2023 Chevy Bolt EUV review - a great value! 

You are lucky to have gotten your car within a couple of months! Sounds like our cars are very similar. I had thought I’d like the Super Cruise but truly I likely wouldn’t have used it that often as this will primarily be our around town car. I agree I think with the price, the tax incentives, and the installation of the level 2 at home - this is a great value!

I had to go out of state but I got my 2023 EUV at a similar price, with similar options, and got it in about the same amount of time, about 3 weeks ago. I live in an apt so can’t charge at home. So charging is a little challenging at times, but managing. Silver flare metallic color with the redline - it’s not that distinctive looking of a car but it’s passable. Really enjoying driving it, really nice acceleration. I do miss the sunroof I had in my previous car, but it wasn’t something I used all that often.

Thanks! Good luck - I hope your Bolt arrives in time!

Congratulations! Glad you were able to get one - yes I agree I’m really impressed with the Black Mosaic paint it really sparkles in the sun.

Agreed - it does take a long time to get that last 20 percent on a fast charger - but if you only do long road trips every now and then - you can plan around the timing. For us, most of the time, home charging will work great.

Yep it’s gonna be easy to love this little car! You’re correct probably 80% would be fine for me too - I’ll see how it goes the next month or so and I may adjust that level down.

Glad you were able to find one so quickly. The only option we don’t have is Super Cruise - I’m sure it would be nice on long road trips.

Thanks for watching - we’re finding that we’re loving our Bolt as well!

Glad you enjoyed the video - yes I’m pleased with the color and options!

Good point!

True - that will make a difference in the long run

Not true looking at Teslas. They need better tech instead.

Glad you got your too! Yes as a commuter you’ll be able to charge at home and be set! Enjoy it!

Thanks for watching - yes we usually only charge to 80% - unless we know we are heading out on a long road trip.

Glad you were able to get a test drive and experience the car directly, good luck with your car shopping!

Good point!

Thanks - glad you enjoyed the video - yes there is a lot of information available to the driver on the displays

Glad it was helpful!

Thanks for watching the video - yes I think the Kona would be another good option as well.

Thanks! Yes - I agree there is a little "sporty" mixed in with the practicality and the cool technology - all of which makes for a fun drive!

Thanks for watching!

Hope your car arrives soon - enjoy!!

Glad you like the video. Yes I’d love to see a video about your use of supercruise. That was the one option. I would’ve liked but didn’t get.

I have a 2022 EUV Premier and did not opt for the super cruise. What am I going to do with my hands if they're not on the wheel? Prefer to keep them there in case of a road hazard emergency. That split second delay having to reach for the wheel may be the difference between life and death. Love the car. @@4WardJourney

Thanks for watching!

Glad you enjoyed the video. We went through Bob Brown in Urbandale and only paid MSRP. I worked with Bud as my sales rep and he did a good job of finding us this car - as we were still on the waitlist but were next in line when this one became available.

Patience pays off - glad you’ve got one in the production process. I think you should expect delivery in about one or two months.

Thanks for the note - yes good point on clarification of kW and kWh - thanks!

@@4WardJourney You are most welcome. Happy trails.

i just opted for the heated seats. i use them in stead of heating the whole car.

Good point thanks for the tip. Need all the cold-weather help I can get here in the Midwest.

I am curious how much more efficient heat pumps are for the mechanical complexity involved. LNC batteries produce the best power in a temperature range of 20-50C, so 68-122F. That’s fairly hot. I don’t know how the heater loop is in the Bolt yet- there are some really interesting breakdown videos by Weber Automotive you might be interested i- but I assume that the same heater fluid is pumped through the batteries as well. That being said, a heat pump system failure would drastically hamper range. My point is that electric heating of the battery and the cabin is inefficient energy use, but might be a necessary inefficiency until better battery chemistry is available. Heat pumps affect only a built in rise from ambient, the system is mechanical, after all. Therefore there might be range loss due to the battery condition in cold weather. I’d research real world Tesla experiences for that. In the future, temperature resistant battery chemistry might negate the need for battery heaters. I’m personally very interested in NASA’s SeS chemistry, Zeta’s LiS and Lyten’s LiS. You can watch a high tech Munro video on Zeta. Some information about Lyten is out there on YT, but they have been making LiS batteries for the DoD for many years. The defense industry doesn’t like batteries that might combust- ever. I personally hope that the Federal government will license tech like NASA’s SeS for commercial use, and that the USA takes over the battery storage market for the world.

@@whynotthinkwhynot- Good discussion - hopefully more effective heating options do evolve soon. It would be exciting if technology advances from NASA could enhance the automotive battery experience.

@@whynotthinkwhynot- Heat pumps prove to be slow to respond in very cold temperatures. Tesla uses all the heat sources they can muster on them and it still has a slow defrost time. Resistive heating has its merits in colder climates like canada and the northern US where it can start generating that full 7.2kw of heat as soon as it's called for and melt ice on the windshield in minutes. From what I saw on my test drive of a 2022 bolt EV, the car will only use 1-3kw when heating the cabin a small amount, such as from 50 degrees to 68, so it's not all that detrimental in the mild seasons. The cabin heater is also separate from the battery heat and the the battery heat is seperate from the electronics cooling. It has its own heating block and coolant chiller that the coolant passes through. It transfers no heat to the cabin or vice versa

Thanks for the tip

What a rude comment, this is a grown man, you are not his English teacher, SMH. Some people's opinions were not meant to be heard.

A long wait - but you’re gonna love it!

You have a good point - the advertised range is based on an average of city and highway - but I do think it's based on good weather. In the cold, you get lower range. The big indicator is the 'miles per KwH' - currently my average after the first month with the car about 2000 miles so far, in March weather (avg around 35 degrees), is at 3.2 miles per KwH - so with a 65 kwh battery - that would suggest 208 miles max. What I'm noticing is as the weather warms up - that number keeps going up. So I expect in the summer I'll be at or above the 247 max range.

Yes you’ll have to order from aChevy dealer - they have announced this as the last model year for the Bolt so you may be better off to see if a dealer has one in inventory.

Sounds like you got a great deal! Enjoy your Bolt!

@4WardJourney good to know, thanks! 😀

Yes - you should be able to get 150 in range added in 45 minutes to 1 hour

I do expect the upcoming GM vehicles in the new EV platform (summer/fall 2023) will have much faster DC charge rates. For us, as this will be primarily a city car with infrequent long road trips, we can cope with the DC charging rate when we need it.

Ours is a Bolt EUV Premier RedLine Edition - with every option except SuperCruise - we were 36k then state sales tax

@@4WardJourney Thanks!

Thanks for watching the video - I think the Bolt EUV is just very slightly taller than the EV (about .2 inches I think) so you do sit just a little higher - but it's not that much difference.

@@4WardJourney Thanks a ton! I was wondering if you ever had a chance to sit in driver seat of model 3 and if yes, is that significantly lower than bolt EV? Or similar? Thanks.

Yes - I have had the chance to test drive a Tesla Model 3 - I think the seating was just a little lower than the Bolt EUV.

@@4WardJourney do you think the lower seat on model 3 is a lot more stressful on lower back or not really in practice? Thanks.

Yes we are in Iowa!

@@4WardJourney We live near Indianola, IA, and even in Iowa winters EVs make sense for the majority of drivers. I am a retired science agriculture and science teacher and I’ve been researching the Bolt since 2019. - Dale

We are in the Des Moines area so yes dealing with Iowa winters too! Like you we did lots of research and really believe the Bolt is a great choice. Particularly strong for around town as home charging works great. Long road trips do take planning and patience - more so when it’s cold!

Good question - I think Tesla makes great cars. For our case - with the majority of the time being around town - and charging at home - the Bolt fits well and is less expensive than Tesla. I like the Bolt driver interface (physical buttons for climate control, and driver information in front of the steering wheel) better than the single large screen - but with time who knows I may find I like that better. If I had to use my EV for frequent long road trips - I’d prefer the Tesla.

Yes - GM fixed the battery issue a few years ago - and provided a recall for existing owners to get a new battery or get a replacement value towards a new Bolt. We didn’t have to worry since the fix was made prior to ours being built.

Glad you enjoyed it

True - Chevy is going to focus on the new electric Equinox in this space - but I expect it will be a while before they are available. I’m glad we got this one when we could.

True - I think the electric Equinox is the replacement but I expect it might be more expensive

@@4WardJourney I have a 2022 Bolt EUV. level 2 charger 1 mile from me free charging at a liquor store.

@@4WardJourney the equinox starts at 30k goes up from there new battery 🔋 platform.

The Bolt will return. Got an email from GM.

That must be a fully loaded car including the Super Cruise which is a $2,000 option. Or decision to buy an EV was to reduce impact in the environment, as well as save on gas expenses.

I would only buy base model which around $29-31k not including tax.

Yes, this is the last year for bolt production in the USA. Chevy is focusing on the new electric equinox as their entry-level model going forward.

Nope, GM changed their mind. The Bolt will continue after a battery platform change.

Yes - this is the last year - GM has positioned the Electric Equinox as the replacement

Really?

@@SeismicSales Yes, really!

The Bolt will return with a new battery platform.

@virgilhowarth7394 My top EV engineer said that the safest and easiest to use battery now should be lithium, iron, and phosphate one. They don't burn very often, and they can be topped off with a partial charge!