2019 Chevrolet Volt Review - The Plug-In Swan Song
video description
Date: 2019-05-30
Related videos
Comments and reviews: 10
Nat Shain
ChevyVolt uses less gas than Tesla, Nissan Leaf or Chevy BoltInMarch 2019 General Motors will stop producing the Chevy Volt forever. Pleasehelp spread the word by sharing and retweeting this article hopefullyto convince GM to continue the production of this legendary car, orto convert the Bolt from an All-Electric to an Electric Gas Hybridplug inThestate of California gives a larger rebate to Tesla owners than toChevy Volt owners because the Tesla is a Zero Emission car. Inreality the Chevy Volt is closer to zero emission than the Tesla. Thismay not make sense to you so please read on to see my reasoning. Asan owner of three different Chevy Volts Plug in electric / gas hybridcars since 2011, I can affirm you that my experience with those threecars and my experience with the Chevy Volt is that they use much lessfossil fuel (Gas) than Tesla, Nissan leaf or Chevy Bolt. This maysound as an absurd statement but if you let me explain to you why, then it may make more sense, Whena person owns an all electric car (Tesla, Leaf, Bolt) it is never aprimary car. The owner must own a second car as the primary car. Thisis usually a regular gas car that in the long run it uses much morefossil fuel than a Chevy Volt. In other wordsthetotal fossil fuel usage for this household is much more than that fora person who owns a Chevy Volt. TheChevy Volt for this household is the primary car (no range limit) andthere is no need for a second (more long distant) reliable car. Alsoshould note the environmental impact of owning two cars over one carwhich would include parts that needs to be replaced and those usedparts will eventually end in the dump, 4 additional rubbertires to care for, oil changes, transmission oil, brake pads, tuneups, cost for the additional insurance etc. Assoon as a person purchases an all electric car he develops a (RAD)rangeanxiety disorder, it is a disease I invented in my head to explain toyou how a new owner of an all electric car starts to thinks shortlyafter purchasing the car ( sort of similar to buying a Boat: as thesaying goes: the two happiest days in a mans life is the day hebuys a Boat and the day he sells it. Most of the general public(even most owners of the Chevy Volt) are not aware of this RAD. Whenan owner of a Chevy Volt travels any distant he will always be goingfrom point A to point B. Whenan owner of a Tesla, Leaf, Bolt travel any distance that is close tothe 50% range of the cars battery capacity or more, he or she nolonger can travel from point A to point B. It will always will bepoint A to point C. The reason is point B will HAVE TO BE astopto use some form of a commercial charger thus diverting from A to Bpath (travel distance increased so is the fossil fuel usage) and thecommercial charger uses of (fossil fuel) to charge the car. Exampleif a Tesla owner lives in Pasadena, Ca. wantsto visit relatives in San Diego, Ca. This Tesla owner will be veryapprehensive that his or her car my not make the round trip and theycould get stranded somewhere in between putting their life on theline. They have to stop at some Tesla charging station in between toget the Tesla charged or the battery switched while the relative wholives in San Diego will use their gas guzzling (fossil fuel) car topick them up at the Tesla charging station to bring them totheir house and when they are done visiting, this relative will haveto take them back to the charging station using the same gas guzzlingcar, that is four trips. When owners of an all electric car takingany extended trip they must be on their toes learning and knowing thewhole network that they can use to recharge their car (Point B topoint C. If those charge stations are busy charging other cars thenthey must wait possibly buying foods and drinks (that used fossilfuel to make, and produce more trash to fill landfills. If the caris completely discharged then they will have to stay at a hotelovernight, because those All- Electric cars can take as much as 18hours to fully recharge. Boy think about the amount of fossil fuelused to keep a person in a hotel overnight, electricityto operate AC / Heater, watching TV, hair drying, washing sheets andtowels, laundry, food and the trash generated by such a one nightstay. They also will need some form of transportation from thecharging station to the hotel and back (more fossil fuel. Thoseall electric car companies may use sells gimmicks like DC chargingwhere you can get quick charging in a short period of time. I saynonsense, you have to find a charging station with such a DC chargingcapability and hopefully there is nobody else ahead of you waiting touse it. Some people might thing in the back of their head that somehotels may have a one or two charging station for customers to use, Ican guarantee you that those charging station will charge you an arm& a leg (more direct and indirect fossil fuel use) before youcharge your car. In other word they: CHARGE LOTS OF MONEY TO CHARGEYOUR CAR. My experience with hotels chargers is that they eitherdont work or you can not charge your car with them (Tesla requires aspecial charger. If Tesla owners think that they can knock onpeoples doors and ask them if they would allow them to use theirelectrical outlet in their garage to charge their car while they aresitting in their car, they better think again. It is not onlyunpractical, not workable and damn right dangerous. In some areasaround the country if you knock on peoples door to recharge your carthen you could end up on some TV true crime show. WhenI was a child my father told me the following saying Goodhealth is like a crown on the heads of healthy people, only sickpeople can see. Chevy Volts drivers wear a crown (No RangeAnxiety Disorder) only owners of Tesla, Leaf & Bolt drivers cansee this crown. Thestate of California calls those all electric cars as ZeroEmission while in fact theyeitherdirectly or indirectlyusemore gas than the Chevy Volt. The Chevy Volt should be the car thatgets the White pool lane sticker and should get more state rebatethan the Tesla. Peoplewho have never owned a Chevy Volt have no idea how little gas ituses. Over the past almost 8 years of using my Chevy Volts most ofthe times I can not even remember the last time I purchased gas. ChevyVolt is also a great maintenance free car, I can write a real longarticle about all the benefits of owning a Chevy Volt but not thistime. I thinkMr. Bob Lutz (the person who forced GM to make the Volt) against all oddsi. e. GM engineersshouldreceive the Nobel prize for his idea and persistence. Had GM added agas generator in the Chevy Bolt the same size as the gas generator inthe Chevy Volt then the Chevy Bolt would have become (BVOLT) andwould have become the greatest selling car in the world. UnfortunatelyMr. Bob Lutz no longer works for GM and GM executive are now forcedto listen to GM engineerstomake their decisions. Even if I lived in an apartmentbuilding with no electric outlets in the parking section I will stillpurchase a Chevy Volt to use it as a gas only car. On gas only, without ever being plugged in for charging, it gets more than 40miles per gallon. This mileage combined with almost no maintenanceand the incredible torque this car has, makes this car better thanthe gas cars made by Honda, Toyota, Nissan combined. The 100%electric drive makes the main function of the gas engine is to chargethe battery or run the electric motor. This means this gas engine isunder no stress to propel the car which make this engine run underlittle mechanical degradation, which means it can easily run half amillion to one million miles without much of a problems. Untilsomeone makes an All-Electric car that is powered by asuper-capacitor (or other means) that can be fully charged in minutesANDthosecharging facilities are present at all gas stations, thenAll-Electric cars are not Zero Emission and not even close tobeing the lowest emission cars on the market. Super-capacitor cars Ido not envision to be around anytime soon and until such a carbecomes a reality then I say to the whole world that is watching: TheEmperors New Clothes, hehasnt got anything on. To all the auto industry CEOs with visions, missions of a ZeroEmission cars: the jig is up because it is not in theAll-Electric cars. TheVolt has the lowest emission of most if not all (includingAll-Electric) cars and should receive the Nobel prize for being thegreatest car ever built. Ownerof 3 Chevy Volts for 8 years.
reply
ChevyVolt uses less gas than Tesla, Nissan Leaf or Chevy BoltInMarch 2019 General Motors will stop producing the Chevy Volt forever. Pleasehelp spread the word by sharing and retweeting this article hopefullyto convince GM to continue the production of this legendary car, orto convert the Bolt from an All-Electric to an Electric Gas Hybridplug inThestate of California gives a larger rebate to Tesla owners than toChevy Volt owners because the Tesla is a Zero Emission car. Inreality the Chevy Volt is closer to zero emission than the Tesla. Thismay not make sense to you so please read on to see my reasoning. Asan owner of three different Chevy Volts Plug in electric / gas hybridcars since 2011, I can affirm you that my experience with those threecars and my experience with the Chevy Volt is that they use much lessfossil fuel (Gas) than Tesla, Nissan leaf or Chevy Bolt. This maysound as an absurd statement but if you let me explain to you why, then it may make more sense, Whena person owns an all electric car (Tesla, Leaf, Bolt) it is never aprimary car. The owner must own a second car as the primary car. Thisis usually a regular gas car that in the long run it uses much morefossil fuel than a Chevy Volt. In other wordsthetotal fossil fuel usage for this household is much more than that fora person who owns a Chevy Volt. TheChevy Volt for this household is the primary car (no range limit) andthere is no need for a second (more long distant) reliable car. Alsoshould note the environmental impact of owning two cars over one carwhich would include parts that needs to be replaced and those usedparts will eventually end in the dump, 4 additional rubbertires to care for, oil changes, transmission oil, brake pads, tuneups, cost for the additional insurance etc. Assoon as a person purchases an all electric car he develops a (RAD)rangeanxiety disorder, it is a disease I invented in my head to explain toyou how a new owner of an all electric car starts to thinks shortlyafter purchasing the car ( sort of similar to buying a Boat: as thesaying goes: the two happiest days in a mans life is the day hebuys a Boat and the day he sells it. Most of the general public(even most owners of the Chevy Volt) are not aware of this RAD. Whenan owner of a Chevy Volt travels any distant he will always be goingfrom point A to point B. Whenan owner of a Tesla, Leaf, Bolt travel any distance that is close tothe 50% range of the cars battery capacity or more, he or she nolonger can travel from point A to point B. It will always will bepoint A to point C. The reason is point B will HAVE TO BE astopto use some form of a commercial charger thus diverting from A to Bpath (travel distance increased so is the fossil fuel usage) and thecommercial charger uses of (fossil fuel) to charge the car. Exampleif a Tesla owner lives in Pasadena, Ca. wantsto visit relatives in San Diego, Ca. This Tesla owner will be veryapprehensive that his or her car my not make the round trip and theycould get stranded somewhere in between putting their life on theline. They have to stop at some Tesla charging station in between toget the Tesla charged or the battery switched while the relative wholives in San Diego will use their gas guzzling (fossil fuel) car topick them up at the Tesla charging station to bring them totheir house and when they are done visiting, this relative will haveto take them back to the charging station using the same gas guzzlingcar, that is four trips. When owners of an all electric car takingany extended trip they must be on their toes learning and knowing thewhole network that they can use to recharge their car (Point B topoint C. If those charge stations are busy charging other cars thenthey must wait possibly buying foods and drinks (that used fossilfuel to make, and produce more trash to fill landfills. If the caris completely discharged then they will have to stay at a hotelovernight, because those All- Electric cars can take as much as 18hours to fully recharge. Boy think about the amount of fossil fuelused to keep a person in a hotel overnight, electricityto operate AC / Heater, watching TV, hair drying, washing sheets andtowels, laundry, food and the trash generated by such a one nightstay. They also will need some form of transportation from thecharging station to the hotel and back (more fossil fuel. Thoseall electric car companies may use sells gimmicks like DC chargingwhere you can get quick charging in a short period of time. I saynonsense, you have to find a charging station with such a DC chargingcapability and hopefully there is nobody else ahead of you waiting touse it. Some people might thing in the back of their head that somehotels may have a one or two charging station for customers to use, Ican guarantee you that those charging station will charge you an arm& a leg (more direct and indirect fossil fuel use) before youcharge your car. In other word they: CHARGE LOTS OF MONEY TO CHARGEYOUR CAR. My experience with hotels chargers is that they eitherdont work or you can not charge your car with them (Tesla requires aspecial charger. If Tesla owners think that they can knock onpeoples doors and ask them if they would allow them to use theirelectrical outlet in their garage to charge their car while they aresitting in their car, they better think again. It is not onlyunpractical, not workable and damn right dangerous. In some areasaround the country if you knock on peoples door to recharge your carthen you could end up on some TV true crime show. WhenI was a child my father told me the following saying Goodhealth is like a crown on the heads of healthy people, only sickpeople can see. Chevy Volts drivers wear a crown (No RangeAnxiety Disorder) only owners of Tesla, Leaf & Bolt drivers cansee this crown. Thestate of California calls those all electric cars as ZeroEmission while in fact theyeitherdirectly or indirectlyusemore gas than the Chevy Volt. The Chevy Volt should be the car thatgets the White pool lane sticker and should get more state rebatethan the Tesla. Peoplewho have never owned a Chevy Volt have no idea how little gas ituses. Over the past almost 8 years of using my Chevy Volts most ofthe times I can not even remember the last time I purchased gas. ChevyVolt is also a great maintenance free car, I can write a real longarticle about all the benefits of owning a Chevy Volt but not thistime. I thinkMr. Bob Lutz (the person who forced GM to make the Volt) against all oddsi. e. GM engineersshouldreceive the Nobel prize for his idea and persistence. Had GM added agas generator in the Chevy Bolt the same size as the gas generator inthe Chevy Volt then the Chevy Bolt would have become (BVOLT) andwould have become the greatest selling car in the world. UnfortunatelyMr. Bob Lutz no longer works for GM and GM executive are now forcedto listen to GM engineerstomake their decisions. Even if I lived in an apartmentbuilding with no electric outlets in the parking section I will stillpurchase a Chevy Volt to use it as a gas only car. On gas only, without ever being plugged in for charging, it gets more than 40miles per gallon. This mileage combined with almost no maintenanceand the incredible torque this car has, makes this car better thanthe gas cars made by Honda, Toyota, Nissan combined. The 100%electric drive makes the main function of the gas engine is to chargethe battery or run the electric motor. This means this gas engine isunder no stress to propel the car which make this engine run underlittle mechanical degradation, which means it can easily run half amillion to one million miles without much of a problems. Untilsomeone makes an All-Electric car that is powered by asuper-capacitor (or other means) that can be fully charged in minutesANDthosecharging facilities are present at all gas stations, thenAll-Electric cars are not Zero Emission and not even close tobeing the lowest emission cars on the market. Super-capacitor cars Ido not envision to be around anytime soon and until such a carbecomes a reality then I say to the whole world that is watching: TheEmperors New Clothes, hehasnt got anything on. To all the auto industry CEOs with visions, missions of a ZeroEmission cars: the jig is up because it is not in theAll-Electric cars. TheVolt has the lowest emission of most if not all (includingAll-Electric) cars and should receive the Nobel prize for being thegreatest car ever built. Ownerof 3 Chevy Volts for 8 years.
reply
Cody Coquat
Alex, thorough review as always. Are you sure your explanation of how the Volt calculates fuel economy/energy consumption is accurate? I have a 2017 Volt, and it does not treat the electric-only driving as free. When I finish a trip, it displays a MPG equivalency for the trip (it does not read 999MPG or some ridiculously high, made up number. I dont understand your point about the Volt engines power. Since the gas engine is functioning as a large generator, what does its power output have to do with the performance of the car? You state early on in the review that the performance doesnt change much (actually improves slightly) between EV only and battery depleted mode, but then you start talking about the engine power as if it negatively impacts performance after the battery is depleted later in your review. Also, your curb weight is about 300 lbs off. the weight ranges from 3519-3543 lbs. Also, I can attest to an infant car seat fitting just fine in that middle position (leaving space on each side for passengers, as I have one in there right now. Since its the safest place to put the seat, Im happy that Chevy built in the option for me to do so. Seriously though, When the first gen Volt came out, reviewers decried the lack of a center position (and some point out the car seat placement concern. Next thing you know, the Prius Prime comes out with only seating for four. and suddenly its not an issue. Kinda like Mazda switching to a torsion beam rear suspension for the Mazda3 and auto journalists trying to figure out how to spin it after theyve been panning the Cruze for using it.
reply
Alex, thorough review as always. Are you sure your explanation of how the Volt calculates fuel economy/energy consumption is accurate? I have a 2017 Volt, and it does not treat the electric-only driving as free. When I finish a trip, it displays a MPG equivalency for the trip (it does not read 999MPG or some ridiculously high, made up number. I dont understand your point about the Volt engines power. Since the gas engine is functioning as a large generator, what does its power output have to do with the performance of the car? You state early on in the review that the performance doesnt change much (actually improves slightly) between EV only and battery depleted mode, but then you start talking about the engine power as if it negatively impacts performance after the battery is depleted later in your review. Also, your curb weight is about 300 lbs off. the weight ranges from 3519-3543 lbs. Also, I can attest to an infant car seat fitting just fine in that middle position (leaving space on each side for passengers, as I have one in there right now. Since its the safest place to put the seat, Im happy that Chevy built in the option for me to do so. Seriously though, When the first gen Volt came out, reviewers decried the lack of a center position (and some point out the car seat placement concern. Next thing you know, the Prius Prime comes out with only seating for four. and suddenly its not an issue. Kinda like Mazda switching to a torsion beam rear suspension for the Mazda3 and auto journalists trying to figure out how to spin it after theyve been panning the Cruze for using it.
reply
Bill Kerr
Technical part of the video is rife with errors, primarily, --The Volt actually has more power in electric only mode. --Almost everyone gets more than 53 miles of range. In all but the coldest texas weather I could go 70 miles w/o engine turning on. --The Volt is quite efficient. I average about 5 miles per kW/hr, 20% better than my old Nissan Leaf. Nobody uses MPGe for real world comparisons. Nobody (besides manufacturers. His MPG rant is nonsensical. Volt owners are smart enough to figure out what the display means. I only ever use the engine on long trips. I get a real 40MPG cruising 70-80MPH. 8 minutes in and Im done. This guy bugs me. The Volt is a great car if it is big enough for you. Comfortable if youre not far over 6, smooth and powerful (more torque than my 11 Subaru STi, A fill up is about 2 and will last most commuters 2 day (but you plug in to a wall socket in your garage every night when you get home, and Volts last forever since the engine seldom runs. Check out Eric Belmer here on YouTube with over 400, 000 miles on his. It is the easiest electric car to own. Since it is being discontinued you should be able to get a steep discount. The 7, 500 tax credit drops to 5, 000 in April so check it out. And do whatever you have to do to get the adaptive cruise control option. Its magic. --
reply
Technical part of the video is rife with errors, primarily, --The Volt actually has more power in electric only mode. --Almost everyone gets more than 53 miles of range. In all but the coldest texas weather I could go 70 miles w/o engine turning on. --The Volt is quite efficient. I average about 5 miles per kW/hr, 20% better than my old Nissan Leaf. Nobody uses MPGe for real world comparisons. Nobody (besides manufacturers. His MPG rant is nonsensical. Volt owners are smart enough to figure out what the display means. I only ever use the engine on long trips. I get a real 40MPG cruising 70-80MPH. 8 minutes in and Im done. This guy bugs me. The Volt is a great car if it is big enough for you. Comfortable if youre not far over 6, smooth and powerful (more torque than my 11 Subaru STi, A fill up is about 2 and will last most commuters 2 day (but you plug in to a wall socket in your garage every night when you get home, and Volts last forever since the engine seldom runs. Check out Eric Belmer here on YouTube with over 400, 000 miles on his. It is the easiest electric car to own. Since it is being discontinued you should be able to get a steep discount. The 7, 500 tax credit drops to 5, 000 in April so check it out. And do whatever you have to do to get the adaptive cruise control option. Its magic. --
reply
Jesse Seibert
I own a 2018 Honda Clarity Touring and my boyfriend owns a 2013 Chevy Volt Premier (gen. 1. And it is night and day between the two plug-ins. I hands down would stick with the Clarity. The build quality, power, styling, and overall comfort is much better in the Clarity when compared to a Volt. In Eco mode the Clarity is a full electric car with 181 hp, but if you do pass the click point in the accelerator pedal the gasoline engine does kick on to deliver the full 212 hp. But when is 181 not enough? So the Clarity is direct competition for the Volt, and now that the Volt is discontinued the Clarity has the longest range and is cheaper than an Accord Hybrid Touring. So it would make sense for Honda to be selling these off the shelves like nothing, especially when including the 7, 500 eligible federal tax credit. Overall a GREAT car and for 9, 500 miles I have only used 52 gallons of gas. (I dont even charge at home, only relying on public charging) Definitely a better buy than a Volt, Prius Prime, or even an Accord Hybrid and Insight.
reply
I own a 2018 Honda Clarity Touring and my boyfriend owns a 2013 Chevy Volt Premier (gen. 1. And it is night and day between the two plug-ins. I hands down would stick with the Clarity. The build quality, power, styling, and overall comfort is much better in the Clarity when compared to a Volt. In Eco mode the Clarity is a full electric car with 181 hp, but if you do pass the click point in the accelerator pedal the gasoline engine does kick on to deliver the full 212 hp. But when is 181 not enough? So the Clarity is direct competition for the Volt, and now that the Volt is discontinued the Clarity has the longest range and is cheaper than an Accord Hybrid Touring. So it would make sense for Honda to be selling these off the shelves like nothing, especially when including the 7, 500 eligible federal tax credit. Overall a GREAT car and for 9, 500 miles I have only used 52 gallons of gas. (I dont even charge at home, only relying on public charging) Definitely a better buy than a Volt, Prius Prime, or even an Accord Hybrid and Insight.
reply
alliejr
I give GM credit for developing and releasing this innovative car even as their company imploded through 2007-8. But I also think it was a missed opportunity. They were the first with the serial hybrid design. Yet they botched the early marketing by trumpeting their pure EV with a backup plan yet not clearly explaining or disclosing that the Volt runs as a parallel hybrid in some driving situations. The battery in the spine was innovative in the face of a ton of compliance cars that just shoved a battery into the trunk, yet that design is a huge compromise compared to the battery under the floor layout. GM gets so much right, but cant seem to avoid the crippling mistakes that scream accounting rejected the better ideas. They cleaned up their balance sheet, but I see no evidence they improved (or removed) the idiotic management that prevents the clearly strong engineering team from really (re)building a strong company.
reply
I give GM credit for developing and releasing this innovative car even as their company imploded through 2007-8. But I also think it was a missed opportunity. They were the first with the serial hybrid design. Yet they botched the early marketing by trumpeting their pure EV with a backup plan yet not clearly explaining or disclosing that the Volt runs as a parallel hybrid in some driving situations. The battery in the spine was innovative in the face of a ton of compliance cars that just shoved a battery into the trunk, yet that design is a huge compromise compared to the battery under the floor layout. GM gets so much right, but cant seem to avoid the crippling mistakes that scream accounting rejected the better ideas. They cleaned up their balance sheet, but I see no evidence they improved (or removed) the idiotic management that prevents the clearly strong engineering team from really (re)building a strong company.
reply
lightsoffjimmy
You state the car is in the middle between the Prius (mostly gas with some battery) and the BMW I3 (mostly battery with some gas) but then seem to count both the engine and battery as negatives. This is unfair. the Prius battery sucks in comparison and the BMW gas engine sucks in comparison but you fail to mention their short-comings when mentioning the Volt short-comings. I see them rather as benefits. the gas engine is rarely used and sits on wheels that roll - so yes it adds weight but the cost is minimal given the flexibility the car delivers. The battery adds stability but reduces MPG when the gas engine is running. but you still get great gas mileage regardless. (Maybe it is just a perspective thing. Thank you for the review. The Volt was by far the best transition-to-electric vehicle available and Im sorry to see it go.
reply
You state the car is in the middle between the Prius (mostly gas with some battery) and the BMW I3 (mostly battery with some gas) but then seem to count both the engine and battery as negatives. This is unfair. the Prius battery sucks in comparison and the BMW gas engine sucks in comparison but you fail to mention their short-comings when mentioning the Volt short-comings. I see them rather as benefits. the gas engine is rarely used and sits on wheels that roll - so yes it adds weight but the cost is minimal given the flexibility the car delivers. The battery adds stability but reduces MPG when the gas engine is running. but you still get great gas mileage regardless. (Maybe it is just a perspective thing. Thank you for the review. The Volt was by far the best transition-to-electric vehicle available and Im sorry to see it go.
reply
amadeusb4
Overall, a fair review but Alex could streamline his dialog by referring to the Volt by what it is, a range extended EV. Cut out all of the unicorn references and talk of fences and just admit that theres only really one other range extended EV on the market and thats the i3. Everything else is a poor comparison. Can the Volt act as a parallel hybrid? Yes, technically, in rare circumstances, it does. Does that make it comparable to other parallel hybrids? No, not at all. Whats the point of even having a MPG if you find that 90% of your driving is done electric and youre paying 15% of the cost of gas for that mileage? THATs where the 250+ MPG number actually makes sense even compared to other high efficiency hybrids.
reply
Overall, a fair review but Alex could streamline his dialog by referring to the Volt by what it is, a range extended EV. Cut out all of the unicorn references and talk of fences and just admit that theres only really one other range extended EV on the market and thats the i3. Everything else is a poor comparison. Can the Volt act as a parallel hybrid? Yes, technically, in rare circumstances, it does. Does that make it comparable to other parallel hybrids? No, not at all. Whats the point of even having a MPG if you find that 90% of your driving is done electric and youre paying 15% of the cost of gas for that mileage? THATs where the 250+ MPG number actually makes sense even compared to other high efficiency hybrids.
reply
Tom Huffman
I really think your emphasis on efficiency is misguided. With an ICE car, efficiency is really important because it determines how much gas you will burn (and how much money you will spend. However, with a car like the Volt, efficiency means a lot less because the Volts class-leading high electric range means that you will be in electric mode for a lot longer than in gas mode. Electricity is MUCH cheaper than gas, so comparing it with a Prius Prime or Ionic, even though the Volt is less efficient, driving it will likely cost you less because you burn more electrons and less gas than the alternatives. In other words, the maximize-efficiency-to-minimize-driving-cost formula is disrupted with a car like the Volt.
reply
I really think your emphasis on efficiency is misguided. With an ICE car, efficiency is really important because it determines how much gas you will burn (and how much money you will spend. However, with a car like the Volt, efficiency means a lot less because the Volts class-leading high electric range means that you will be in electric mode for a lot longer than in gas mode. Electricity is MUCH cheaper than gas, so comparing it with a Prius Prime or Ionic, even though the Volt is less efficient, driving it will likely cost you less because you burn more electrons and less gas than the alternatives. In other words, the maximize-efficiency-to-minimize-driving-cost formula is disrupted with a car like the Volt.
reply
Jon Jennings
Love my Vaxhall Ampera (Volt Gen1, it only cost me 40 last month for petrol, in comparison my previous BMW 3 series cost 320 for a months driving. Cant help thinking with the latest batteries or super-capacitors my Ampera could get 3 times the range it has now. And this in my opinion is where GM and most EV/hybrid manufacturers have gone wrong, with their sales model. They should have been designing and selling cars which could be easily upgraded, since technology is rapidly advancing, hence future proofing them and shielding them from high depreciation rates. Most people cant afford to take the hit in the loss in value of these cars hence are avoiding them, which I believe is why the Volt has failed.
reply
Love my Vaxhall Ampera (Volt Gen1, it only cost me 40 last month for petrol, in comparison my previous BMW 3 series cost 320 for a months driving. Cant help thinking with the latest batteries or super-capacitors my Ampera could get 3 times the range it has now. And this in my opinion is where GM and most EV/hybrid manufacturers have gone wrong, with their sales model. They should have been designing and selling cars which could be easily upgraded, since technology is rapidly advancing, hence future proofing them and shielding them from high depreciation rates. Most people cant afford to take the hit in the loss in value of these cars hence are avoiding them, which I believe is why the Volt has failed.
reply
Chris Rader
Worth mentioning that if you live in one of the Non-CARB states, this 7500 tax credit is a joke and there are likely no state incentives, either. If you dont have 7500 in tax liability at the end of the year, then youre not taking 7500 off the price of the car. Chevy marked the price of the Volt up to account for this tax credit, and if theyre to be believed, they still lost money on each unit they sold. Considering the credit is sun-setting, no wonder they discontinued production. That said, we own a gen 2 Volt and love it. But Im not well-heeled enough to owe 7500 in taxes, so the credit was useless and we had to haggle the price down the old fashioned way and spend a day at the Chevy lot.
reply
Worth mentioning that if you live in one of the Non-CARB states, this 7500 tax credit is a joke and there are likely no state incentives, either. If you dont have 7500 in tax liability at the end of the year, then youre not taking 7500 off the price of the car. Chevy marked the price of the Volt up to account for this tax credit, and if theyre to be believed, they still lost money on each unit they sold. Considering the credit is sun-setting, no wonder they discontinued production. That said, we own a gen 2 Volt and love it. But Im not well-heeled enough to owe 7500 in taxes, so the credit was useless and we had to haggle the price down the old fashioned way and spend a day at the Chevy lot.
reply
Add a review, comment
Other channel videos
