Why I Love My 2014 Mitsubishi i-MiEV

I recently bought my first electric vehicle -- a 2014 Mitsubishi i-MiEV.  I absolutely love it!  However, I have discovered that not everyone can understand why I love it.  So the purpose of this post is to lay out some of the reasons why this may be my very favorite car ever -- and I've had quite a few.

First, I love the way it feels to drive it.  It handles extremely well, with perfectly smooth acceleration and an impressively tight turning radius.

The steering wheel feels great in my hands, too.  Though it isn't adjustable, its size and position are perfect just the way they are.

It is distinctly different from any other vehicle on the road.  It has been quite a conversation piece with strangers, a number of whom have taken notice and asked a lot of questions.  I also catch a lot of people staring at me.  I can't tell if it's curiosity, admiration, or disdain, nor do I care.

I love the tiny size.  It's so easy to park and maneuver, and yet has plenty of headroom and space for hauling groceries and shopping bags.  I occasionally struggle a little with driver-side legroom, but for the short trips I take for work and errands, it's not really a problem.

The motor is so quiet that some of my passengers have been startled when the car starts moving because they didn't even realize that it was running yet.

No more oil changes.  Oil is dirty and expensive, and scheduling oil changes is inconvenient at best.  That is now a thing of the past for me.

Saving the best for last, I am happy to be free from gasoline.  As of this writing, I've driven nearly 2,000 miles and haven't used a single drop.  This means:

• No more gasoline smell on my hands and clothing.
• No more handling of those filthy pumps.
• No more breathing in those harmful fumes.
• No more paying outrageous fuel prices.
• No more air pollution.
• No more consumption of non-renewable resources.
• No more standing outside in bad weather waiting for my tank to fill.  I just plug it in at home or at the gym and go inside.

This is definitely the start of a beautiful friendship between me and electric vehicles.  If your lifestyle is such that an electric vehicle could suit your needs, then I recommend it without hesitation.