We spend the week with the Bolt. Testing in the city, highway and of course watching our mileage. The Chevy Bolt is the most expensive but has the longest range in it's class. How does this compare to it's competitors?
I work as a real estate agent and our office bought a Bolt. It's a great car, especially for a lot of city driving. I took a client out last weekend and after seven hours of driving (all city miles) I only used about 30% of the battery. Clients love it. It feels pretty good knowing you've spent most of your day in the car but didn't use a drop of gasoline.
A fourth way that an EV saves a lot of money, is they have almost no regular maintenance. No oil changes, no tuneups, and greatly reduced brake wear, because of the regenerative braking. A fifth way to save a LOT of money, is to put a solar PV array on your house - this cuts the cost of electricity, and possibly makes it free. So, your cost per mile COULD be essentially zero.
HablaCarnage63 The panels pay for themselves in 5-10 years, which is an excellent return, and you pay a fraction of an already low cost per mile in an EV.
> to put a solar PV array on your house [...] cuts the cost of electricity, and possibly makes it free ...As long as your power service is forced-subsidized by poor people.
I've owned my 2919 Premier for almost 5 years now, bought it brand new and am still honeymooning with it. By far the best car in my entire driving career. Thank you GM!
Thanks Brian. I bought 2 chevrolet Bolt premiers this year. I took delivery of the first one in February. My wife drives it and she’s loving it. The second one is coming in fall and it will be for me. Ontario has great incentives on the bolt ($14,000) as of now in May 2018. I paid the first one cash and the next will also be paid in full out the door. I can’t wait to get rid of my gasoline cars after.
This is one of the best reviews I've seen and I've been watching a LOT of auto reviews lately. You talk about the pros and cons without being doting or whiney as so many other reviewers get. I'll definitely be back to watch more of your stuff.
Can someone explain the obsession with soft plastic on the dash? I want soft plastic on the upper door panels, armrests, center console area, and lower dash near the knees, but the upper dash is almost never touched. It's a huge waste of more expensive material, but car reviewers seem to obsess about that area.
Finally a Bolt review on the Bolt's merits and flaws. Most Bolt reviewers are by insecure Telsa fan boy comparing it to a model S or 3 both are sport cars not wagons. A reasonable comparison would be to the new Nissan Leaf, even fairer the 2019 Leaf with it's higher range.
i heard that the cheap plastic was used because it was lighter... and they focussed on weight to increase range, using the same rationale the door and hood are aluminum to reduce weight...
Wow, what a terrible torture to stop for gas. Most EVs dont sell, because of their high sticker price. If that BOLT is 42K, and you can get a Sonic or Trax for just over 20K, how long will it take until you break even. Have people forgot how to count?
@@matthewtompkins4338 Of course they do, but a $30 oil change every few months isn;t a fortune. Transmission fluid every 100K miles, and other intervals aren't high maintenance costs. But, now GM is selling the BOLT / BOLT SUV for a very attractive price, so definitely a no brainer when the price gap gets realistic.
I have this car. I'm averaging 15kWh/100km, so milage is around 400km per charge. Here in BC we have hydroelectric power costing 10 cents per kWh... so roughly $6 to travel 400kms. Most 6 cylinder vehicles will consume 15litres / 100 k... so roughly $78 to travel 400 km. If you travel 15,000km per year, that's $2700 per year fuel savings. Oh, and there's no real scheduled maintenance until 240,000 km. Your F150 won't do that😀👍🇨🇦
Jc Racine EVs in Norway and other extremely cold areas actually have performed even better than gas engines. When gas engines wont turn over because the oil is so cold, EVs power on and off they go.
Jason Arnold Most people will install a 240v charger. Same plug as your washer / dryer. Most installations are a few hundred bucks. Then you need a charger. They've been dropping in prices and more are hitting the market. Prices are $500 and up, but you could watch for a used one from someone who is upgrading. So overall you're looking at $500 to $1000. But you certainly get this back quickly when you save thousands on fuel over a few yrs
You know what, you're right!! We are living in a golden age of cars brother!! So much to choose from! As you said, everything is covered. Extreme speed with everything from excellent sports and supercars, to the second golden age of muscle and pony cars. So many offroading options with SUV's and trucks. Everything luxury small, medium and large.. And the efficiency is covered with 40-50mpg gas and diesel options, hybrids AND EV's! And contrary to many people wearing rose tinted glasses' opinions, I think car styling is top notch too. Soft and rounded, sharp and agular, and quite a few boxy options as well. We have it all!
Great review! Thank you so much. My husband and I own a Leaf and are now thinking of trading in our Prius C for a Bolt to make it a set! Your review has certainly helped answer some questions. Now I think we're going to have to go for a test drive ourselves!
With only 1,700 km on the clock, look at the condition of the driver's seat at 6:22. It looks like it belongs in a 10 year old car. Once GM fixes that drivers seat for better comfort and durability, I'll buy one.
You can't buy this car in the UK which is a shame, and it seems like you get many more incentives there. The UK is lowering them it seems. You have now been subscribed. Love the idea of that mirror coming into more cars for sure and that pedal on the steering wheel
I agree. Unfortunately, Elon turned down the opportunity to work with Toyota to make scale production possible now. Maybe Tesla will be able to pull it off. The odds are not in the company's favor.
I bought a Volt last summer and just traded it in for a Bolt. I loved the Volt, but the BOLT is a whole new game - it's a fantastic drive - the range is higher than advertised and it handles really well. The only downside , as he mentioned in the review, is the hard plastic on the side of the seats - I don't know how Chevy missed that. I'm not a large person at all, so I can't imagine how more hefty driver would deal with it.
The seats! How in the hell did they miss the fact that the seats are too narrow by 2"? So irritating. There's room for a wider seat too. But I bet they could fix the problem by changing the angle of the seat pan from basically a frying pan angle to almost flat Just open up the "Y" more, ya know? I'm tempted to take it in to an Auto apholstery shop and let them come up with a custom solution. That's the one flaw. Otherwise, I think it's a truly historic car: The first affordable car to cross 200+ range barrier. I've had it since June 9th, 2017, and I've been driving the hell out of this thing, giving test drives -- complete with 0-60 full-out speed demonstrations, just horse-collaring it around all day, then alternately babying it and watching the re-gen do it's amazing thing. I took it up to Big Bear, 7,429 feet, just to watch the re-gen go crazy all the way down the hill. I put on 48 miles of electricity, just by going down hill. So fun. And fast? The quickness is what gets everyone.
If you haven't already put $1000 down on a Tesla 3, you won't be getting one for probably 1.5 years. I'd love a Model S, but in Canada, a 75D (four wheel drive necessary for winter driving) is CDN $123,350--far too much.
Nissan has the best setup for locking the charging port: it can be unlocked which is great for charging at home, which is 95%+ of the time. It can be locked until it is fully charged, which is great for public charging with a 3rd party station. The third option is locked fully, which is only for when you are charging with your own charger plugged into an outlet.
The heated seats, and heated steering wheel, and the rear defroster - and the wipers and lights - will have negligible affect on the range. ONLY the cabin heater, and to a lesser degree the A/C will noticeably affect the range.
Hard not to think that Mary Barra asked her engineering team to put together their version of the Perfect Urban Taxicab. (If you happened to be transporting folks returning from the party, you'd probably be overjoyed about all the hard plastic.)
Great review! I placed my deposit to order a Bolt EV premier (infotainment and driver packages) in black mosaic last week here in Toronto where I live. I need an EV for everyday use (very very short trips here and there) and going to save my Infiniti QX80 for the days off work and family outings. Not sure if my wife will ever drive the Bolt, however, because she’s loving her really fast Infiniti Q50S Red Sport 400 daily driver LOL.
Great video. I have been considering the Bolt as well as the e-golf now after seeing your video on it. Since you've driven both, which one did you prefer taking all things into consideration (price, comfort, tech, performance, etc) ? Thanks!
+MysticMaven depends on how much range you want. The Bolt definitely has better range and is quicker but is more money. Personally, I like the look and the interior especially the seats of the E Golf. In an ideal world, I'd like the Golf with the battery and power train if the Bolt. Not sure if that helps you at all 😊
If the DCFC capability of the e-Golf allows faster charging than the Bolt, then the difference between them does definitely blurs on any trip longer than the single charge range of the Bolt.
If it's not plastic, what would they have in there instead? Dashboards of cars are plastic. WTF to these people want? WOOD? LEATHER? GOLD? STEEL? FELT? COTTON? WHAT?
Keep in mind that when things are new especially technology-related they advance very fast. If you do buy one of the Bolts it will be outdated quickly and hard to get rid of when your done with it. I also wonder what happens if your in some sort crash and the battery pack is compromised.
For me i went with the Volt. I mostly do 20mile trips i can just use the level 1 charger all night from 20% to full. Gas and electric for me is slightly the same price. But if i wanted to i can get free electric at charging stations. If i dont wanna charge the car i run it in montain mode and the gas generator will charge the car by it self to give 10mil ev range. I live in hawaii so i cant go very far but now i have options to use gas or electric. The Bolt is nice but you really need a level 2 charger to take advantage of the 6.6kw unlike the volt that caps at 3.3kw. So to me lvl 2 charger for my volt not that recommended. I think for my next car maybe in 10 years might be the new leaf i think its perfect for hawaii.
Thanks for this great review! I'm in doubt to buy the European sister model, Ampera-e. Which looks actually quite similar to the one you've tested here. The one I driven did about 148.000 kms, but looked almost like it was new. So yes, why not buy it... Still I'm in doubt between the 2018 e-Golf and the Ampera-e/Bolt... but talking about the range... than the only winner is this car.
Yeah the old GM dichotomy. The right hand builds a fantastic vehicle and the left hand fights the Compliance regulations GM tried to make the car for. However Mary Bara and her engineers seem to have pulled a fast one, and GM has a tiger by the tail. Forced to do what they did not believe in. Now expanding across the United States and Europe. Looking at opening another plant in Detroit. Really improving its economy. Personally I have one and love it. I have also a 1996 Acura 3.2TL (third generation LEGEND) and it is faster off the line and does everything that the TL does and more. I thought at the time and there were hints that GM would not make any more, but since I am an electronic genius(modest too don't you know) I did not care. I have a vehicle that I probably could will to my grandchildren and any problems I could handle.
6000 cars were ordered in Norway instantly, but they can only deliver 200 cars in 2018. In Germany no cars until 2019. And with Opel sold to PSA recently, no cars ever.
You are 110% Correct, those wheels are anything but "EV Industry Standard." (I be cursing myself for being an unobservant sort of swabby. {Talk Like a Pirate Day coming up in mid-September; the 19th, I'll be bound.}) ( -- Darned fine review Mister Chow.)
One thing people need to keep in mind is the Federal Tax Credit. I work at Gateway Chevrolet in Avondale AZ (Tim) It gives you effectively a little over $7000 off the price of the Bolt EV
That regen paddle is super weird. I feel like after a while you would train yourself to only use the paddle and then lose your muscle memory to actually hit the pedal brake in an emergency. I like what Tesla has done in that lifting off the accelerator activates regen. So you don't need to confuse yourself with a very unintuitive two separate brake pedals where one you operate with your hand, and instead you just slow down when you lift off the accelerator, which is incredibly intuitive.
When your watching and you clue in to the BC licence plates and Granville Island and you say hey I live there too! Nice Review, still wish they would have called it the EV2 wink wink nudge nudge...
Again a awesome review, better than Zack and that new guy in Toronto could be of some good use on the TV show next to Lacey. If I was living and working in or around Vancouver or Toronto sure it's gonna be a game changer especially for parking and shopping in malls. But on Vancouver Island up here in Campbell River it wouldn't be perfect. It's the range and time it takes to charge up that's the problem with EV cars in Canada. Most of the time I like to hop on a ferry and head to Hope or Chilliwack etc and I would have to stop somewhere in between to power up cause you just know your going to have to when you know someone will park in the Hotel ev spot or somewhere else and you're gonna have to walk or take a taxi to your destination. Until EV charging is more on basically every corner and at every gas station I'll stick to a hybrid or plane ol gas engine. Always remember that Canada is a slow to get things going just like a propane fill up station, everyone wants it but there's not a lot of fill stations around!
There are a few DC fast charge stations on Vancouver Island in the Victoria and Nanaimo regions. These DC fast chargers will give the Bolt EV about 140kms of range in 30mins or about 250kms of range in an hour.
Well if you live in Campbell River you won't need charging there because you would just charge at home. Campbell River to Victoria is 265 kms which is well within the winter aggressive driving range of the Bolt EV (in good weather with efficient driving you could almost do it round trip without charging). Not to mention there is actually a pretty good 240V charging infrastructure across most of Vancouver Island. A car like the Bolt EV would be very manageable today on Vancouver Island. Also to add 90% of electric vehicle charging is done at home. So charging stations don't need to be as common as 7/11's to be viable.
Erik Stephens I was more concerned about off Island or Northern Van isle cause my business takes me all over B.C. I currently drive a RAM 1500 with the ecodiesel and average of 8L/100 klms. I also feel safer too in the RAM cause of the big rigs on our highways. I'll go have a look again cause I average about 200,000 klms a year for work.
My comments were geared towards the average driver. And your driving habits are nowhere near average. Also body on frame vehicles are the most unsafe vehicles on the road. The frames don't absorb energy well and transmit that force to the occupants. Sure your truck might not look very damaged after an accident but you very well might be.
There's a lot of positive attributes to electric cars. You mentioned one in your nice video, that being the nearly instant availability of maximum torque. I like the Bolt. I may even consider it over my other commuting contender the Chevy Cruze 1.6L 6spd manual diesel. I'm in the US market which at the moment has price-points dramatically favoring the diesel over electric. There are several tax incentives and a program available in my area that reduces KWH price to one's home when an EV is registered at the address. The federal tax credit of $7500 and state credit of about $3000 make a compelling case for me to get the Bolt. I have a tangential question for you. At the end of your clip there's a camera mounted to a tripod. Below the camera is an mounted on top of an orange colored device with antenna. It appears to be a PTZ camera controller. What brand and model is it?
Is that regenerative braking handle an option and does it also do regenerative braking if you press the brake a little, or is there absolutely no regenerative braking on the brake pedal ? If its the last, i would surely prefer it to be automatic on the brake pedal instead.
You mentioned the regen paddle... but one of my favorite features of the Bolt is the one-pedal driving. Since the gas pedal on an EV is really just an input to a computer, you can do interesting things... like make the last inch of releasing the pedal switch to regen braking... that's the one-pedal mode. After using it for a day or two, I was hooked. I've gone a couple weeks without ever touching the break pedal or the regen paddle!
@@bfun4615 I use the paddle all the time. The L mode is just annoying when I know how long I have to get to a light or stop sign. Unlike a lot of people, the work I do, I stop 50-60 times a day, 1-2 miles between stops and most roads have a top 35-45 mph speed. I get something like 4.7 miles per kwh. So while the L mode may work if you only have a few residental streets, maybe 10-20 miles of highway, and then a few more city streets, my driving its just not for me.
To my knowledge the only reason Chevy Bolt is priced that way cause the batteries are purchased from LG (I'm guessing) so the batteries are quite pricey for them. But Chevy claim they are not making any money on these vehicles so at the moment it's just a compliance car for Chevy which is NOT ideal.
Electric car makers should make a 3rd or Secondary Battery Power Bank, where the Torque (spinning of the wheel) charge this battery bank for emergency uses or for onboard electronic uses. And the Windshields should be compose of solar-panel material to also help with this battery bank.
I think potential buyers should just go sit in the all gray interior premier version - the plastics are fine. Drive one and you'll understand - this thing is quick ! Keep the tire pressures reasonable 32-35 psi for the short wheelbase ride. I couldn't find a better city car so one's in my garage now. $1,148 drive off and $323/mo for 36 months was the best deal I could get in CA for the Premier model with both option packages and the DC charging port (which I'll never use?), maybe you can do better in a couple of months when the new Leaf comes out? CARB HOV, single driver, fast lane is this, the leaf, and either Tesla for all practical purposes now........so it's this or a Tesla right now, end of story.
Bolt concept car was first seen in Melbourne 2015 as the car was designed in Australia. The Bolt was fabricated in the Holden Port Melbourne workshops - is unlikely to come back to Australia
I was shocked to hear that chargers don't lock into this thing! Not that such a thing would absolutely turn anyone off from this car, but still. Also, still hoping GM makes an AWD version! 😁🚗🚙⚡⚡
The new review mirror camera causes my eyes to refocus dramatically to see it and it takes a half second for my eyes to refocus! That's too much and very uncomfortable for me!
Tesla Model 3 will blow this out of the water in so many ways. Just looks it's not even close. Starting to see these cars on the road pretty often here in San Diego and there is absolutely visually appealing to this car. Model 3 production starting in a few weeks will be the game changer.
I just watched your Kona video ( Oct 2018 ) - that might be better than the Bolt . . . but the biggest problem I have with EVs, . . . they aren’t sold in my state. 🙁
I live in northeastern PA. Very hard to find EVS, and manufacture web sites only show nearby inventory. They should show the nearest model of interest no matter how far away it is.
Is there any data that shows what the mileage range is when the car a/c is running full blast. In extremely warm areas like southern Florida, Arizona etc, a/c is an absolute necessity, so how much of a hit will mileage range take?Also, when caught in traffic jams or major delays on highways, does that further decrease mileage range and is there a way to calculate what the loss might be for each 1/2 hour stuck in traffic where you might be mostly idling.And if a fully charged battery is not used for 1 - 2 weeks because you have to leave it parked at the airport, is there any battery loss? TIA.
I have had a volt (wonderful car), like the bolt info, but it does not have the highest range. Tesla does. I would recommend researching that before buying the Bolt. both have their nitcj.
"Longest range in its class." Can you think of another mini-crossover that's in its class? Lol But I agree it's a wonderful car and I'm excited to see it go nationwide.
That's my bad. If you're comparing the Bolt EV with any other small or compact EV, like the Leaf, eGolf, Hyundai Ioniq electric, yes it is the best in that class. (It's literally got better range than anything smaller than a Tesla P100). I was more thinking about how the form factor is so divergent from any other EV. It's almost as much a compact crossover as a subcompact hatchback. No other compact EV has the kind of trunk space and utility the Bolt does.
Regarding comment on locking charger. I find the locks on eGolf to be very annoying as they stay locked when charge is complete and you cannot disconnect them in a public charging area, only owner can. If you want to lock your charger then one can just get a small padlock for ~$5 and put on the button, there is a hole in the handle made for that purpose. Re: USB Chargers, there are 4 on the model you had I believe, 2 in front and 2 in back. I have that model as well so I am aware, the premier with the upgraded Bose Sound System and DC Fast Charge. Thx for video.
I can understand why you’d want to unplug someone’s when their cars charged but then anyone can unplug you whenever they wanted to. Pretty well all other EVs have a locking charge cable. Great car though, how do you like it?
Everyday Reviews I would understand a lock that held until car reached completed charge or charger disconnects but holding hostage till owner returns is painful I think. I am at 1000miles and love my Bolt with only minor annoyances. ;-)
My family and I really want to buy this electric vehicle but we live in a basement apartment. I don't think my landlord would allow me to install a wall charger in his garage.
I agree. I bought seat covers for mine and the front seats are ok for me (smaller person) but the seat covers are loose because the width at the top of the seats. The seats need redesigned to be comfortable.
Depends if its a LT or premier. Check cargurus to compare pricing to other 2017s. They get about 160 miles in the dead of winter and 280 miles in the summer.
@@lw216316 looks like 2017 25k miles goes for about 15 to 16k. Great used car deal since they require so little maintenance you will have a very low cost of ownership. I would get a premier though...Cost a little more but worth it.
6:23....... that drivers seat tho? Looks like it has 60,000 miles on it already. They need to work on the Quality on the seats because this car is not cheap. SMH 🤦♂️
Every time he said "Bolt" (and when I read the title) I wanted to cry, "Bolt EV! Bolt EV! There's the Volt, and there's the Bolt EV." Very good, comprehensive review otherwise.
Can anyone help with the touchscreen becoming non-responsive? Sometimes it happens 6-8 times during a day. Really annyoning trying to turn the heat/AC on or off when you have to reboot and wait over a minute.