We were done. It was over. No going back.
Move forward: that was the central message to my novel, Songsaengnim: A Korea Diary. It's a mantra by which I've tried to live.
At first, DW and I were looking for a vehicle that would replace our troubled Ford Focus, but the replacement would have to be much more fuel-efficient. This was a tall order: a few days before I was to trade in the Focus and pick up our new vehicle, I put enough gas in the tank to last until I had to say goodbye. As with any time that I filled the tank, I reset all gauges—the trip odometer, the running time clock (measures how long the engine has been running since the last reset), and the fuel economy. This final refuelling was made on my commute to work.
Because a large part of my route to the office, early in the morning, involves few stops and a fairly reasonable speed, I typically get good fuel economy. On this morning, as I pulled into my parking spot, the economy was outstanding.
It was as though the Focus was saying, "See? I'm fuel-efficient. I'll be good. Please don't get rid of me."
Too little, too late.
DW and I really wanted to do our part to be as green as possible when it came to our next vehicle. In January, on our most recent trip to Toronto, we made an appointment at the Plug'n Drive Electric Vehicle Discovery Centre, a non-profit organization that is dedicated to informing the public about the advantages of driving electric vehicles (EVs). Knowledgeable folks are on hand to answer questions and provide information about EVs and the different levels of charging stations.
The best part of Plug'n Drive is that they have several makes and models of EVs on the lot, from full electric to plug-in hybrids (PHEVs), that you can test drive for free. There are no sales representatives: the people are there only to give you information so that you can decide for yourself whether an EV is right for you, and if so, which kind would suit your needs.
If you want to buy a car, you have to go to whichever dealer you want.
DW and I met Terry, who gave us so much information that it made our heads spin. But he was friendly and helpful, and he took us out to test two cars: a full EV and a PHEV. We drove a Volkswagen e-Golf EV, which is essentially a classic Golf with the engine removed and batteries put in its place. It was an okay car in itself (we wouldn't choose to own one) but what it did do was give us a sense of how an EV drove, with its regenerative braking system, which automatically slowed the car when you released your foot from the accelerator.
There were several corners that I took, where I didn't have to touch the brakes to safely negotiate the turn.
We could have tried a Tesla Model 3, but because that car was beyond our budget, we didn't want to torture ourselves by trying out a vehicle that was beyond our reach.
The other vehicle that we opted to try was a full-sized SUV, the Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV. While we were initially looking to replace the Focus, we gave thought to our Honda CR-V, which is the same age as the Focus. When our SUV finally packs it in (some four to five years down the road, or more, we hope), we might return to being a one-car family. An SUV may be a better fit.
Back in Ottawa, we gave a new car more thought as more things went wrong on the Focus. After crunching the numbers, we realized that at this time, an EV was not in our budget. To get a car that would best fit our needs, we were looking at a final sticker of about $60,000.
Ouch.
We then considered a PHEV, but there were problems with that choice. For our budget, most of the vehicles that we looked at had an electric range of under 50 kilometres. While I would have no problem getting to work on a charge, there wouldn't be enough in the battery to get me home. Sure, I'd have plenty of fuel in the tank to get me to where I needed to be, but for the extra cost of having to plug in the car to recharge the battery, it made no sense.
So, we then looked at full hybrids, which operate the same as a PHEV but do not need to be plugged in. The battery is charged while the engine runs, when you remove your foot from the gas, or when you apply the brake. The car monitors your driving habits, and determines when you can run on the battery and when you need the gas-powered engine.
The price of a full hybrid was definitely in our budget.
We looked at several vehicles but narrowed our choices down to two: we either did a straight-up replacement for the Focus, which would be a compact car. If this was the route that we wanted to go, we would purchase the Hyundai Ioniq. When I test drove it, I was tempted to sign the papers right away. It had lots of pep, plenty of room, and lots of convenient features for the price tag (about $32,000 for the mid-level trim).
But we also considered that this vehicle might also replace our CR-V in a couple of years, when we returned to owning one vehicle. If we wanted to do this, we would need more room, especially if we wanted to continue schlepping our bicycles around or if we needed to help DD16 take her drums to a gig.
We researched crossover vehicles and decided that the Kia Niro would fit the bill. But we discovered a problem when we decided to test drive one: the Niro is a tough vehicle to find in Ottawa. We called several Kia dealerships, without success. We visited the shops that are closest to us, but there wasn't a Niro on any of their lots.
We finally called a dealership in Kanata, and I learned that they had only one Niro left. To us, it didn't matter what trim level the dealer had: we just wanted to see one up close, to check the cargo space, and to sit in one.
While I was on the phone with the saleperson, he asked me which trim level I was interested in. I told him that DW and I might be interested in the EX Premium package (the third up of the available four trim levels), but what he had on the lot wasn't as important at this stage, as we simply wanted to see the car.
It just so happened that his only Niro on the lot was the EX Premium (around $36,000). It has a more fuel-efficient engine (perhaps due to weight and the configuration of the features), but it also has a sunroof, roof rails for a rack (thinking bikes), and other nice-to-have toys.
"If it's white and I like how it drives," I told DW, "we just might buy it today." White was my colour of choice. Then red. Then black.
It was black. Aurora Black. I later learned that at this trim level, red is not an available colour.
When we arrived at the dealership, we saw the Niro being backed into a parking space. Two people were sitting in it. A salesperson and a customer, just back from a test drive.
Another salesperson approached us when we entered the showroom, and we learned that he was the one I had spoken to on the phone. "I was worried that the car wouldn't be here when you arrived," he said, "it left just after we hung up."
The test drive was impressive. There is lots of passenger room, in the back as well as the front. The cargo space, with one of the back seat folded down, to carry my daughter's drum kit. It might even hold our bikes, negating the need for a roof rack.
Most of what DW and I learned about EVs from the Plug'n Drive visit came back to me, and I was able to ask lots of questions, which our salesperson was good at supplying. This vehicle ticked off lots of boxes that we had.
I also kept in mind the endorsement of a Twitter friend, who recently bought a Niro hybrid, and loved it.
Back in the dealership, we saw the other salesperson and his customer, crunching numbers. I didn't want to feel pressure, but I knew that my mind was made up. We were going to buy the vehicle with more room, were not going to simply replace the Focus.
Our salesperson had to break the news to the other salesperson and his customer: the vehicle was sold.
At the end of my first day of driving the new vehicle to work, the economy was telling: 5.7 L/100 kms. DW and I drove in together, and I dropped her off at work. We didn't leave early in the morning, so we were faced by morning rush hour. The same with the afternoon commute. Lots of starts and stops, long waits at traffic lights.
I think the Niro can do better.
I left my Ford Focus at the dealership. With its continual transmission problems and recent electronic woes (no centre console meant no radio, no Bluetooth, no clock), I didn't want to bother trying to sell it on my own. While it would likely pass a safety, no one would want it in its present condition.
It seemed strange that I left my old car at a dealership that was next door to the Ford store where we bought it, in 2012. We were only a couple of hundred metres from were we drove it off the lot, for the first time.
We unceremoniously stripped the plates from it and put them on the new car. Before I pulled off the lot, I rolled down the window in the Niro and took a photo of the Focus. I then put the car in gear and silently, under electric power, rolled away.
I never looked back.
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