It’s not often you find yourself in a parking lot filled with over 100 plug-in vehicles, but last Sunday at the California Center for Sustainable Energy, visitors caught a glimpse of what the near-future may hold. Over 150 people came out for San Diego’s National Plug-In Day celebration at CCSE, with San Diego as one of more than 50 cities participating in the nation-wide event sponsored by the Sierra Club, Plug-In America, and the Electric Auto Association.
Visitors came together to celebrate clean vehicles, bringing over 100 vehicles ranging from 12 different make and models. This impressive array of vehicles included 3 Tesla Roadsters, 2 Tesla Model Ss, one Mitsubishi i, 7 Ford Focus Electrics, 2 BMW Active-Es, 2 Honda Fit EVs, one Ford Transit Connect, one Coda Automotive Sedan, 12 Chevy Volts, 3 Smart EDs showcased by car2go, 2 Toyota Prius Plug-In Hybrids, 4 EV conversions, and over 50 Nissan Leafs. The strides in manufacturer diversity for electric vehicles have been continually impressive over the past year, with more options than ever before.
CCSE’s parking lot was the main attraction during our second annual “tailgate without tailpipes.” Visitors could grab a taco from the fresh taco stand, check out cars, and compare range-extending driving techniques, all while enjoying some sunshine and music. Four lucky Charging Champion contest winners went home with prizes for the highest EV odometer reading, the newest plug-in vehicle, the oldest plug-in vehicle, and the longest distance driven to reach the event (over 60 miles!).
Inside, presentations were hosted by the Clean Vehicle Rebate Project Program Manager, Colin Santulli, and ECOtality’s San Diego Area Manager Andy Hoskinson, who provided an update about ECOtality’s charging infrastructure. With about one quarter of all attendees being prospective electric vehicle drivers, workshops offered valuable information about incentives for purchasing an electric vehicle and the state of public charging today.
CCSE’s staff had a great time celebrating alongside so many EV enthusiasts, and with up to $10,000 in electric vehicle incentives through the Clean Vehicle Rebate Project and other incentives listed at www.driveclean.ca.gov, we can’t wait to see all of the new EV drivers at next year’s event.