, but I found a way that is helping me get started. It’s called Fork Ranger.
Fork Ranger is a Dutch startup based in Amsterdam. Its co-founder, Frank Holleman, followed a familiar path to climate crisis awareness. He saw An Inconvenient Truth in 2006 and started thinking about what he could do. After scrubbing a plan to explore Antarctica in a vehicle made from recycled plastic bottles, he found Project Drawdown’s list. Not having an abiding interest in or aptitude for EVs and high tech, he decided to share plant-based recipes with a book and an app.
I found Fork Ranger because I’m a Nederlands (Dutch language) student, but it comes in English, too. I ordered the book (in Dutch, for learning purposes) and downloaded the app. I also signed up for Fork Ranger’s emails, which provide easy-to-understand guidance each Wednesday on a variety of relevant topics for reducing meat and increasing vegetables in your diet.
The book is a sturdy, hard-cover volume (mine is inscribed by Holleman). I use the app in Nederlands for learning and in English when I’m cooking to try to prevent mistakes (but they’re still possible—see below).
The book is attractive and the website is well done, but the app is the key. After each brief lesson, in which you answer a question, you earn a new recipe. The recipes accumulate in your My Recipes, which you can sort by All or Favorites.
Each simple recipe shows a photo, lists the ingredients, and describes the process.
You can create a shopping list with one click and take it shopping. You can set the number of servings you want to make, which helps limit food waste. I have been translating grams to ounces in the store, but plan to start doing that at home to simplify shopping.
I have tried three recipes so far, with success. The Spinach Pasta Pesto went smoothly, although I learned about the importance of timing your pasta properly. The White Wine Mushroom Tagliatelle was great, even with a pasta substitution (I couldn’t find the long, flat tagliatelle noodles). I chopped various ingredients without cutting myself. The recipes say they take around a half hour, but I found it takes more than an hour as I develop my cooking skills.
The other night, I cooked up Sweet Potato Roast, a variation on the typical Dutch meal with potatoes, vegetables, and meat (but without the meat!). It came out fine, but my learning experience included forgetting to translate 200 degrees Celsius into Fahrenheit (396 degrees). I had to put the sweet potatoes and cauliflower in the microwave, but it was delicious!
My wife and I are planning to move primarily to plant-based eating in 2023 and are ramping up now. She’s happy to see me making dinner, and we are weaning ourselves off of our pandemic-induced Doordash habit. More to come.
Climate change is no longer theoretical—it’s here. Every time I read another online story, listen to another podcast, or suffer through a week of record-breaking 105-degree temperatures, I wonder what to do about it. What can one person do? What should we all be doing?
Peter Kalmus has a suggestion—be the change. An atmospheric scientist at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory with a Ph.D. in physics from Columbia, he understands what’s causing the climate crisis. But he also believes that it’s not only what you do, but who you are that gets things moving for you, your community, and the whole world. Kalmus combines vegetarian eating, composting, bike riding, and raising a family in suburban California with a meditation practice that helps him disconnect from many of the ideas and beliefs that have led to rising temperatures and climate disruption. And he claims he’s never been happier.
His 300-page book, Being the Change—Live Well and Spark a Climate Revolution (New Society Publishers, 2017), is dense with clearly explained data and personal stories, and with sixty pages of notes, it’s well researched. Let’s take a look, chapter by chapter.
Waking Up
Kalmus begins by describing his three-part path. His head studies and understands problems, his hands work in his garden, and his daily meditation brings a greater connection to nature. He has found that giving up many of the activities and attitudes he thought were necessary have made him happier—lighter—while reducing his carbon footprint by about 90 percent.
Beyond Green
Kalmus calls our world a biosphere, because it puts human beings in the middle of it, not separate, living in “the environment.” He explores what we mean by “green” and “sustainable.” He would rather use “low energy” than “green,” since it’s our fossil fuel burning that’s causing so much of the problem. He advocates mindfulness – awareness of how we are all part of the world and the problem—he says it’s more effective than trying to “save the world.”
Global Warming: The Science
As a scientist, Kalmus can clearly explain the process of global warming. He is surprised by how fast the changes are occurring. This is the one chapter with graphs. The author lays out the greenhouse effect and the sources of human-caused warming, tracing its rise over the last 150 years of industrial fuel-burning, and shows us the accelerated warming over the last 40 years.
Global Warming: The Outlook
Then, Kalmus shows how climate change affects the weather, pushing mass extinctions, and acidifies the ocean; all of these lead to fires, floods, and rising seas. There are the inevitable consequences of those events—mass migrations, civil unrest, suffering. But despite this gloomy picture, Kalmus still retains some optimism, because there are actions we can take, and we are starting to do them. It will take worldwide collective action — even more than the “World War II” example, which was actually half the world fighting the other half.
Growth Always Ends
Part of our problem is too much growth, says Kalmus, and making continuous growth our goal. He states, “Sooner or later, everything that physically grows must stop.” Unchecked, unceasing growth can become exponential, out of control. And we have the “population bomb” to deal with too as we move toward eight billion human beings on this planet. Food and water scarcity loom. Soils are overworked.
Kalmus suggests we learn to live without growth. Although we must deal with global warming now, “humanity must somehow move into a stable and harmonious long-term relationship with the biosphere.” And we can start by seeing ourselves as part of a “vast, complex, and beautiful tapestry of life.”
Our Mindset
Kalmus believes that the worldview we have created keeps us from understanding the depth and urgency of what we have to do now. He says that the myth of progress has become “a civil religion,” in which we believe that technology will save us. He colorfully describes playing “Star Trek” as a child, and how, as in Star Trek, we hope and expect that in a few hundred years things will be much better. But the scale of our technology, once so wonderful, is now affecting the Earth in powerful and destructive ways.
In the middle of discussing our modern myths, Kalmus bring up the idea of confirmation bias, where we tend to look for evidence that supports our beliefs and ignore evidence that contradicts it. This explains the levels of climate denial that most of us, to varying degrees, exhibit. We are taking our fragile biosphere for granted.
Kalmus hopes we can replace the myths of progress and separation from nature with something new. “The new story will be helping each other wake up, and being happy right here, right now.”
A Mammal in the Biosphere
In the second half of the book, Kalmus looks at what we can do to pioneer the transformation into a post-fossil-fuel world. He shares his experience, noting that it will be different for each person. His recommended “trailheads in the wilderness” include riding a bike, growing a plant, repairing something, getting rid of stuff, joining a community group, and spending time in a wild area. There’s a whole chapter on his biking experiences—he rides his to work. Then, he talks about leaving fossil fuel, which he admits he hasn’t done one hundred percent, but he lives what he calls a “normal suburban life” with a vast reduction in emissions.
Leaving Fossil Fuel
Sometimes a car is necessary in Altadena, California. Kalmus’ vehicle of choice is Maeby, a 1984 Mercedes-Benz that runs on waste vegetable oil. This produces some adventures, as it takes a lot more maintenance and hunting for fuel than a regular car, but it reduces his fossil fuel burning substantially. He writes eloquently on reducing waste and “stuff” — the things we buy all the time that we don’t really need.
There’s a massive waste of food today. He has taken up, unbelievably, “freeganism,” or “dumpster diving.” A lot of perfectly healthy food is thrown away by supermarkets as it passes its point of perfection, and it can be eaten safely if you know what you’re doing. I don’t think I’m up for that yet.
Slow Travel
When you’re trying to lower your carbon footprint, it helps to stop flying in airplanes and to limit your driving in standard gasoline cars. Kalmus prefers to travel by bicycle, which works for where he lives and works. For longer trips, he uses Maeby.
Kalmus has taken the train and has sailed in a sailboat — and even ridden aboard a container ship. He believes that traveling slowly while being aware of everything around you is much more rewarding than dashing around.
Change through Meditation
Kalmus meditates a couple of hours a day, and this has changed the way he lives. As he says, it’s a practice, not a religion, and he heartily recommends meditating to change your relationship to yourself and with the world around you. He describes how he and his wife became meditators, and stresses that there are many kinds—you just have to find what works for you. And it’s good for your brain, too.
Reconnecting with Mother Earth
Most of us neither grow our own food nor even know where it comes from. But Kalmus grows his and has learned a lot about plants and himself in the process. He also uses a composting toilet, which produces “humanure” that he feeds to his fruit trees. This doesn’t sound like much fun to a modern person, but if done properly, it creates no terrible odors and gives a whole new meaning to recycling. And what did we do before indoor plumbing, anyway?
Although Kalmus is a vegetarian, his kids are not, and they have a flock of chickens to provide eggs and meat. He also keeps bees. He claims that watching the complex life of the bees is the beekeeper’s greatest reward—not the honey.
Opting Out
Part of living in a different, more sustainable way is to learn to opt out of the normal way of life around you. Kalmus calls modern life the “industrial-commercial” system, and it‘s part of what’s causing so much trouble on the planet. There are multiple ways to do this, starting with breaking the attachment to having more and more stuff, to repairing what you do own (like folks used to). Every aspect of living can use less energy and fewer materials. Kalmus has found that as he gives up what he used to think was essential, he is happier, lighter, and consumes much less. His vegetarianism aligns with his beliefs and eliminates a lot of packaging and unwholesome food.
Beyond this, opting out can mean leaving your big bank, or finding a job that aligns with your personal principles, or turning off the TV and spending more time with your family. It’s up to you.
Collective Action
Whatever we may do as individuals, “we also need collective action on a large scale if we hope to quickly reduce global carbon emissions and avoid increasingly catastrophic warming,” Kalmus states. While this sounds like the various agreements you’re heard about, including the Paris Agreement of 2015, Kalmus proposes something more—a carbon fee and dividend. This sets a price on carbon and returns the collected funds to the people as a dividend—not to the government. It’s not a tax. So, it might cost you more up front but pays you back at the end—while motivating emitters to stop. There are other proposed carbon pricing methods, and Kalmus explores them, too. “A carbon fee may be our best chance for a livable planet. To get it, we citizens need to demand it,” he says.
Community
There’s no question that any progress we make requires us to work together. Kalmus talks about asymmetric economy, which he says means, “When we receive help, we’re grateful, it’s of great value; and when we give help, it’s rather easy to do.” There are various groups and networks working together on climate issues, and you can join them and participate.
Love
In the end, the climate crisis is not just about science. “Let’s work to build a world where everyone puts others above self and where we live aligned with the biosphere,” Kalmus says as he closes the book. He describes three sacred tasks we need to learn: to live respectfully within the biosphere, to get along with each other, and to be happy in our own minds. Reading this book and doing even a little bit of what the author describes and recommends could help you do that.
Harley-Davidson has just announced that it’s establishing LiveWire as a separate brand on July 8th.
I’ve always wondered how America’s legendary motorcycle manufacturer would market its silent motorcycles. The company’s first electric bike, recently introduced as a Harley, will now be neatly separated into a sub brand. This appeases the purists who can’t imagine a Harley that’s quiet and scent-free while letting the company move into the electrified future.
All of this made me think about of the different ways companies are introducing EVs into their product portfolios. How can they keep their faithful happy while moving into the future of transportation?
Momentum is accelerating in the necessary transition from a fossil-fuel-burning automotive fleet to electric vehicles (EVs). But this transition will have a big impact on how utility companies deliver the energy needed to charge all of these new battery-powered cars. That’s where WeaveGrid comes in. WeaveGrid’s mission is to drive rapid decarbonization in global transport and power sectors by intelligently connecting electric vehicles to the grid.
A Startup out of Stanford
WeaveGrid was co-founded three years ago by two Stanford grads, who saw the convergence of EVs and clean energy and wanted to explore those implications. Apoorv Bhargava, co-founder and CEO, has an MS in Environment & Resources, Energy & Cleantech along with an MBA. He worked in the energy field, including NRG Energy, before co-founding WeaveGrid. John Taggart, co-founder and CTO, has more of an automotive background, with stints at Nissan and Tesla while earning his Ph.D. in Management Science & Engineering.
How WeaveGrid Works
WeaveGrid gives utilities visibility into EV drivers’ charging activity at an aggregated level and provides some ability to control how and when owners charge their electric vehicles. This helps utilities manage the impact on the electrical grid.
The old way to track charging was to install sophisticated software in Level 2 (240-volt) chargers that asks drivers for permission to monitor their charging behavior, while providing some kind of rebate or deal for doing so. But WeaveGrid uses the car’s telematics itself—the manufacturers’ software programs—to integrate directly with the vehicles. Customers don’t need to invest in any specialized or additional charging hardware and utilities aren’t obligated to subsidize equipment and then pass the costs on to their customers, many of whom are not EV drivers (yet).
Moving to a fleet with a lot more EVs provides a huge opportunity for utilities to sell more electricity and other services as the fossil fuel business winds down, but it’s also a big logistical challenge. What happens when millions of EV drivers come home from work and plug in at the same time? Time-of-use rates could incentivize some drivers to charge later, but it would be better if the utilities had a better way to manage this surge.
With data and analytics from WeaveGrid, power companies can manage who’s charging when and balance the load on their equipment. How do they do that? There are two main methods—behavioral-based and automation-based.
Behavioral-based means motivating the customer’s actions through text messages, or email “nudges.” The message might say, “Stop charging now and save money by doing it later and avoiding the peak rates.” Automation-based means knowing when and where EVs are plugged in and adjusting who can charge by having a “bird’s eye view” of the entire system. This requires getting a driver’s authorization to let WeaveGrid software access their charging data and turning charging on or off, depending on grid load and previously-agreed-upon conditions.
A Simple Signup for EV Drivers
WeaveGrid makes it quick and easy for customers to connect. EV drivers go to the utility’s website, and on the appropriate page click “Enroll Now,” and then perform a simple three-step process.
It’s unlikely that customers will know they are using WeaveGrid software, as it’s “white labeled” for use by utility companies. WeaveGrid’s first flagship customer is Baltimore Gas and Electric (BGE), as seen in the images above and below. They are offering evPulse, a rebate and time-of-use program for Tesla owners that uses WeaveGrid. Here’s what the online sign-up process looks like.
Step 1.
Step 2.
BGE then sends a confirmation email. Here’s the smartphone version.
As I don’t live in Maryland or own a Tesla, I couldn’t register my car, but you can see it’s quite easy.
WeaveGrid is Designed for EVs
Other companies are starting to offer this kind of service too, but WeaveGrid is the only one developed specifically for EV usage, and is not an add-on to another program, such as solar or thermostats.
When WeaveGrid software arrives at your utility, whatever it’s branded, if you’re driving an EV be sure to check it out. For more information, see their website.
Volvo has been talking about going electric a lot lately. They plan to do it with a mixture of all-electric vehicles, like their new XC40 Recharge, and plug-in hybrid versions of their SUVs and sedans. The XC90 Recharge is an example of the second group.
The XC90, as Volvo’s larger SUV, is currently their most popular model in the United States. If you track the history of Volvo, the Swedish (now Chinese-owned) company was famous for decades for its safe, solid, boxy sedans and wagons. With today’s crossovers and SUVS at the forefront of the market, they have pivoted nicely in recent years, although a wagon is still available if you want one.
While Volvo offers a T5 turbocharged model and T6 turbocharged and supercharged model of the gasoline-only XC90, it’s the T8 that’s the focus here. While it shares the other models’ 2.0-liter engine, the T8 gets a modified version with 313 horsepower and 295 lb.-ft. of torque, which combined with a rear-mounted electric motor and front-mounted starter motor bumps power up to 400 horsepower and 472 lb.-ft.
The 34-kW starter motor sits on the engine and seamlessly transitions power between it and the electric motor in back—which is what Volvo drivers expect. It also adds 111 lb.-ft of torque to the propulsion system, so it’s small but significant.
The main electric motor sits on the rear axle and adds 87 horsepower and makes all-wheel drive easy by providing a separate power source for the rear wheels. Of course, high tech helps coordinate this so it’s seamless from the driver’s chair.
It all runs through an eight-speed Geartronic automatic transmission and uses start-stop technology. The engine shuts off when you’re at a traffic light to save fuel.
XC90 Inscription, Tailored Wool Blend Midnight Zinc with Charcoal interior
That driver enjoys a great view of the road over the XC90’s clean, tailored dash. I got to see this a lot, since during our test week I took two 170-mile round trips to visit my family (in my COVID-19 bubble). The XC90 lives for these cruises, with fine highway manners and the Bowers & Wilkins Premium Sound system ($3,200). In fact, part of accurately describing the experience of driving this car is listing a sample of its many charms, all of which add to the bottom line, of course.
My Savile Gray Metallic tester was the Inscription trim, which base prices at $69,750 before shipping ($995). But let’s look at what made my sample a premium ride.
Volvo has developed an excellent user experience with its vertical center touch screen, so it’s easy and pleasant to use the audio system and seek information as you roll along. You can swipe to open up vast areas of customization, best tackled while the car is sitting in your garage or driveway.
The Inscription features Nappa Leather or Tailored Wool Blend upholstery – your choice, and both elegant. It has the expected power seats, and these include side support, lumbar and memory, and heat. As they’re Volvo seats, they’re supremely supportive and comfortable. There are wood inlays, the Sensus Navigation system, sun curtains on the back windows, and lots more.
It goes up from there. The Lounge Package ($1,700) provides backrest massage for the front seats, which I admit I didn’t use, but would be great for long trips. They are meant to keep the blood flow going, not to put you to sleep.
The Climate Package ($750) is a must-have in cold climates, with heated windshield wipers, heated rear seats, and a heated steering wheel.
The Advanced Package ($1,500) adds a fully featured head-up display and 360-degree surround cameras.
But wait—there’s more. That Savile Gray paint is a $645 option. The 4-Corner Air Suspension ($1,800) provides smooth sailing and load leveling. I noticed it settling down after I parked the car at my destination. Although the Inscription arrives with 20-inch alloys already, my tester wore stunning 21-inchers for an extra $800.
What does all this add up to? $81,690, and if you’re in the market for a luxury ride, it feels worth it.
XC90 Recharge Plug-In Hybrid R-Design, in Thunder Grey
A plug-in hybrid vehicle is especially good for local electric motoring with the freedom to burn gas on a longer trip. The XC90 is old school, in that its 11.6-kW battery, tucked away under the car along the center tunnel, provides just 18 miles of all-electric motoring. That’s perfect for errands and modest commuting, especially if there’s charging at work, but for longer trips, it empties quickly. Luckily, you can still get some benefits of the motors by regenerating some power with braking.
You still see some nice benefits by adding the motors and the plug. Fuel economy for the Recharge is 55 miles per gallon electric (MPGe) when you use electricity and gasoline and drops to 27 mpg when you don’t charge up the battery. The EPA’s green scores on the standard 0-10 scale, where 10 is best, include a 7 for Smog and on the Fuel Economy and Greenhouse Gas score, a 7 for MPG and a 9 for CO2. Not bad for a big hauler with room for the family and your stuff. I averaged 25 mpg over 364 miles of mostly freeway driving.
Plug it in at home, at work or on the road.
Charging is easy – with public stations or your home charger. Volvo also supplies a dual-mode charging cable, allowing you to charge slowly overnight with regular 120-volt household current or plug into your dryer’s or other 240-volt outlet to fill the battery in 2.5 hours.
The XC90 Recharge T8 has several drive modes to choose from. The default Hybrid mode uses its computer to balance gas and electric propulsion for maximum efficiency. Pure mode uses just electricity and makes several adjustments to the drivetrain while providing information to help the driver be more efficient. Power mode maximizes everything. All Wheel Drive mode improves traction in slippery conditions. You can use Individual mode to customize your settings. Off Road mode maximizes the car’s performance at speeds below 12 mph for slowly traversing rough terrain.
Of course, as a Volvo, the XC90 inherits a long list of safety features—too many to detail here. See their website for more details, but you can feel assured that your family is well protected in this car.
The Swedish-built XC90 Recharge T8 fulfills its task as a luxury cruiser for those who can afford it. There are rivals out there, but none possess the Scandinavian design approach. The addition of a plug-in hybrid drivetrain makes it a powerful and cleaner beast and moves Volvo forward on the path to an all-electric future.
Clean, simple, and with the Golden Gate Bridge in the background.
If you see a Polestar2 parked along the street or hear it roll silently by, you’re forgiven if you don’t know what it is. You will notice that it’s a handsome, premium-grade midsize car that looks like a tall sedan (it’s actually a hatchback).
The secret is that Polestar is an electric performance brand from Volvo and its Chinese owner, Geely Holding. It was established in 2017 and is based in Gothenburg, Sweden, where Volvo has been for a long time.
I enjoyed a long weekend with a Polestar 2, and it certainly makes a great first and lasting impression in a market segment that is starting to grow—and will soon be full of choices.
The car is a “2” because it was preceded by the “1,” which is an electric performance hybrid GT, with a six-figure price tag and a limited output of 500 units per year over the next three years.
A High Tech Customer Experience
If you’re thinking, “this sounds like a Swedish Tesla,” you’re getting the idea. By taking what could be “Volvo’s EV model” and breaking it out as a standalone brand, Volvo and Geely are promoting exclusivity while creating a high-tech customer experience. From my experience, it’s working.
The Silicon Valley Polestar Space is the latest place to see the new vehicles.
The vehicles will be sold online, and also shown off at strategically located “Polestar Spaces,” where you can browse in a minimalist, Danish modern showroom with non-commissioned salespeople to help you and get a feel for the cars before placing your order. There are already Polestar Spaces in New York City and Los Angeles, and there are now two in the San Francisco Bay Area. The newest Polestar Space just opened in Silicon Valley, at the Westfield Valley Fair at 2855 Stevens Creek Boulevard. There’s a second location in Corte Madera, in Marin County.
Polestar also offers a convenient home delivery and service program, allowing customers who live within 150 miles of the Valley Fair Space, which includes those living in San Francisco and the Monterey Bay Peninsula, to have a new car delivered to their door, as well as complimentary roundtrip transportation for future servicing.
Good Looking Lines
The Polestar2 makes a fine first impression, with its smooth flanks and chiseled edges, open mouth with black-square-filled “grille,” and slices of taillamps at the rear. The Polestar logo looks like two boomerangs and is not at all like the familiar Volvo ironmark.
In a world obsessed with crossovers and SUVs, this is a car that looks like a tall sedan but actually provides hatchback practicality, including a fold-up panel for grocery bags that includes hooks and a strap.
Keep those groceries from spilling.
Test Runs on Freeway and Back Roads
I tested the car with two trips—one primarily freeway and the other on my local, beautiful back roads. In each case, the car acquitted itself athletically and in great comfort, as expected and hoped. The freeway jaunt was to San Rafael, in Marin County, which meant open freeways, bridge crossings, and a short test loop through town, where I showed off the car’s rocket acceleration to my son. A BMW owner, he is a possible future Polestar buyer, which made this a demo ride and reinforced my positive impressions.
Backroad jaunt showed sharp reflexes and taut steering.
The backroad jaunt is where I recently took the all-new Ford Mustang Mach-E—a competitor—and the Polestar2 showed its sharp reflexes and balanced handling around the bends. EVs benefit from a low center of gravity, and the 2’s steering was taut and the assist felt natural. I later found the screen on the center panel where you can configure the performance settings and saw that it was set up for “sporty,” which made sense. I guess I was driving “sporty” on the freeway, as well.
Plentiful Power
The Polestar2 is a potent beast. The Launch Edition features two motors, one up front and one in the rear, powered by a 78-kilowatt hour battery. This all adds up to 408 horsepower and 487 pound-feet of torque, good for a pulse-raising zero-to-60 run in under five seconds. Range is 233 miles, which is good, if not the best in the market.
The Polestar 2 features one pedal driving—a favorite of mine and many other EV drivers—where thanks to regenerative braking, you use only the accelerator to move forward or slow down (even to a full stop). Of course, the brake pedal is right there when you need it, but in normal driving you can ignore it. The car offers three drive modes for regenerative braking (Off, Low, Standard), along with on or off settings for creep mode (acts like a “normal” automatic). It could stop and go with pinpoint accuracy with the “Standard” setting.
High Tech Infotainment
As an EV, the Polestar2 is a silent traveler, and the time on the road gave me the chance to test what is the world’s first in-vehicle application of an infotainment system powered by Android with Google apps and services built-in. As the setup was done already, all I did was say, “Hey, Google, play Bluegrass,” and the friendly female voice said, “I’m choosing Indie Bluegrass from Spotify,” and that was that. I also tested Google for navigation and asking for my home address produced a large map on the center screen and turn-by-turn voice directions.
Inside, the Polestar2 shows its Volvo origins. The lines are drawn with a brilliant, clean, and slightly cold aesthetic, and materials are matte and, according to the press info, it’s a fully vegan interior with the WeaveTech fabric and reconstructed wood trim. The ambiance isn’t overtly luxurious, but the traditional super supportive Volvo seats are right there with multiple adjustments and the fat, leather-wrapped wheel is nice to hold.
The 11-inch center panel screen is smaller than a Tesla’s, but Polestar parent Volvo has developed a beautiful and practical touchscreen interface. The home screen is quartered into maps, Phone, Driver Performance, and Music, but you can swipe to lots of different views, including the settings pages, where you can configure your driving experience.
Charging and Efficiency
Enquiring minds always want to know about charging. I used my solar-panel-powered Level 2 (240V) home charger, but if you’re on the road and want to top off quickly, DC fast charging takes about 40 minutes to get you to 80% at 150 kilowatts. It’ll take eight hours to refill the battery from 0 to 100 percent using Level 2 charging (perfect for overnight or a workday). If you just plug in to standard a 120V household outlet, you’d better give it 22 hours. That’s pretty normal for 2021.
The EPA gives this all-electric car ratings of 96 City, 88 Highway, and 92 Combined for MPGe (Miles per Gallon electric). Use that number to compare with other electric vehicles. Of course, the EPA “green” scores are 10 for both Smog and Greenhouse Gas. Any emissions for an EV come not from a tailpipe but from manufacturing, transportation, and how the electricity to move it is produced. These should diminish as more and more of the grid uses power from renewable sources, such as solar and wind, and as the manufacturers themselves use green energy—some, including GM, already do.
High tech treats include the absence of a start button. Just carry the chunky key fob in your pocket and walk up to the car. Open the door and sit down. Pull the stylish ring-shaped shift knob into D or R and the car moves. Leaving is the same thing. Put it in P (Park), open the door, step out, close the door, and walk away. You can press “Lock” on the digital key fob if that makes you feel more secure.
This is a premium vehicle, and the window sticker shows it. My test car, in “Moon” metallic, started at $59,900, and with $1,200 extra for the paint and $1,300 for destination (it’s shipped from its Chinese factory), came to $62,400.
Competitors
And this brings up a point. Who’s the customer, and what makes the Polestar2 stand out? The obvious direct competitor is the Tesla Model Y (if you want the hatchback capability) or the Model 3. Teslas have the advantage of the supercharger network, at this point, although Polestar is affiliating with ChargePoint. Tesla offers the same kind of minimalism as the Polestar2. I haven’t yet driven a Model Y, but compared to other Teslas I’ve sampled, the Polestar2 feels like a traditional car, with a more elaborate instrument panel and a more developed interior design language.
One new and more affordable option is the Mustang Mach-E, but the personality difference is substantial. If the Polestar2 is a Tesla for Volvo enthusiasts, the Mach-E is a first EV for muscle car fans. With its exuberant styling inside and out and leftward running horse logo, the Mustang is competitive with the Polestar2 only in its EV performance.
Matching the Polestar in power and range is the Jaguar I-PACE. However, the base S model is already $10,000 more expensive than the Polestar2, although the interior ambiance is a bit fancier. The Audi e-tron is another luxury competitor, but I haven’t had any seat time in it yet. Mercedes-Benz is rolling out its EQ models and that brand has huge luxury equity. Ones to watch include the upcoming BMW i4 and recently announced Kia EV6, but you can’t buy one of those yet. New electric vehicles like the VW ID.4 are worthy but can’t touch the Polestar2 for sheer performance.
Time will tell with the Polestar brand, but the Polestar2 is competitive and hits all the right buttons. The next model, the 3, will be a coupe marketed between the 1 and the 2 in price. There is also the stunning Precept concept that is slated to appear sometime in the future. For more affordable EVs, the Volvo brand has big plans to expand its lineup, and already offers the XC40 Recharge crossover.
It’s an exciting time to be an EV shopper, and it’s just going to get better.
Service hubs will provide test rides, check-ups, and repairs.
VanMoof, the Dutch builder of sleek, high-tech e-bikes, boasts more than 150,000 riders worldwide. Taco Carlier, co-founder and CEO, has just announced at SXSW 2021 the company’s plans to provide top-level service for their riders. VanMoof will expand its worldwide presence from eight to 50 cities, including American cities Los Angeles, CA, Portland, OR, and Washington. D.C.
The new network is not just a blossoming of modern, angular showrooms. The plan is to build out a network of state-of-the-art service hubs and certified partner workshops over the next six months. Along with a more intuitive app support and remote diagnostic solutions, this enables the brand to provide excellent service for their bikes around the world.
“The goal is to provide the best possible experience to our riders—no matter where they’re located,” explains Taco Carlier.
I got to test a VanMoof e-bike myself back in July of 2020, from the showroom in San Francisco. Wearing my mask, I received a touchless store demo and then got to see for myself how helpful the pedal assist was when riding up San Francisco’s steep hills.
The upscale but understated bike is a valuable and highline item, so keeping it in perfect running condition is important to its owners. When you’re spending a couple of thousand dollars on something, you want to be well taken care of. VanMoof has experienced “hypergrowth” as a result of a global boom in e-bikes, tripling sales over this last pandemic year.
Top level service around the world.
Cities with brand stores will include Amsterdam, London, Berlin, Paris, New York, San Francisco, Seattle, and Tokyo. The 14 service hubs will offer test rides, check-ups, and repairs. The more than 60 carefully selected certified partner workshops will receive special training to work on VanMoof’s S3 and X3 bikes.
Cofounder Ties Carlier, Taco’s brother, reminds us of the bottom line:
“Reducing our reliance on cars and instilling the confidence to change-up your commute habits requires a robust service fallback for your new ride. Only then will we reach a critical mass turning point that transforms our cities.”
The Netherlands — 17 million people and 23 million bicycles.
Cycling is a great way to reduce automotive traffic, especially in crowded urban settings. The residents of the Netherlands are experts and want to help other nations understand the benefits of cycling, build out cycling infrastructure, and ride safely. To do this, they have established the Dutch Cycling Embassy.
“The Dutch Cycling Embassy is a vast network of public and private organizations from the Netherlands who wish to share their expertise on building what supports the Dutch cycling culture to those interested.”
I recently attended an interesting online presentation by the Embassy. The initial portion included an introduction by Chris Bruntlett, the Embassy’s Marketing and Communications Manager. Derek Taylor of Goudappel also spoke. This was followed by a choice of three simultaneous breakout sessions; I attended one on the design and building of cycling infrastructure.
Some Impressive Dutch Two-wheel Stats
The Netherlands is the number one country in the world in bike ridership. This nation of 17 million residents owns 23 million bikes—more than one per person! They take five million bike trips each year, averaging about 621 miles per person. There are 202 cities and towns where bike share actually exceeds car share (for trips shorter than 4.7 miles). And today, 18 percent of bike trips are by electrical assist, and 26 percent of all miles ridden are by e-bikes.
What helps it run so well is that cycling is incorporated into the public transit system. Half of all train trips begin with a bicycle ride to the station. The Embassy’s slides showed vast bike parking facilities there.
Safe, plentiful parking is essential for mass adoption of cycling. Photo: Goudappel.
Goudappel Coffeng
Derek Taylor, the Mobility Analyst and Business Developer from Goudappel Coffeng spoke.
Goudappel Coffeng is a Netherlands-based company with 60 years of mobility planning experience and currently has 250 experts on staff. Their slogan is “Mobility Moves Us” (Mobiliteit beweegt ons). Derek lives in the San Francisco Bay Area and understands what’s relevant to the local community.
The Netherlands, the world’s transport-safest country, has a balanced modal share—30% car, 30% public transit, 30% bikes, and 10% pedestrians (or other). And it’s fully integrated, too, with residents using a single card for local, regional, and international travel.
One card for all transit systems. Photo: Goudappel.
Derek described the similarities between the Dutch Randstad Economic Region and the Bay Area. The Randstad encompasses the four largest cities in the Netherlands, which are located in the western part of the country. The four cities are Amsterdam, Utrecht, Rotterdam, and The Hague. This maps fairly closely to the Bay Area, which includes the cities of San Francisco, San Jose, and Oakland, and all the places in between.
The Randstad comprises four major cities in the western Netherlands. Photo: Goudappel.
A huge difference, though, is that the Bay Area uses a lot more cars! For comparison, the car to non-car ratio in Amsterdam is 30/70 percent while it’s 88/12 percent in San Jose—utterly the opposite. How do they do that in the Randstad?
The answer is, they take an integrated approach to mobility planning, land use planning, considering the urban form, buildings, and special design. Dutch cities have even created some car-free zones.
A good way to remove cars is to make it easy to live without them, so there is a hierarchy of travel modes, all integrated:
International high speed trains
Interregional – Intercity trains
Metropolitan – metro, light rail, commuter rail
Local – trams, buses, cycling
The Bay Area doesn’t have this kind of integration, and there’s really no land-based international travel. As it is, about 7.7 million people live in the Bay Area, and the area has the fifth largest GDP in the U.S. In a challenge for cycling, 33 percent of Bay Area residents work in a different county from where they live, and 75 percent drive to work. According to Derek, traffic congestion has increased 80 percent since 2010, especially at high travel times, and its growing rapidly (in non-pandemic times).
Many people live within 1.25 miles of an existing rail station (BART and CalTrain) and could possibly cycle to the station and take transit if it were set up for it. Derek talked about catchment zones, which have 5% of the land but 51% of the jobs and are good transit hubs. So, for example, the Salesforce Transit Center in downtown San Francisco is ideal, and commuters could bike to the train stations and go to work from Salesforce (or even in it—it’s the tallest building in San Francisco). This of course is in the world after COVID-19 is under control.
The E-Bike Design and Planning Breakout Session
The three speakers in this session taught me a lot about how cycling infrastructure decisions are made and how those beautiful Dutch bike paths and structures get designed and built.
Kennisplatform Crow
Kennisplatform Crow is an e-bike design and planning company in the Netherlands. Hillie Talens, Project Manager, talked about how Crow considers the user’s perspective in design decisions.
The Netherlands has a road classification system that helps develop guidelines for safety.
Motorways (no bicycles)
Access roads
Distributor roads (to connect them)
Hillie discussed five safety principles that Crow considers when designing cycling paths and structures:
Functionality – It does the job as well as possible
Homogeneity of mass, speed, and direction – moving at the same speed helps avoid accidents
Recognizability of road design and predictability of the road course and road user behavior – signage is consistent and placed consistently
Forgivingness of the environment (physical and social) – help eliminate problems by allowing room for errors and enough space for safe passage
State awareness by the road user
Crow considers five main bicycle infrastructure requirements:
Coherence – The system is complete, connected, and consistent, and cyclists have no trouble finding their way. Bicycles combine well with cars and public transit and offer route choices
Directness – Eliminate unnecessary detours and allow for a constant speed with a minimum of delays
Attractiveness – Include variety and surprise, activities along the route, positive stimuli for all of the senses, and to keep bikeways clean, whole, well-tended
Safety & Health – Mix bikes with cars when possible and separate them when necessary for low speed and volume and provide alternative parallel pathways for high volume. Consider infrastructure and land use, such as location of schools
Comfort – Provide a smooth surface (concrete/asphalt), minimal stops, protection against the weather, avoid steep slopes, make sure there’s enough space (abreast), avoid sharp curves, and design for a speed of 20 mph
Other factors include positioning bollards marked with reflective material, streetlighting, keeping vehicles out of bike paths, and providing enough bike parking spaces.
Mobycon
Mobycon is an independent consultancy firm based in the Netherlands. Their interdisciplinary team includes urban designers, planners, economists, and social scientists who are well versed in applying Dutch transport expertise around the world. Lennart Nout, Manager of International Strategy, guided us through their presentation.
Mobycon wants to make the world less dependent on the car. In the Netherlands, people cycle not only on short city trips but do some long-distance commuting, too. That means investing in bicycle highways, not just bike paths along existing roads. Research has found that providing designated bike lanes helps get more riders to take short trips. Mobycon is working on a fully segregated bicycle highway in Los Angeles.
Like Hillie, Lennart mentioned three different types of roads, which they label flow, distribution, and access. Mobycon has found that creating low-traffic residential neighborhoods unlocks high bike use. Motorists are willing to drive shorter distances at slower speeds within them, which is safer for cyclists. You can plan out a neighborhood where you can get where you need to go in six minutes. Lennart showed an example of how, in Barcelona, they put the cars on the outside of “superblocks” and the cyclists inside.
Bike Minded
Bike Minded is located in Rotterdam, the Netherlands. Their goal is co-designing a bicycle friendly world by creating e-bike infrastructure. They are concerned with signage and technical elements such as bridges. Company founder Maurits Lopes Cardozo was our guide.
E-bikes are growing steadily in the Netherlands. From 2% in 2004 they now are fully 42% of bicycle purchases. With reduced effort, more people can use them, and it enables higher travel speeds, which makes longer trips possible—and has an effect on urban planning. It could have a large impact in the Bay Area, too.
Pedal assist used to be for seniors and people who had difficulty riding a bike, but now, they are used by many other people, including for delivery and even schoolkids.
Maurits described two types of cyclists—practical and recreational—and says that both types would be willing to switch to e-bikes. Practical cyclists are everyday cyclists: commuters, people carrying cargo, or students going to school. Recreational cyclists are of all ages, are often e-bike users, and enjoy riding for sports and fun.
The two cycling types have different needs, but it all requires good infrastructure. While the main cycling network in town can be on asphalt streets, there are some fast-cycling regional routes for longer distance commutes. Maurits talked about three hierarchies of cycling: basic, main, and fast.
Basic can share streets at slow speeds
Main have a separated path—red-painted asphalt in the Netherlands
Fast-cycling routes are not for cars, and are for longer commutes and recreational rides
However, for those longer trips, there are often barriers, such as highways, rail and utility corridors, rivers, and canals, which divide neighborhoods. Car-dominant intersections are a problem, too. So, Bike Minded plans and designs ways to surmount these barriers. For example, the amazing Hovenring in Eindhoven, is a circular cable-stayed cycling bridge that floats over the highway. Maurits showed us the Los Angeles River Bike Path, and the City of Davis’ bike infrastructure projects.
The Hovenring is a bicycle interchange in the sky. Photo: Bike Minded.
The ideal situation is to integrate cycling seamlessly with other transport networks, and that sometimes is not parallel to the car network. Minimal contact with other modes is much safer. That’s why Bike Minded likes roundabouts in place of intersections, such as in Beukelsdijk in Rotterdam. They are much safer and keep all traffic, cars, and cycles, flowing smoothly.
The Last Word from Chris Bruntlett
Chris Bruntlett, based in Delft, the Netherlands, uses his knowledge and passion for cycling to share what the Netherlands has to offer with other locations around the world.
Per Chris, regular unassisted bikes can be part of the picture, but e-bikes are transformational.
“Switching just a fraction of automobile trips to the electric bicycle could save societies billions, addressing myriad problems such as obesity, congestion, air quality, noise pollution, and road safety,” he said.
However, there are three major barriers to realizing these benefits: lack of infrastructure, lack of storage, and the up-front expense. That means e-bikes won’t be used in large numbers without creating safe places to ride and park them and providing incentives to make it easier to buy one.
“This seemingly limitless potential to transform our cities and towns won’t be fully realized without additional support from both the public and private sectors,” Chris said.
So, the best things you can do now are to join like-minded people and organizations to push for change, lobby your elected officials, and if all else fails, run for elected office yourself. And, of course, go get your own e-bike.
I read last week that the US Postal Services had selected a bid to replace their old trucks with new ones that are gasoline-powered. I believe that this is a big mistake. President Biden has stated that he wants to electrify the government fleet, and this is the time to do it with the USPS trucks.
EVs make perfect sense for a stop-and-start daily route vehicle. There’s no reason to replace them with updated versions of 20th-century trucks. While an individual may worry about taking their car, which is usually used locally, on an occasional long trip, this would never be a concern with a vehicle that drives a local route every day. And who wants trucks spewing pollution in our neighborhoods when it’s not necessary?
The familiar old trucks need replacement–with electric vehicles!
The current fleet has been around for three decades, so whatever we do now will be with us for a long time, so we need to choose wisely and make the investments we need for the future. If we buy gas trucks now, they would continue as gasoline vehicles for a long time, even when most of the auto and truck fleet has transitioned to EVs.
The announcement about the Next Generation Delivery Vehicle (NGDV) from defense contractor Oshkosh Defense, states that these vehicles could be converted to EVs later. However, that is not practical and would likely never happen. Vehicles that are designed as EVs use a different kind of platform, since they don’t need gas tanks, large engines, radiators, and even transmissions. It makes more sense from a technical and a financial standpoint to build them as EVs in the first place.
Now is also the time to create the infrastructure to support these electric postal vehicles. It can be done as the trucks are phased in, with charging stations in the lot and solar panels on the post office roof to feed them.
What You Can Do
When I heard this news, I immediately wrote to my two senators and my congressman. You can go to their websites and fill out an email template to communicate that you want electric postal trucks. It takes five minutes.
I also looked up the Department of Transportation, where Pete Buttigieg is now the secretary. I didn’t find an easy email address, but you can call them at 202-366-4000 or send them a letter at:
The most important thing is to invest in electric postal trucks at the beginning, and we’ll have vehicles that fit in with the electric fleet of the future, will be part of an overall climate strategy, and be much more economical to run for years to come.
BMW EVs — note upcoming i4 in the middle, MINI in the foreground.
The auto industry has been slowly transitioning toward battery-powered transportation, but each company has its own way of doing it. BMW, which jumped in early with the all-electric i3 and plug-in hybrid i8 in 2014, has been slow to move to pure electrics, but now offers plug-in hybrid options on several popular models, including the midsize 530e sedan and X5 xDrive45e crossover, which I recently tested.
Three Different Paths a Company Can Take to Move Towards Electric
Before diving into the two Bimmers, let’s look at the different ways that car companies can approach the gasoline to electricity transition, from all-in to not quite ready yet, or the middle path. I’m just hitting high spots here to make the point.
All-in is how Tesla, a California startup, has done it since day one. First, they electrified a small two-seat sports car on a borrowed Lotus platform. Then, they took what they learned and introduced their mass market flagship Model S sedan. The smaller, more affordable Model 3 sedan and Model Y hatchback followed, putting Teslas—every one all-electric—into the hands of a much wider clientele.
The middle path recognizes that electric cars are not profitable yet, but companies like General Motors, Ford, Nissan, and Volkswagen don’t want to be left out in the future. Things started rolling about a decade ago, when Nissan bravely introduced the all-electric LEAF and GM brought out the clever Volt plug-in hybrid. Ford and VW electrified existing compact hatchbacks, replacing engines with motors in the compact Focus and Golf, respectively. There are other examples, such as Mercedes-Benz’s B-class EV and more recent offerings from Audi.
Things have moved forward for the mainstream companies over the decade. GM debuted the all-new Bolt EV four years ago, and recently announced its all-electric future, with some desirable cars in the works, from GMC/Hummer and Cadillac as well as the Bolt EUV crossover. Ford is debuting its beautiful and powerful Mustang now and has put a hybrid in the F-150 pickup, with a full EV version on the way. VW is finally rolling out the excellent ID.4 crossover. The Nissan Ariya crossover is imminent. So, there’s progress.
Another way to take the middle path is to avoid EVs but proliferate hybrids. Toyota has taken this approach, spreading its pioneering Prius hybrid technology across its model mix, including the Avalon, Camry, and Corolla sedans and RAV4 and Highlander crossovers.
A few years ago, the Korean brands introduced the Hyundai Ioniq and Kona and Kia Niro models that let you choose hybrid, plug-in hybrid, or battery electric flavors. Both companies have recently committed to full lines of EVs over the next few years.
On the “just getting started” side you’ll find worthy manufacturers like Subaru and Mazda, who don’t have the cash to build an all-electric car. However, they can collaborate with big companies and join the party eventually, as Subaru has already done with Toyota on its Crosstrek Hybrid. Mazda has just introduced an electric version of its MX30 crossover, but it’s not available in the U.S yet. It will be Mazda’s first EV in America when it arrives.
BMW’s Plug-In Hybrids
Getting back to BMW, they have their plug-in hybrids and plans for new all-electric models, including the i4 sedan and iX crossover, and currently offer the iX3 small electric crossover in Europe. Today, you can contact your American BMW retailer and buy or lease a 530e or X5 xDrive45e plug-in hybrid. I drove both over the last few weeks.
Unlike Tesla, BMW has no identity to establish. Since the 1970’s they’ve built a reputation as “The Ultimate Driving Machine,” and while that may not really apply anymore, the brand still retains a lot of desirability and panache. So, while they slowly introduce new members of their electric “I” vehicles, they have taken popular models and cleaned them up a bit.
Both the X5 xDrive 45e and the 530e plug-in hybrids retain gasoline engines and the components that support them, like radiators, motor oil, and exhaust systems, while installing a motor, battery and an extra port to charge it. But unlike standard hybrids, which have small batteries that charge only when you step on the brake pedal, a plug-in hybrid lets you actively charge your car like an EV—for a limited range.
The 530e has an official EPA electric range of 21 miles; the larger battery on the X5 provides 30. What this means in real life is that if you’re willing to plug in your car regularly, for most driving you can go electrically, since statistically, most people don’t drive more than 40 miles a day.
The upsides include lower CO2 emissions, smooth, silent driving, and no range anxiety. Once you get past the local electric range, the car converts into hybrid mode and uses gasoline or electricity as efficiently as it can. That means on a freeway trip, if you’re not in stop-and-go traffic, you’ll be using mostly gasoline, while in town, with frequent braking, you may be mostly electric, even if the electrons you put into the battery overnight are used up.
The X5 xDrive45e Crossover
Second generation X5 xDrive is more powerful and has more than twice the electric range.
My Arctic Grey Metallic test unit came packed with extras, making it a seriously luxurious ride. Inside, it wore the ivory White Vernasca Leather—“non-animal-derived “SensaTec” is standard.
The 2021 X5 xDrive45e is a second-generation model, updated significantly from the previous X5 xDrive40e. A more powerful six-cylinder turbo engine replaces the 2.0-liter four from the old car, and the battery doubles in size to 24 kWh. That means you get up to 30 miles of electric-only range vs. just 12 before (I saw the gauge read “32”). That’s significant, because it means a lot more of your local driving will be electric-powered.
The combined horsepower, with the electric motor, is 389 horsepower, a bump of 81 from the old car. Torque jumps as well, to 443 lb.ft., a rise of 111. That lets the 5,672-pound hauler sprint from 0 to 60 in just 5.3 seconds.
It takes four hours to charge the battery from empty to 80 percent and 5.3 hours to fill it to 100 percent using a level 2, 240-volt charger. Using standard household current takes considerably longer (13.3 and 17.7 hours respectively). As a plug-in hybrid, it will never need an emergency charging stop while traveling.
The crossover comes standard with BMW’s Intelligent xDrive all-wheel drive system and an eight-speed Sport Steptronic transmission. It’s smart enough to adjust for your route and driving situation. The double wishbone front and five-link rear suspension are designed for comfort as well as traction when surfaces are less than ideal. The two-axle air suspension balances loads.
The interior looks rugged and luxurious like a BMW crossover should. It features Live Cockpit Professional, with 12.3-inch screens for the instrument panel and in the middle of the dash, where you can control all the sophisticated BMW driving and entertainment options.
My test week was during a quiet February, and with nowhere to go, I took no long rides. But, with its gorgeous chairs, crystal shift knob, and sparkling trim, the car felt quite posh when I did.
Three Drive Modes
Choices–I picked Electric, but Hybrid is the default.
There are three drive modes—Hybrid, Electric, and Sport. Hybrid, the default, electronically monitors the route and the road and selects the most efficient or performance-oriented balance of gas or electrons. Electric—my choice—is selectable from a center console button, and I had to do that every time because of the default Hybrid setting.
The car can go up to a law-breaking 84 mph on electricity alone, so short freeway hops work just fine. On longer trips you’ll end up in Hybrid mode. If, for some reason, you want to storm back roads for fun, the Sport setting keeps the engine on all the time for extra power.
Since this is nominally an offroad vehicle, you can set five levels of ride height. Although I had no need to use this, it could come in handy for clearance when you leave the highway.
Fuel economy per the EPA is 50 MPGe when you’re using electricity and it drops way down to 20 mpg with gasoline.
The X5 xDrive45e base prices at $65,400, but my tester, loaded up with numerous options, plus $995 shipping from the Spartanburg, South Carolina factory, came to $81,695. That’s a lot, but it’s a lot of car, too.
The luxury crossover segment is becoming highly desirable these days—low slung sedans are no longer the rage. This car, with its rugged but sophisticated styling and pretty much anything you could want, will fill anyone’s needs and then some. As a plug-in hybrid, if it spends most of its time on local runs and gets charged up regularly, it will function as an EV much of the time. But with all-wheel drive and a gas engine, it will take you to the ski destination of your choice painlessly.
The 530e Sedan
7th generation 5 Series offers a plug-in hybrid, gets some visual tweaks for ’21.
The BMW 5 Series has enjoyed a long and happy life in the BMW lineup. The 2021 model marks the seventh generation of the “executive size” sedan that debuted in 1972. Larger than the compact 3 Series and smaller than the grand 7 Series, it’s perfect for any driving occasion.
The 530e brings plug-in hybrid power. While both the standard 530i and the 530e have 2.0-liter gas engines, the 530e gets an electric motor with 107 horsepower and 195 lb.-ft. of torque, making the “e” more powerful, with a total of 288 horsepower and 310 lb.-ft. of torque. The “e” gets from 0-60 0.2 seconds faster as well, at 5.7 seconds.
While the EPA gives the 530i gas-only car fuel economy numbers of 25 City, 33 Highway, and 28 combined, the 530e gets 64 MPGe with electricity and gasoline and 26 miles per gallon with gas only. EPA Green scores are 7 for Smog and 8 for Greenhouse Gas.
The 12-kWh battery is tucked out of sight, but it does steal 4 cubic feet of trunk space, while adding weight that makes the 530e about 450 pounds heavier than the 530i.
However, it’s still the same 5 Series experience, except you can drive locally without burning gas! With 21 miles of range, the car functions as an electric car around town and for short freeway commutes. You can charge it up at home, at work, or while shopping at Whole Foods.
Option it Up the Way You Want it
My tester wore a brilliant Phytonic Blue Metallic and featured Ivory White Nappa leather within. BMW leather always smells nice and conveys a premium feel. My tester had a number of packages that added to the luxury and comfort. Driving Assistance Plus includes Extended Traffic Jam Assistant, which, as I am working from home, I didn’t get to try. The Shadowline Package adds extra lighting. The M Sport package brings performance and design upgrades, including variable sport steering, the M Sport suspension, special 19- or 20-inch upgraded rims, and an aerodynamic kit. The Parking Assistance Package would have made parking easy, if I had needed it. The Premium Package includes pleasures like a Harman-Kardon audio system and gesture control.
As with any BMW, you can go wild with optional features. My tester base priced at $57,200, but with options plus shipping came to an eye-opening $70,485. For comparison, the base price of the fossil-fuel-only 530i, pre-shipping, is $54,200, $3,000 less than the 530e.
All 5-Series models receive some subtle updates this year, including a larger, taller set of twin kidney grilles along with resculpted LED headlamps up front. Trapezoidal tailpipe finishers perk up the tail end. Inside, Live Cockpit gives you generous 12.3-inch instrument panel and dash center screens. This blends modern computer screen controls with some of the classic feel of the BMWs drivers have loved over the decades.
Most EVs, being silent, can surprise unsuspecting walkers. So, BMW offers Acoustic Protection for Pedestrians, which makes what BMW calls an “unmistakable sound” at up to 19 miles per hour to warn the inattentive.
The 530e does its electric driving subtly, but cruising in it in silence can put you in your happy place, even if it’s not for an extended time. But soon, you’ll be able to enjoy an all-electric midsize sedan from BMW—the i4. Stay tuned.
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