Wave Day 1 - report

We knew day one was to be a big day weeks before it actually happened. Stuttgart was going to attempt to break a Guinness record for the biggest EV parade in the world and Wave teams were to form the core of it. We all gathered together by the Mercedes-Benz Museum in Stuttgart.

Once everyone was in place and following a couple of welcoming speeches we were all ready to go. A very impressive parade of (now we know) 507 electric vehicles traveled around the city and CHAdeMO's Peugeot Partner was among them. 

Once the parade was finished we all got to a huge car park to build a ... Giant heart made from electric cars!

Feeling very proud, a CHAdeMO-coloured car participaded as a very base of the heart. 

The parade and the heart were a great success. We not only beat the world record, but also built an amazing, electric heart. All this was filmed by a drone. 

(See the drone right above the car).

After the successful parade we headed for  Schondorf, a birthplace of the inventor Gotlib Daimler, one of the founders of Daimler (car manufacturer). We fast charged our partner and provided a badly needed fast charge top up to 'Gotlib' team, that arrived at this interim destination with only 5km of range left (!).

We also learnt that our car is a big attraction not only because of it's special looks and a fast charger that it carries on board, but because of a boot that is unmatched in size by other EVs. And so it now serves as an emergency storage and baggage transporter, providing a much needed service to overloaded EVs of some Wavers. 

 A guided tour by town's very own impersonation of Gotlib Daimler (who very much enjoyed a CHAdeMO badge:) and a charge later, we were ready to take upon us the hilly part of Schwarzwald.

At 17:56 we arrived well and without any problems, having covered 75km and with 50% of the battery left, at Wolpertshausen, final destination for the day. Now we are resting and looking forward to tomorrow!

Getting ready for the first Wave 2014 briefing

We have started! Having picked up the car kindly provided to us by Peugeot Suisse in Schlieren, near Suisse-German border, we made our way to meet a couple of other Wave teams that were also travelling to the Wave's briefing point  in Bietigheim-Bissingen. We set out without any problems with a goal of covering  104 km. Since there were no fast chargers on the way we planned an overnight stop at Trossingen. We made it to the first destination without special adventures, albeit travelling at a very slow speed to make sure the battery lasts us for the whole stretch. Once arrived in Trosdimgen, a 22kw charge to 80% followed by an overnight  top up to 100% and we were ready to go again. 

We braved our way, 133km between Trossingen and Bietigheim-Bissingen, with only one fast charge, put the car to charge, put the stickers on and now are waiting for the first briefing of the Wave 2014!

Our car charging:

It's 100% ladies here:

And here is the first of Wave teams (team Watt-Wurm) getting assistance from our portable charger:

More updates later!

Charging the WAVE

Although not a supporting team, but an actual participant, CHAdeMO Team will have a supporting role to play during the WAVE. As a fast charging association should, we will be providing a charging assistance to the rally. Armed with an EVTEC portable charger we will fast charge ourselves (or rather, our Peugeot Partner Electric), supporting vehicles and, if the time allows, the vehicles of other participants over 2000km of the WAVE. 

The 20kW power hidden in this innocent looking device provides for 80% of charge in less than 40 min and all it needs is an industrial CE plug (red with 5 pins) to work, thus it’s a practical solution for extending the range of our EV 100% electrically, especially when you need to be able to move it around and do not have a 50kW electricity connection. The 65 kg charger will travel in our booth and shall be taken out (in the spirit of collaboration, i.e. combining the muscle force of our team with that of others, or so we hope!) whenever possible, charging as many as possible.

The characteristics of the charger:

• AC input voltage 400 VAC ±10% (nominal 400 VAC)
• DC output voltage 250 - 420 VDC, current 0 A - 60 A
• efficiency 95% at 50% load, 94% at 100% load
• power factor >0,99 at >50% load
• integrated Ground Fault Detection
• residual current and over current circuit breaker
• CHAdeMO protocol Rev 0.9

Preparations for the WAVE 2014 continue!

All our special accessories for the wave have been delievered and are now waiting to be put into action!

Team outfit + a couple of special CHAdeMO stickers

If you come to the WAVE, you will be able to get one of those!

Spot us from far away

Proudly 100% ladies

CHAdeMO participation at the WAVE is unique - and not only because it is the first time that the association joins an international rally. It is also because CHAdeMO’s team is the first 100% ladies team that has ever joined the WAVE rally [according to the organizer]. Thus, not only will we be promoting fast charging, but also (and proudly) breaching male-female-mobility stereotypes. 

The two ladies in question are members of the same family, with one joining as a CHAdeMO employee and the other as a volunteer. A seasoned driver of combustion engine cars Jola is combining forces with a slightly less seasoned, but nevertheless very enthusiastic electric car driver Natalia. Because France is the association’s European homeland, the team, although neither of the ladies is French, shall participate as a team from France. 

The particular gender configuration of the team will of course impact our  EV’s decoration style. But that shall only be revealed at the rally. So join us at the WAVE or follow us on twitter or this blog to see for yourself when the moment comes!

1/2 of CHAdeMO WAVE team in front of a CHAdeMO-coloured EV