A Tesla and a Hot Dog? Drive the Most Popular EVs at This 7-City Festival
LONG BEACH, Calif.—Although electric vehicle adoption is growing rapidly, the vast majority of Americans still have limited experience with EVs. Maybe a friend or family member owns a Tesla, or your Uber driver picks you up in a Chevy Bolt. But some of the buzziest brands have eschewed traditional showrooms for online sales, while a visit to the dealership brings with it the dreaded sales pitch, so how can you get some quality hands-on time with an EV?
Electrify Expo—which describes itself as "the number one electric vehicle festival in North America"—is a fun, casual way to experience a wide range of EVs in one afternoon. Imagine an auto show and street fair combined. Attendees on e-bikes zoom between hundreds of vendor tents in a closed area the size of multiple football fields. One side borders an open road with a 15-minute marked course for test drives.
The idea is to offer "demos of the latest products so that attendees can determine which brand matches best with their demands," says Electrify Expo.
Some participants are looking to buy vehicles soon, while others might not be sure EVs are right for them. "I'm in the market to buy," Steven Jiang told PCMag at last week's Long Beach expo. "This is an opportunity to do some homework."
Others came in groups of friends or family. "My son found it online, so we all came out," said Vic Carillo, who attended the event with his wife and three kids. "He wants to see motorcycles with his dad. Mom wants a Volvo Recharge."
The festival offered test drives for most major EV brands: Tesla, Ford, Kia, BMW, Volvo, Volkswagen, Mitsubishi, Lexus, and more. Wait times depended on how many test vehicles the brand brought to the event, and the number of participants in line.
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