A history of women and EVs

This story first appeared in the June issue of EVtalk – CLICK HERE to download the magazine FREE

Miss Daisy Can Drive Herself was a talk by Pam McKinlay about the history of electric vehicles and women at Techweek18’s final EV event.

Appropriately, it was at the Otago Pioneer Women’s Memorial Hall during the 125th celebration of women’s suffrage in New Zealand.

Like many woman drivers in the early 20th century, Clara Ford (wife of Henry Ford) drove herself in a Detroit Electric. Women preferred them as they were simpler to operate with no cranking required or gears.

This theme seems to continue, McKinlay says. Historically, EVs were sometimes styled with fake radiators to appear more like the “masculine” gasoline vehicles.

Present early EV adopters and advocates are equally likely to be men and women, but the most vocally dismissive tend to be older and male. Younger ones really get it, she says.
McKinlay believes about 75% of the audience packing the hall were contemplating buying their first EV.

A Nissan Leaf owner and EV enthusiast, McKinlay is also an artist and a keen photographer. The McKinlay Leaf, nicknamed Luxray, sports a roof rack for her family kayak missions and has been used in exhibitions as a media player or connected to electronic work by Bluetooth to the EV’s speakers.

Other Dunedin Techweek’18 events included Henrik Moller from Flip the Fleet presenting Electric Vehicles: Clean & Green Computers on Wheels? at the Otago Museum.

TEXpo, a public open day at Otago Polytech and Otago University Business School followed.

EV owners joined a Park-Up at the polytechnic carpark where rides and drives were offered. Seven different models of EV included two 40kWh Nissan Leafs and the new Toyota Prius PHEV were among 27 vehicles there.