National Drive Electric Week

National Drive Electric Week
National Drive Electric Week Knoxville, TN
Knoxville, TN
Sep 25, 2021

Day: Saturday, September 25, 2021 NOTE: this event has already happened, find current-year events on the Attend page.
Time: 10:00 am - 3:00 pm EDT
Location: Pellissippi State Community College
Hardin Valley Campus (Main Campus)
10915 Hardin Valley Road
Knoxville, TN 37933-0990
Contact the event organizers, which took place in 2021.

Event Report

What a thrill!  The 2021 Knoxville Drive Electric Festival, held at Pellissippi State Community College (PSCC), was the largest Electric Vehicle event ever in the State of Tennessee.  While the Knoxville Electric Vehicle Association had the lead in putting the event together, special thanks go out to PSCC, Drive Electric Tennessee, and the East Tennessee Clean Fuels Coalition for all of the work and support generously given.  Over 100 volunteers (mostly vehicle owners) collectively donated 1100 hours of their time.  Thanks also to Audi Knoxville, Harper Porsche, Harper Volkswagen, and the Tesla Knoxville Store and Service Center.

Thanks to WATE-TV for again including National Drive Electric Week in its "Living East Tennessee" program.  The segment is here:  https://www.wate.com/living-east-tennessee/2021-knoxville-national-drive-electric-week-festival/?fbclid=IwAR0ncBTyc3sYtzidqGPn_P4AxNci9oDvsiQUmIvJIliUMY1MtYoGrryRGJc

While we expected and planned for a large number of the models of EVs seen on the streets of town, we were privileged to have on hand a Fisker Karma, a Polestar 2, and newer vehicles like the Porsche Taycan and the Ford Mustang Mach-E.  Those last two were available for rides.  Just the week before, Knoxville Area Transit held a celebration of it's move toward electricity by introducing the first electric buses in its fleet.  They were able to free one up to join the Festival for a couple of hours.

Owners and dealers brought 86 automobiles and motorcycles.  Among those for Ride & Drives were two Arcimoto three-wheel vehicles:  The Fun Utility Vehicle (seats 2) and the Deliverator (a small urban delivery vehicle).  The Southern Alliance for Clean Energy brought their test drive fleet:  Tesla Model X, Tesla Model 3, and Nissan LEAF.  Tennessee Technological University brought over their Ford F-250 hybrid conversion.  Adventure Sports Innovation (from Chattanooga) brought the French built Swincar off-road vehicle and a variety of other rideable devices.  LeMond Bicycles (yes, Tour de France winner Greg LeMond's company) builds eBikes in Knoxville, just a few miles from PSCC.  They brought four for people to try out.  All in all, there were 106 electrically powered things that people can ride in or on.

Matt Lawson provided this wonderful video overview of the Festival:  https://youtu.be/2RKC7k12ANU

Jim Crawford came all the way from North Georgia to interview owners.  He's posted this video to his YouTube channel:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L-2F8hS7zzA  Owners talk about their experiences and reasons to own EVs.  Photos can be found in these two galleries:  Susan's - https://rjgphotography.zenfolio.com/p590172523  and Jack's - https://rjgphotography.zenfolio.com/p255789213

The Knoxville Utilities Board provides rebates for installing home charging systems for EVs, so of course they had a presence.  The City of Knoxville brought one of their Nissan LEAFs.  Blink chargers had a representative on hand to give away a home charger.  And Solar Alliance demonstrated a solar charging/robot mowing system for the home.  CJ's Tacos food truck fed the multitudes.

photo by: Matt Lawson
The (socially distanced) faces of EV diversity - Stacy Davis, Susan Goodwin, Billy Williams, Vanessa Mills, and Patricia Mesa with Billy's 2021 Tesla Model S. In the background are a 2018 Honda Clarity and a 2012 Fisker Karma.

More photos from this event.

Event Description

 

It's A Drive Electric Festival!



It's time to build on the success of previous Knoxville National Drive Electric Week and Drive Electric Earth Day events.  The Knoxville Electric Vehicle Association (KEVA), Pellissippi State Community College (PSCC), and Drive Electric Tennessee (DET) are working to make the 2021 Knoxville Drive Electric Week Event the largest ever in the State.  All activities - vehicles on display, ride and drives, vendors, etc. - will be held on the PSCC Hardin Valley (Main) Campus.

The Festival will feature all vehicles that can be plugged in, and that a person can ride in or on.  Cars, motorcycles, eBikes, three wheeler FUVs (Fun Utility Vehicles), electric scooters, etc.  Adventure Sports Innovation is bringing a Swincar, an electric off-road adventure vehicle.


This is an opportunity to talk directly with electric vehicle (EV) owners about their real world experiences with electric vehicles. Want to know what it's like to take a long road trip in an electric car? Our members have thousands of miles of road trip experiences. Curious about how to find a charger on the road and how long it takes to charge? The answers are here.  (So are a couple of chargers - PSCC has two.)  What about maintenance?  There's very little maintenance needed, and owners can tell you why.   Curious about converting an internal combustion engine or hybrid vehicle to fully battery electric?  Mark knows how.  He's done it more than once.


You can see and compare a wide range of EV models in one place.  Owners and auto dealers will have numerous vehicles for show and ride and drives throughout the day. Expected owner vehicles include Chevrolet Bolts and Volts, Energica Motorcycle, Fisker Karma, Kia Niro, Nissan LEAF, Smart for Two, Tesla Models 3, Y, S, and X, Toyota Prius Prime, Volkswagen ID4, Zero motorcycle, and more.  We are adding more EVs every day.  Harper Auto Square plans to bring a Porsche Taycan, a Volkswagen ID4, and an Audi eTron.  The Knoxville Tesla Center also has plans to attend.  Other local dealers will bring models available in the Knoxville area.  Don't miss the regional debut of two Arcimoto FUVs.  Knowledgeable KEVA members will be available to answer your questions throughout the day.  There will be an information station, Knoxville Utility Board representatives, vendors (solar and other), and additional exciting electric alternatives. 

  

We owe a great debt of thanks to Plug-In America and to Electrify America for their continued support of those of us in the field.



COVID-19 safety restrictions will be followed for this event.

  • Most of the vehicles at the festival are privately owned.  It is important that the wishes and safety of the owners be respected.
  • Masks are to be worn when within 6 feet of other people, and when in any vehicles.  Masks will be available for everyone who does not have their own.
  • Wristbands will be issued to all attendees whose forehead temperatures are normal. Wristbands are required to enter any vehicle, whether on display or for a test ride or drive.
  • During test rides and drives, only the dealer representative, the test driver, and other members of the driver's immediate household will be in the vehicle.  Masks must be worn, and windows must be down.

Registered Attendees

There are currently 321 attendees registered.

Owners of These Vehicles Have Registered To Attend

Vehicle Registered
Tesla Model 3 25
Tesla Model Y 10
Chevrolet Volt 8
Chevrolet Bolt 6
Nissan Leaf (2011-2017) 4
Nissan Leaf (2018+) 4
Tesla Model S 4
Audi e-tron 3
Ford Mustang Mach-E 3
Kia Niro Electric 3
Tesla Model X 3
Volkswagen ID.4 3
Arcimoto SRK 2
BMW i3 REx 2
Other Plug-In Vehicle 2
Porsche Taycan 2
Smart fortwo electric drive 2
Zero Motorcycle 2
BMW 330e 1
Chevrolet Bolt EUV 1
Chevy Spark EV 1
Energica Eva 1
Fisker Karma 1
Ford Fusion Energi 1
Honda Clarity Plug-in Hybrid 1
Polestar 2 1
Toyota Prius Prime 1
Toyota RAV4 Prime 4WD/AWD 1
28 Models 98

Registered attendees report 2,838,216 electric miles driven.

Presented By

Plugin America logo
Electric Vehicle Association logo
Sierra Club logo
EVHybridNoire logo
Drive Electric USA logo

All NDEW 2024 sponsors support Plug In America's coordination of National Drive Electric Week.

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