One of the logistical things we were juggling before we went to France for vacation was whether we’d be able to take delivery of our all-electric BMW ActiveE before we left. Well, it turns out that it didn’t ship down from Oxnard until the day before we left, so we postponed delivery until we got home.
So on Monday, we took our last drive in my old, grey car down to BMW of San Diego, traded it in, and signed the lease on our ActiveE – already previously christened Buzz. Talk about a good “Welcome Back” activity!
As we remembered from the test drive – maybe even better than we remembered from the test drive – the car handles great and is really fun to drive. I think the only adjustment (other than that it’s super-silent) will be calibrating my right foot to what’s almost a 1-pedal-drive. (The deceleration curve when you release the “gas” pedal is steeper than for a gas-powered car).
Most importantly, we needed to decide where our first trip would be. Well, Penny suggested that we should go to Dog Beach in Del Mar. And really, who were we to argue? So, we transferred the dog blanket/hammock into Buzz and were off.
Buzz at home
She hopped right in the car, though riding isn’t necessarily her favorite thing.
When we got to the beach, we’d missed our low tide window by a little, but that didn’t seem to bother Penny too much.
This is more like it...
On the way back, we stopped at the grocery store and Penny realized that it might be a new car but an errand stop is an errand stop.
Hey, where you guys going?
But really the best thing was that on the way home we got to enjoy that special aroma that I think will mark a lot of Buzz’s early days: New Car Smell and Wet-Dog Smell.
Stevil 
I like the circuitry paint job on the hood, but not so much on the sides. Hope you plugged it in before you went to bed.
It’s pretty funny Budd — I now have to remember to charge my phone AND my car before I turn in!
I see that Penny also enjoys a hammock in the back – they are a great product, keeps the dogs fairly safe and the floor cleaner. Not if only it would absorb and remove the wet puppy smell after the beach. Cool Buzz . . . enjoy.
We bought the hammock maybe a year ago after struggling with blankets that just shifted all around. Never go back — love the hammock.
SO. COOL. Love the name!
Now you’ve set the bar pretty high though—I expect you to get your hands on a hovercar when BMW comes out with one of those.
I KNOW!! Apparently, since we’ve taken one, we’re on the first-to-know list for the “next” things. Sadly, Buzz is only a 2-year beta-test program. I’m already getting sentimental!
Very cool, and nice that your first stop was to the dog beach!! what a great thing to come home to! That’s a pretty nifty looking ride.
cranky — we wanted to go somewhere the whole pack could appreciate. :)
It really is a nice looking car! How exciting!!! And Penny is so cute in her hammock!
Lauri — she’s a pretty expressive dog. She usually stands with her head on one of our shoulders.
Congrats on your new borrowed baby!
“didn’t seem to bother Penny too much” RIGHT!
MT — thanks! Penny’s a trooper… ;)
Yeah! Cool new car and Penny! I’m a happy subscriber!!
SS — Penny makes everything better!
Hey, Chicken little was driving to the beach as well.
Cute car. The hammock looks like a good idea as chicken little tends to leave hair everywhere. Although here you have to have dogs restrained in cars. Against the law to leave them loose.
Jane — I think Penny would go a little crazy if restrained, though she’s a trooper and would probably learn to deal. The car is definitely the around-the-town-commuting one!
The car looks FANTASTIC…
Congratulations.
LG — the car is really fun. The Beloved wants to take it in to show her office mates but I’m not sure when I’ll be willing to relinquish the keys… :)
Cool! How long does it stay charged for? What do you do in the event of an electrical outage? And what the heck is Ms. Penny curled up in – in the car? Looks cozy.
I’ll bet you had a big welcome home from her :)
MJ
Emjay — the car has about 100 miles worth of charge. It has an emergency cord that will let it charge off a normal (for US) 110V outlet if our charger is out. If everything’s out, then we take the gas car I suppose… :)
We have a hammock/blanket for Penny that attaches between the headrests of the front and back seats — we found this better than blankets that tended to shift around too much.
cool info on the wheels and yes – she looks very cozy in there :) MJ
I love the name. Do you ever just park at the gas station and reminisce? ;)
We were just speculating about where I will buy my lottery tickets now!
I love the picture of her peeking out of the back window.
Congrats on getting the car! I look forward to hearing more about it… after the tales of your visit to France.
Get crackin’, Steve. You’ve got a great many posts to write. And please continue with the pictures. No pressure.
We took a cross-country trip a couple of years ago, so we got pretty used to seeing a pointer-head in the back window when we’d stop for a meal. It’s actually one of my favorite memories.
I promise more posts this week!!!
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