First time driving an EV impressions

Thanks in part to this forum, yesterday I drove a new Bolt, a stripped down version. It was my first time driving an EV and it was more different than I expected. Impressions:

"Starting" an EV was odd. Silence. Nothing happening. Odd. 

Due to the silence, when I got off the brake it just felt like we coasted in neutral down the driveway when I got off the brake. That's another odd way to start a drive. 

Acceleration felt like takeoff in a jet - constant and with increasing force. This makes me believe they programmed it to deliver reduced power down low (see below).

No shift points left me feeling kind of anxious, like anticipating the shift which never came. 

If the seat of my pants are to be believed, they give it less available power at low speeds and then turn up the juice once you're out of tire shredding speeds. This resulted in a perceived different torque/power curve at lower speeds than when flooring it at higher speeds when it's instant-on. 
 

Without the downshift experience, flooring it at higher speeds feels like flooring it in a manual in a higher gear. 
 

Regen braking felt like riding a see-saw. I would probably get used to it but initial feeling was uncomfortable. 

It was interesting to find the driving experience a lot more different than I expected from just a diff propulsion method. OTOH the owner is not a car guy and didn't notice half of that stuff. 
 

Although it has about the same performance as my Z4, there was no neck snap possible as with punching the gas in 1st or 2nd at 5,000 rpm.

AND: Despite how it may sound after writing all this, I have no problem with EVs in principle. 

I think it's tough to compare the Bolt to a Z4, but maybe that's just me. Compared to a base sedan/new $30k ICE car, they should be noticeably quicker, if only because there's no downshift. One pedal braking can be turned off, but you do get used to it and I don't know any EV drivers who have actually turned off after using it. I agree though, very different experience. 

In reply to P3PPY :

Thanks for your perceptions.  

In reply to classicJackets (FS) :

Right, I meant similar just in straight line acceleration. As I look up the specs it's admittedly not as similar as I had been thinking, but then again, the Z4 specs are from 20 years and 150k miles ago, in my case.

His wife happens to hate the regen. I don't know why though. She does have a lead foot FWIW

I read this as first time driving an RV and thought, huh that's odd for GRM.  Then I put on my glasses.

We test-drove a Nissan Leaf last year, I was surprised how much like a normal car it drove.  The one we drove had adequate power (not like many EVs that are downright quick), and the one-pedal driving was surprisingly easy to get used to.  I see an EV in our future, but I'm not sure when.

P3PPY said:

Acceleration felt like takeoff in a jet - constant and with increasing force. This makes me believe they programmed it to deliver reduced power down low (see below).

Definitely true.

If the seat of my pants are to be believed, they give it less available power at low speeds and then turn up the juice once you're out of tire shredding speeds. This resulted in a perceived different torque/power curve at lower speeds than when flooring it at higher speeds when it's instant-on. 

My Volt behaves similar to this. There is plenty of torque and it could all be delivered right off 0 rpm. That much of a shock load has the potential to shorten the life of bearings, axles, and all kinds of other things. On a FWD the torque steer would be miserable.

 After 110k miles of ownership (140k on my car total), I can say that even with the torque limit my Volt devours tires. You might be tempted to think it's the extra weight, and that's part of it. When I first got my Volt I admit I was not great at tire rotation without  the usual oil change interval as a trigger. Even on a consistent schedule the drive tires wear so much faster than the rear tires.

The control scheme though is really nice in winter conditions. I can get up my inclined driveway even with a sheet of ice. The motor controller can find a point where it can get traction and hold it, even as friction changes.

I really have a unique experience here.  I used to work for a company that converted Dodge ProMaster vans from gas to EV and got to drive them before and after.  The V6 van is really kinda pathetic to drive, slow for a 3.5 and not that great on gas.  The converted van had a lot more torque even though we turned it down a bit and despite gaining 800 lbs (give or take) it handles really well with all that weight below the floor.  Yeah, regen braking takes a little getting used to but I really liked it.

EVs are great. My first two experiences were very different. The first was a 1st gen Leaf, and it was nice in a bland way. Adequate power, quiet of course, adequate but boring. 

My second experience changed the way I thought about cars -  it was a performance model Tesla 3 and the thought that stayed in my mind was that it was like other fast cars that I'd driven, but somehow it had the ultimate CVT and engine management causing the car to be "on the cam" instantly. It was really amazing. But it was also heavy and the interior was bland. It gave me a woodie, but the car didn't touch my soul. 

Since then I've driven more models and really appreciate the things.  It's a damn shame that they've become so politicized, because their virtues are such that they'd be successful with or without the governments participation.

+1 on the see-saw. My Performance Model 3 feels like stretching a rubber band all the time, where you like wind it up and relax it as the regen kicks in.