Seattle Electric Vehicle Assocation (SEVA)

Promoting electric vehicles through education, demonstration & advocacy since 1980

Welcome to the Seattle Electric Vehicle Association

  • Image of Roger Swearingen and his Fiat 500E, and a Ford Ranger electric pickup truck.
    Many SEVA members, like Roger Swearingen, have more than one electric vehicle in their households. Roger is pictured here with two OEM electric vehicles; a Fiat 500E, and a Ford Ranger electric pickup truck.

Welcome!

The Seattle Electric Vehicle Association (SEVA) is an all-volunteer group of Seattle-area folks who are passionate about  all things having to do with electric cars.  Our members run the gamut from brand new Tesla owners to folks who have been converting old gasoline cars since the 1980’s.

We participate in car shows, educational events and political events having to  do with electric vehicle legislation. But we mostly get together to have some plain, old fun at our free monthly meetings and by simply driving around on our zero-emission wheels.

SEVA also serves as a gateway to the latest press and information on and about electric vehicles. Jump on in to see what’s happening in the world of electric cars!

 2nd Tuesday SEVA Monthly Meetings are now on ZOOM

Due to COVID-19, SEVA is now hosting its public, monthly meetings on Zoom until further notice
The next 6 meeting dates are

  • Tuesday, January 12 
  • Tuesday February 9
  • Tuesday March 9
  • Tuesday  April 13
  • Tuesday May 11
  • Tuesday Jun 8

SEVA MEETING ZOOM INFO

Ed will open the meeting at 6:00PM so folks have a chance to get comfortable with Zoom and say hello.

To join from a computer/laptop/tablet, (ie anything with a camera and a mic), you can use this link: (Cut and paste from this page into your browser)

  • https://us02web.zoom.us/j/86526235088?pwd=aHlYTVRadmd6UmJsK3U2UmZpc25mUT09
  • (If needed, this will install an applet from Zoom. Say “yes” if it asks for permission.)

From a smart-phone you can use the link above, but it’s sometimes easier to go to your app store and install “Zoom Meetings” and then join the meeting ID below with the password below.

To call in by voice from any telephone

  • Phone #: 253-215-8782
  • Meeting ID: 865 2623 5088
  • Participant ID: Just push #
  • Password: 114152

Join the SEVA Listserv to Keep In Touch

Meanwhile, our members are keeping in touch via our email listserv. To join the listserv, do the following:

The 2021 Washington State Legislative Session is here!

There are seven (7)  electric vehicle bills SEVA is tracking.
Please see the 2021 Legislative News Page for bill details, including how to testify via ZOOM

Img of EVs at Pacific Racewa

Car Shows and “EVents” 2020

Due to COVID19, most in-person 2020 shows and events are cancelled and our monthly meetings, which are via ZOOM (see above).

However, there are some VIRTURAL  and SOCIALLY-DISTANT events that SEVA heartily invites you to attend.

If  Google calendar doesn’t load properly, please hit “refresh” on your browser button- thanks!

Other EV EVENTS:

  • ONGOING: Tesla Owners Club of the PNW (TOCPNW) has an events calendar up: https://tocpnw.org/events/
    Some events are private, but some are open to the public, and in fact some are meant as outreach. Not all are local.
  • COVID-19 Update: Tesla Owners Club of the PNW has canceled in person meetings for now, but is working on setting up virtual meetings.     Contact them at the above email address to make inquiries.

Image of Electric Car Charging Station Graphic

Curbside EV Charging Rules for Seattle (as of 10/01/19)

The City of Seattle has updated their rules for curbside EV charging. This is for those folks that don’t have a garage or driveway and that are
laying a charging cord across the sidewalk.
DOWNLOAD .PDF OF NEW RULES HERE 

 

WASHINGTON STATE BRINGS BACK  ELECTRIC VEHICLE TAX
INCENTIVES  For 2019-2025

The Washington sales tax break will be revived as of August 1, 2019. It was expanded from the previous version to also apply to sales of used electric cars. As before, electric vehicle leases also get a sales tax break. Hydrogen fuel cell electric vehicles could also qualify for the tax break, but no Pacific Northwest dealers currently stock or sell new hydrogen-powered cars.

To qualify for Washington’s tax abatement, a new vehicle’s sales price has to be less than $45,000 and a used electric passenger vehicle less than $30,000. These thresholds are meant to screen out buyers of high-end Teslas and BMWs. Oregon’s rebate program operates with the same philosophy, but uses as its eligibility cutoff a base model MSRP of less than $50,000.

The Washington sales tax break is structured to ramp down and then phase out completely after six years.

For the first two years beginning this August, $25,000 of a new alternative fuel vehicle’s price is sales tax free. The untaxed portion shrinks to $20,000 in 2021 and then down to $15,000 in 2023. For used EVs, $15,000 of the sales price is tax free throughout the period.

The sales tax break is scheduled to expire on July 31, 2025.

The revived and modified sales tax break passed the Washington Legislature with bipartisan support, but with just hours to spare on the last day of the 2019 session. It passed in the state Senate 31-17. The final vote in the House of Representatives on Sunday was 91-7.

The state incentives in Oregon and Washington are in addition to a federal income tax credit worth up to $7,500 for buyers of certain models of new all-electric vehicles.

Electric Car Cleanliness During COVID-19

Image of Tesla Supercharger plug beingheld by a person wearing surgical gloves

Think about how many surfaces in your car get touched on an average trip.

There are the door handles, inside and out, control knobs and buttons, the touchscreen, even your directional and wiper controls are touched virtually every time you drive your vehicle. There is also  the trunk handle and possibly the side mirrors.

Many folks are asking about how to safely disinfect their electric cars, inside and out, without damaging inside touch screens, sensitive electronics, upholstery, etc.T here are also concerns about the cleanliness of public charging stations. SEVA recommends that you follow these simple guidelines:

Your Car’s Interior

  • Experts recommend that drivers focus on disinfecting vehicle hot spots in their vehicles. Your steering wheel, door handles inside and out, your car’s shifter, all window and control buttons, wiper and turn signals, door armrests, any grab handles and seat adjusters.
  • Rubbing alcohol solutions that contain at least 70 per cent alcohol should be effective at killing corona virus. This means nearly every interior surface of your car can be cleaned with isopropyl alcohol-based cleaners you already use around the house (Centers for Disease Control)
  • Stay away from using bleach or hydrogen peroxide inside your car as those products could easily do damage to your car’s upholstery. (Consumer Reports)
  • If your car has a touch screen, don’t use anything that has ammonia as an ingredient, since it can strip off anti-glare and anti-fingerprint coatings on the screen
  • The surfaces inside your car are usually going to be more delicate than something like the counter-top in your kitchen, so take care in how you apply the cleaning products.
  • Wipe down leather gently with a microfiber cloth as rubbing too vigorously could start to remove the color from the dye in the leather” L
  • When wiping down fabric upholstery, avoid using too much water, it could end up creating a musty smell or encouraging mold to grow in the cushions.

Your Car’s Exterior

  • The most important thing here is to remember to wipe down the things you touch the most: the door handles. Don’t forget the trunk door handle!
  • IF you have side-mirrors that you manually adjust, include those.
  • Since many of us are stuck at home, use this time to give the exterior of your car a good, general washing, using appropriate soap made for car washes.

Electric Car Charging Stations (Public and Home)

  • Remember that the plug handles have been touched by dozens of people throughout the day
  • Always use a surgical glove, a disposable rag or a paper towel to grasp the charging gun when plugging and unplugging
  • Make sure not to touch your face and WASH YOUR HANDS as soon as you get to your destination, or use hand sanitizer.

 

Img of EVs at Pacific Racewa

EV News Headlines