The primary car argument really depends on what your driving scenario is. I wouldn't consider a trip from Florida to Michigan as a task for my Primary vehicle, unless i was doing it weekly. My primary car just needs to go a max of 80 miles in a day for work and daily errands. A road trip that will happen one or two times a year isn't a job I'd ask of my primary vehicle. Like the review, though.
Thanks. Yea it's not a good primary for "most" people. It can absolutely be a primary for a lot of people. Like you said. Depends on your individual situation.
Ur not worry it will catch on fire do to battery issues on all bolts and are u restricting charging capacity like GM recommends so it has a less chance of battery catching on fire until they replace battery???
@@futbol1972 that’s gms liability not ours. As long as you’re careful with the stock battery and try to do the things they recommend until the new battery comes in. IF that does happen to you, it just means you get a new car. The only downside would be your garage burning down, but they recommend you park it outside. Companies who make and sell brand new cars can’t get away with the “as is” shit that used car dealerships can.
You are correct about these not being a long drive car. But for most people doing the everyday work, school, shopping routine, they sure beat the oil burners for low cost to drive and near zero maintenance. Your suggestion to lease instead of buy is noteworthy, in that you can turn it in for the newest tech with even longer range. As far as depreciation, ALL cars lose close to 50% value after 2-3 years, with the possible exception of Tesla ( at least for now ). Appreciate the time you took to express your viewpoints. Your video will no doubt be of much help to people who are trying to decide.
Actually you are both wrong. I drive my Bolt EV 2 hours to work and 2 hours back. WITHOUT charging. I can do that twice before needing to charge. The Bolt can do long distance travel just fine if you are SMART about it. Too hot? LOWER THE WINDOWS! Is it raining? Turn off the fan but not the AC. Even a monkey can figure that out.
Thanks for the video, but I join those who say you don't have to pay 40,000 for a Bolt. I paid about 30,000 for mine and only got 1850 in federal tax credits, so the dealer marked down my new 2020 Bolt by 10k. KBB says my car is worth between 22k and 23k so it only cost me 5200 to drive it for 2 years and no maintenance whatsoever! Also I get close to 290 miles per charge and haven't noticed any battery degradation.
@@thewireman134 Well there were at least 12. But I don't expect you to be able to count that high. I am not a Nissan "fanboi". I call out shitty cars when I see them, and I think the Bolt is shitty car. I'm sorry that you are not only incapable of spelling words correctly, but also incapable of handling the fact that some people differing opinions.
@@thewireman134 You will have to pardon him. His video is extremely out of date. Has zero follow up. Either in video form or simply in the description. He seems to have given up making videos on vehicles, which is likely for the better.
@@rythecarguy2711 wow, so this video was literally just biased hate with absolutely no correct info. I see how the type of person you are. I'm glad you're not doing vehicle videos anymore, and I'll never watch any of your videos again.
Back in March of this year (2021), Chevy gave generous incentives for leasing or purchasing of 2021 Bolt EV. Incentives were as high as $17,000 off the MSRP. I live in California. An EV also qualifies you for the carpool lane sticker which costs only $22 for three plus years. Although they do charge an extra $100 per year for the yearly DMV license fee. I have the 2020 and 2021 Bolt right now and I had a 2017 Bolt. Other than the subpar stereo system and the lousy seats, Bolt EVs are very efficient and very fun to drive. BY the way, the battery degradation for the LG battery is not as bad as you think. I have seen degradation of 7-9% when the car hits 100,000 miles. I have ICE cars as well. Sure I can fill up the gas tank and drive 500 miles non-stop; however, EVs are so much fun to drive. Cheers!
You know, you would be a good person to ask. You mention the crumby seats, do they get any better? I noticed the seats in mine are terrible and I figured they just needed to be broken in. Sounds like they are always going to be bad? Also, I agree that EV's are really fun to drive. Feels futuristic!
@@rythecarguy2711 I am not sure about the 'redesigned' 2022 Bolt EV's seat comfort since I haven't had a chance to go visit the dealer. I have the Premier and the LT. The seats don't offer a lot of support in either model. I recently went on a 875-mile pure EV trip. Although it was very fun to drive the Bolt on mountainous roads, I wished the seats were more comfortable (driver and passenger) going long distance (200 miles straight in one instance). FYI, I broke my seatback when I had the 2017 Bolt. The seatback is all plastic. The driver seat's cushion is just a big piece of foam. There are no springs in the foam. In other words, the seats will not get more comfortable. For the life of me, I just don't understand why GM went cheap on the seats and the stereo. Nevertheless, Bolt EVs are extremely efficient. I can get up to 6.1 miles/kwh in stop and go traffic (CA commute). One fun fact- for every 1,000 feet elevation gain (going uphill), I lost 8 miles of driving range. However, when I went downhill, I gained it all back.
@@robertlee7332 Had a similar mountain climbing experience. From San Jose it takes an hour to get up to the Lick Observatory on Mt. Hamilton. My range was greater when I got back to level ground because I no longer needed the AC. Also, I bought a cushion.
I think all you’ve done is make the case against buying new, which applies to almost all cars except some Teslas. Massive depreciation in the first few years, making a much better deal for the used buyer. I tend to buy a vehicle 3-4 years old for below market and then drive the wheels off it for 10-15 years. The 2017 Bolt is perfect for my scenario. Purchased May 5th for $15.5k & already put about 9k miles on it.
I want to go All Electric and I’ve started focusing on the Volt as my best option. I’ve been leasing Honda’s CRVs Civis and Now a Fit for decades and I’m used to getting a new car every few years but Honda doesn’t have an EV. My lease on the FIT expires in June and I could buy it for 15k , trade it in or turn it in. You’ve made me think about the lease option on the Bolt and make some very good points. I’ve probably had 10-15 iPhones/ iPads at this point and every couple years the technology is worth the trade. I will probably feel that way about the Bolt so maybe it is better to Lease and trade rather than sink 40k into it planning to keep it longer.
What wasn't mentioned here was the cost of fuel that you'll be saving added into the formula and that a leased car can only be driven 15,000 miles before they start charging you for every mile after that. It can add up very quickly
Oh for sure. Also didn't mention the increased electric bill when you charge your car every night. If you live in an area where electricity is expensive it can be a substantial cost. Also, who's getting a 15k lease? A 36mo. should be at least 30k
Good and detailed video first of all Everyone has their perception when buying a car and you can not satisfy everyone in this world.. I recently purchased a brand new bolt 2021 and in 3 months i drove 10k kms ,this is only reason i bought an EV Now imagine a cheapest gas car in this scenario.. You can't save anything with cheapest gas car when you drive more than 200km a day My opinion: People are skeptical about evs since it has long wait while charging and can't go long distances but 5-6 years no oil change no gas and no major maintenance justify the pricing of EV Buying an electric car today is one of the best decision you can make and yes we avoid the pollution !!
I recently learned that the 12V battery in the EV (Chevy Spark) is very important. Before I had mine replaced, I noticed the car was constantly making noises I guess the main battery trying to charge the 12V. I replaced the 12V and no more extra noises; sometimes the dash board lights would dim but not anymore. Always check that battery strength because I have had brand new gasoline engine cars off the ship where the battery was completely unable to hold a charge.
It seems like 12 volt affects a lot of things differently in an EV, a good place to start anytime you have problems., Also disconnecting it and reconnecting it to reboot the computer(s). My 12 volt went out on the freeway, everything blacked out, I coasted to the shoulder
I bought a 2017 Bolt this year and love it. Because I bought it used, the price was dramatically lower, and because I can get a converter, I can use the Tesla supercharger network.
@@brooklynegg, starting in 2024 you will be able to get an adapter to charge a Chevy Bolt at any V3 or newer Tesla Supercharger station. GM and Tesla made a deal to allow this.
I got my 2020 bolt Lt with dcfc for 27k with free charging options I have saved over 4500 big ones. How many big Rd trips do you take? I drive all day doing deliveries and can barely use all the power on a good day. It's a great car regardless of the recall! I plan on driving it till it dies years and years
27K is a lot for a really tiny car. I wouldn't feel safe in such a short car. A Camry is a giant in comparison. Imo, this car is worth 23K max for what it is. And not everyone qualifies for the tax credit which is bogus.
Not by today's standards and now I've saved over $10,000 and offset fuel cost not to mention no oil changes no tune-ups etc I love this car and I would buy another one for $27,000 without hesitation
I was ready to purchase a 2022 bolt euv but the dealership informed me that due to the recall it wasn't for sale. I nearly bought a model y before that but decided the styling, especially the bland interior, wasnt for me. Nearly a mach e too but didn't care for the ride height and long front. I do like the way an EV drives so would prefer it over an ICE car.
My neighbor bought new over the summer. Cold weather range drops significantly. Once the temps dipped here in the Midwest, his range went from 250 to 180 or less on a full charge. He has a heated garage, but he cant park it inside due to the battery recall.
I’m approaching my first year on a 3 year lease so I’m interested in hearing your experience. We Love our Bolt EUV. I drive it everyday, many times a day but mostly short trips. I take my dog everywhere and leave him in the car for 15 minutes, door locked, while going into the grocery and Leave the Motor Running with Air Conditioning running. In fact I leave it on all the time dog or not because it’s so damn economical to run and keep comfortable.
At 1st I thought this was gonna be a hater video, but you made some good points. Thnx 👍 I still think the Bolt EV is the best cheapest EV car but now I think I'll go for a hybrid
Thanks, most people still think is a hater video if I am not absolutely gushing over it. I really liked having the Bolt and I think it's a great option for a lot of people. I sold it back to chevy on the battery fire recall but it was fun to have while I did.
Excellent points. I wish I had watched this before I purchased my Bolt EUV, and I might have considered the lease option. I would like to re-emphasize that charging on road trips is not only a major hassle to find a working charger, but the cost of electricity at fast chargers is comparable to what you would pay to gas up a Prius. Additionally, the bolt in particular charges much more slowly than other EVs on the market, 55KW versus 150-250kw for most other brands. Finally I would like to add one additional reason not to buy a bolt. Chevy simply does not have the support infrastructure in place. Most dealerships only have one or two technicians that are certified to work on bolts and they have huge maintenance backlogs. My brand new boat broke down on a road trip and I had to drive to three different dealerships and throw a huge tantrum in front of other customers about being stranded in my brand new car before any of them would agree to even look at it within the week. Then it was in the shop for 35 days. Thankfully that qualifies this vehicle for the lemon law in California so GM is repurchasing it. I feel like I dodged a bullet.
@@deez8202 not sure which issue you are referring to but the 2023 bolts are virtually identical to the 2022. I would not purchase a bolt until they integrate the ultium battery platform which charges as fast as the competitors (which the 2024 equinox is supposed to get). This might not be an issue if you just use it for commuting and not road trips. Honestly I love everything else about the bolt aside from the support infrastructure and slow charging.
I've bought a Bolt in July 2021 - I have a large commute and so far it is doing well. I'm doing about 800 miles a week. I've had the car a little over 3 months now, and put over 13,000 miles on it. Purchased at 54,700 miles and currently has just over 68,000 miles. The only real issue is the seats - at least if you spend as much time in them as I do.
@@Digikidthevoiceofreason LOL, I am not "fat" by any stretch of the imagination and the seats suck. Drive a nice car one time and you will know what I am talking about. Regardless, this is my opinion, it's subjective and cannot be wrong. Disagree all you want but I think the seats are brutally bad. I supposed by your logic if you are weak, frail, and weigh the equivalent of a gallon of milk then they seats will be comfortable.
You've convinced me not to buy an EV. Leasing is far better. Maybe in 10 years buying one will make sense. I own a 22 year old Infiniti G20 that is a much better car in every way over this Bolt. Way more substantial car. You're so right about much better cars you could buy for the same price as this one. I'd go for an Acura or Volvo. I'm sure they hold their resale value quite well.
My premier cost 30k out the door 11 months ago. Cost much less than Tesla 3 series. For some it’s just a second option for commuting and without range anxiety. We have our Q5 diesels that grind out the travel miles. Overall we like driving the 2020 bolt, the seats are comfortable for us (biggest complaint, and plenty of room for 4 people. The bird eye view parking is nice, the Bose stereo is good, love having the apple play for directions and messages… I’d say the biggest drawback is the heat needed in northern States, reduces battery life by at least 25%… and GM did away with the generous 5 years of OnStar, only one year now. I’d buy it again.
Ur not worry it will catch on fire do to battery issues on all bolts and are u restricting charging capacity like GM recommends so it has a less chance of battery catching on fire until they replace battery???
Excellent points. I bought a nice used Nissan Leaf several years ago when they were all lease returns at the same time. Got a great deal and eventually sold it for more than I paid. Maybe I should try the same with a Bolt. The Leaf was okay, but the range was terrible in the winter.
Your prediction of Chevy increases the price by $8000 did not work out. Instead, they lowered the prices. I have my eyes on a new 2023 Bolt LT2 for $29,790 and I may buy it this weekend.
Had a 2020, have a 2017, plan on upgrading to EUV, unless regular BoltEV gets Supercruise and ACC. There are particular tastes for this vehicle, I think. For me it is perfect. I want to feel the road. It is quite stiff. I run long distances. Fuel is cheap. I forget maintenance checks. There are few of those.
As far as range, on a local trip we took, my 2020 Bolt back in 2020 got 300 miles driving highway and back roads 50-55 mph. The ambient temperature was near ideal at 55-65 degrees F. I thought that was very good even by today's standards of new and improved EV battery range. I really like this car ever since my first 2017 I bought. Safe and fun to drive. Incentives really took the sting out of the sticker price I must say. One pedal driving is fantastic as I estimate that I only hit my brakes 20 times a month. I will be getting a new free battery from GM for my 2020. The way the shifter works by moving in and out of one pedal driving is by far the best in the industry. Better than anything on the market including Tesla. Very human factors designed. it's unfortunate that the Bolt EUV does not follow the same design.
Not a bad video, but I disagree with you that the batteries will degrade before a gas car. Battery conditioning should make the usable life of the bolt last 3-400 thousand miles ish. Plus when you count maintenance and gas savings, you will be well ahead of any gas car. I just had my radiator crack and the engine block overheated on a 2015 Subaru Forester with 65,000 miles that cost $4500 to repair. I'm searching for an EV now, and the 2023 Bolt just dropped its price to 26k, so I think I'm sold :)!
When you lease you will have to pay for maximum insurance coverage. Depending on your insurance company, you might have to have this same coverage on all owned vehicles whether leased or not.
I just bought a 2017 Bolt. I agree with the depreciation issue. But, that was an advantage to meet because it was cheap , has low mileage and still gets full range after 40k mi. Where I disagree is with Battery degredation on EVs that have battery conditioning, like the Bolt and Tesla's have. The leaf he mentioned does not have that so range degrades much faster. Overall a good honest, review though.
What would you recommend a 2017 Bolt owner do now? A. Do the recalls and keep it and run it into the ground and rack up 100K miles on it? B. Trade it in and with a $3K GM loyalty coupon get a new 2022 Bolt and lease it for 2 or 3 years? C. Something else? Thanks!
Find a third party who can individually test each cell and only replace the cells that have failed and your battery pack will be like new. Obviously, manufacturers try to make this difficult but the older the vehicle is and the more common the vehicle is, the more likely there be someone who could repack your battery pack. Some of the older models now have third party conversion kits so you can replace the battery pack with higher tech, higher capacity batteries giving more range. There's very little to go wrong with an EV and really it's just for daily commutes so why wouldn't you run it into the ground so long as you can repack the batteries. I wouldn't bother replacing your EV till reasonable autonomous vehicles are readily available (note the Bolt EUV Premiere has GM's Supercruise autonomous system so primitive autonomous vehicles are already available)
@@johnwang9914 Thank you for that information and perspective. As an aside, our Bolt underwent its recall service today. No issues were found with our battery per the service rep at our Chevy dealership. Additionally, based on our car passing all tests and evaluations, that we could charge it to 100% (we won’t except for road trips), charge it overnight in the garage, etc. I am hoping this is correct info. But this has been very confusing. GM has not handled this well at all.
If the credit will get you up to where the cars actual value is then dump it. Chevy just approved my buyback request and I will be dumping mine in a few weeks.
I bought a used 2020 Chevy Bolt premier 29k miles for $14100 taxes and fees included. Great commute and local driving car. Have not taken it on a road trip yet.
The prices have really plummeted on these used ones. Close to me seeing a 2021 with 7k miles for $18k. Thinking about getting one to run around the city doing orders
You make a valid point on road trips, especially if you make them often. But, the typical American doesn't and this vehicle should work just fine. For road trips: - If you have a significant other, they could have an ICE vehicle for such an occasion. - You could rent. - If you rarely take long road trips (once/twice a year or less), you can just deal with the charge times and enjoy the ride. - I do not know your specific path and am assuming you have a reasonable charging infrastructure around you - most trips can without crazy hassle. One note about leasing is that it contradicts your range/road trip ding you gave the bolt. - You did a great job running the numbers and showing how it makes sense to lease over own. - But, if you are road tripping with it, 30,000 miles for 3 years shouldn't be enough.
The typical American does not road trip? I think that might be a product of where you live. I grew up in rural Michigan and road trips were basically a culture. EVERYBODY went on road trips to Chicago, the upper peninsula, Florida, myrtle beach (for some reason 🤮), and out west. This was something that happened multiple times a year. I agree that if it's not a long trip then I suppose you can charge. But on longer trips that just does not make sense. It adds SO much time to the trip. Then try to convince parents with two bratty kids in the back seat to sit in a car for an hour not moving so you can drive another 200 miles and do it again lol. Not a great selling point. Having an ICE and an electric make the most sense if you frequently take road trips. I wouldn't say that my ding on road tripping contradicts leasing at all. My point is you should lease BECAUSE you are not driving tons of miles. If the car was capable of long trips then it would make more sense to buy, not less.
@@rythecarguy2711 I grew up in Chicago suburbs and the vast majority do NOT road trip. Maybe they go to Wisconsin for the weekend or a week at most which is within 200 miles. A road trip to FL or out west was very rare, most people fly to Disney or Vegas or somewhere. Last I checked theres a lot more people living in Chicago area than rural Michigan.
@@LSK1972 Every single statistic I can find disagrees with you. www.travelpulse.com/news/features/road-trips-will-be-the-most-popular-type-of-travel-this-summer.html#:~:text=Road%20trips%20remain%20one%20of,up%20approximately%20206%20million%20Americans. 80% of travelers claimed they were road tripping rather than fly. That equated to approximately 200 million Americans. Of those 200 million people over 20% indicated they were planning to travel 500 miles or more. Have fun in Chicago.
We bought one late last year and really like it. Lots of charging stations in CO. We buy cars and drive them until the wheels fall off. We don't worry about trying to sell them.
Valid points, even if I disagree. One observation is that the car depreciated much quicker due to battery recall and, with gas prices, that curve should flatten.
Thanks for the video. Mysteriously, when calcualting the cost of ownership, maintenance seems to have slipped your mind. Gas vs. electricity for fuel, all the regular maintenance needed for a three year period, ice vs. ev. Not a factor for you?
Uhh…I recently bought a new fully loaded 2021 Bolt out the door for under $25k. And the kicker is I just sold my Versa Note so am now a one car household. The Bolt also felt/looked way more spacious than the Versa by the way.
Uhhhh as I stated I the video, incentives can vary from area to area. For instance FL does not do EV credits but the hippies in Oregon do. It all depends.
Ur not worry it will catch on fire do to battery issues on all bolts and are u restricting charging capacity like GM recommends so it has a less chance of battery catching on fire until they replace battery???
Now they reduced price by 5-6k. Do you think you can recommend it with that. No subsidy anymore i think? I think now it starts at 26-27k or something like that.
Honestly, I would still lease unless you plan to use a lot more miles than the lease allows for. Electric is moving so fast that in 3 years this is going to feel like a relic and you will want something else. If you're anything like me that is. I could barely stand having this car a full year and I had Chevy buy it back because the batteries were lighting on fire.
@@rythecarguy2711 Thanks a lot for your reply. I do agree with you with the possible new tech in 3 years. I still remember tesla battery day around two years back. Very high probability that they have it ready in next three years. Or competition has something similar in 3 years. That will be a game changer.
I'm curious about something. How much gas would you spend driving a ICE car from Florida to Michigan versus the Bolt? Your video makes it sound that you would have to make frequent stops if you drove an EV to charge it up, but not a conventional gasoline-powered car.
You make a good point against an electric vehicle for the consummate road warrior, but I would argue that it would make sense for the majority of other drivers. Another RU-vidr has a 2017 Bolt that he has stressed the battery on (lots of DC fast charging from sub 10% to full). He has over 130,000 miles on it and only lost about 8% of the battery capacity. For my commute, I could suffer a 40% loss before I would be worried about range. If I charge a Bolt every day at home and let it cap out at 85% to 90%, I could expect a fair bit less degradation. Part of a battery’s lifespan is determined by how you treat it.
Most of my driving is below the range of my Bolt and a recharge takes 10 seconds to plug in and out, compare that to the tedium of filling up every week or more which takes about 5 minutes (5 minutes X 52 = over 4 HOURS, IF the gas station is on the way) I will endure the few DC fast charges I have to make on longer drives a few times per year, it's time I would take to stop and rest or go to the bathroom anyway with a gas car. At $5 to recharge for 400 Km, the use cost alone is a BIG factor, as the Fram ad said it "you can pay me now or you can pay me later" a gas car may cost less upfront, but gas + maintenance will eat away at this "advantage" over time and end up costing more in the long run. I don't do much driving, so I do it for emissions, zero emissions!
You could drive the Bolt to Ann Arbor if you felt like it. Charging would take you an extra 8 or so hours, but some of that time could be used eating and sleeping. The actual price of electricity would be less than gas, and the adventure would be worth it. Trip planing was done with A Better Route Planner.
I dont disagree with that. It just is not practical. For instance I like to drive up to Michigan in one day. That is literally impossible in a bolt. I like to wake up at 3am, get in the car and we get there about 8-9 o clock at night. I cant wait for hours while my car charges. If I were doing it road trip style where you explore and take your time then I think an EV would be fun!
We have a Mach E on order. When we get it we plan to drive it from Bellingham Washington to Key West and back to our home in Seattle. Of course we’re going to do a lot of sight seeing along the way, but I’m looking forward to the adventure in a car that I can hear the radio on the freeway without damaging my hearing.
@wassiswallylokhankin191 lay it on me genius. Send me links that show how many gas cars are randomly lighting in fire in the middle of the night and burning peoples houses down... Sorry but "masterpiece" vehicles don't go through massive recalls, lemon law buybacks, and class action lawsuits. 😂
We picked up a 2019 Bolt LT last weekend. It got a brand new battery (thanks GM Recall :) ) has many of the Premier featuers (minus leather, moon roof, top down camera and roof rack) It has been a fantastic car. We switched up from a 2018 Chevy Cruze (also a decent car, but was a little small for my frame, also despite being turbo charged was a gutless turd) I highly recommend it. My only real gripe with it (and even up to 2023) is the fact its DC fast chargin only supports up to 55kw, which is horrible when compared to other EV charging options, hell Tesla charges at 350kw if Im not mistaken. as for others, its at the point where 150kw is starting to show its age. If you fork out for DC fast charging, this is something GM shouldnt have cheapened out on. with a 55kw charger, DC Fast charging ffrom 10% to around 80 will take you around an hour and 15 minutes.
@@oceandream8800 I dont think internal combustion is going anywhere in our lifetimes. But as electric becomes more affordable, we will probably see a shift to where electric cars outnumber gas. even in the town I live in, I estimate that 1 out of 100 cars are Electric (and 80% of those are Tesla)
Many of the old generation people will stay gas (this is what I noticed) they just love these conbustion so much that they reject electric, it is because they grew up in it. The new generation will be electric. Future will be electric.
Correction. Yes you can use the Tesla chargers. Just open a account with Tesla and buy a adapter for the charger. I’ve seen people charging their Bolts at Tesla chargers a number of times.
You cannot charge a Bolt at a Tesla “supercharger” - the adapters are only for the slower “destination chargers” which are Level 2 chargers, not DC fast chargers.
Only the small number of Supercharger stations that feature a Magic Dock allow non-Tesla cars to charge. But starting in 2024, the Supercharger network will be open to GM vehicles.
I just drove my Bolt From Seattle to San Diego and Back.. the drive time off google was basically doubled from the normal eta's. It's not practical for long distance
A lot of these points don’t apply to a 2023 bolt. They are quite a bit cheaper than the 2022 and earlier models with the lowest end coming in at an MSRP of about 27,000. With the 7500 tax rebate it’s possible to get into a Bolt with as little as $20,000 after taxes. That’s half the price as what you were describing in this video. So the Bolt now is the least expensive price per mile per charge for electric vehicles and it’s a very good deal. The only problem is dealers (not Chevy) are extracting the tax credit $$ from the consumer with a “market adjustment” dealership fee of 5 to 10k while demand exceeds supply. That should not last forever and if you are buying a bolt remember that the dealer fee is absolutely negotiable.
I must disagree with the commuter car only. My wife and i drive about 100 miles aday. I just drove 250 miles without acharge. We have saved over 1000 in gas . my advice is dont pay sticker mine was the same as urs 40000 sticker grabbed a 2020 left over and we pd about 8000 over a gas car. I agree dont care what anyone says Im not driving this thing from PA TO Fl.
I've road tripped from Grants Pass, OR to Berkeley, CA and back in my wife's '20 Bolt. Charged in Redding; charged in Berkeley, charged in Willows That's three charges at $20 ea. plus another $10 for the charge we did from home. Altogether, it cost us 1/3 the cost of taking a gas-burning Odyssey. Let's see: saved money, lowered the destruction of the planet, left long-chain hydrocarbons in the ground to make plastics, pharmaceuticals etc. by the next generation. Chevy made a believer out of me again. But hey, you do you, dawg.
The reason I bought a Bolt was the price. With a level 2 charger it was $31,500 without tax rebate. People claim to get better deals than this. As far a distance driving goes, I agree with you completely. For any trip more than 100 miles one way, take a gas car or a Tesla. Battery life is a concern for used vehicles. But there is a RU-vid video of a person who measured a 9% battery degradation after 140,000 miles on a Chevy Bolt. So, if you treat your car well, you can expect hundreds of thousands of miles from your battery. I like my Bolt, but for trips I wish I had a Tesla.
@@gsallison1 I have a Porsche 911. I'm seriously considering buying a Bolt after testing a couple. I put money down today. Even conservatively speaking EVs can save you a lot of cash over their life.
I paid $24,500 for mine in Ohio in March.Its my second car,wife can drive it up to 260 miles round trip,other car is Ford Cmax energi.So if we need to take a long trip,take the Cmax. Seems like you didnt do your homework before you put down the cash.
Did you watch the whole video? This is a 4th car for hopping around town. I love it and use it all the time. I don't regret buying it at all. I'm simply sharing my opinions on it. People clearly disagree.
I drove across the United States from Washington State all the way to Tennessee and a Chevy Bolt 2900 miles it was quite Pleasant cold Electrify America
Pretty much, the devaluation applies to all EVs. I just bought a 2020 bolt with 20K miles for 14K. I still have 4 more years on the battery warranty. I am only using it to go to work. As far as go visiting family that far away, how many people drive that far anyways. Most, like me, would rather fly over. Every vehicle devalues. Some more than others. But the fact I have solar panels and not having to go to buy gasoline is a no-brainer to me. I was spending $200 a month in gas with my SUV. That's $2,400 a year, times 4, it's $9,600. So realistically, the car would cost me $4,400. So even if they give me $1,500 after 5 years, I still made a good investment. Not to mention the savings in oil changes, transmission oil and tune-up. Bottom line, EVs are not for everyone.
Some missed points. 1) If you live in an apartment or condo, having to find somewhere to charge is a pain. 2) Slow charge time, as I understand it. First car for a kid? Would you (if you had one) let your kid drive a high performance car? Electrics really move off the line! Did not hear what range you got using the climate control, or how many days you could go between charges?
1) very true. Didn't think of that. You cant install chargers there. 2) yea. It can be slow at level 2 if you need the miles quick. Otherwise charge overnight and it does not matter. 3) yea. First car for a kid. A bolt is NOT a high performance car lol. The bolt has a 0-60 time of 6.5 seconds. That's slower than most Buicks and Cadillacs these days.
@@rythecarguy2711 Good points. I usually use the fast charger at a local parking lot for Trader's Joe Culver City. At twenty minutes I am at 80%. As for apartment dwellers like myself, some of the newer apartment buildings have chargers on site, but probably the overnight chargers. I think many will charge at home or charge at work.
Just drove the Bolt 640 miles round trip. Mostly home power and free high speed charging with two Electrify America stops. My Jeep would have cost $150 and the Bolt cost $20.
Electric Vehicles work for some people, not everybody. I have a 2021 Bolt bought for $17,500 & I get the $4000 rebate & it has a new battery and full bumper to bumper warranty, YES it is a fully loaded & REFURBISHED Chevy Bolt EV, and I stole it for a total of $13,500! I have solar that powers it, and I don't travel 250+ miles a day, so it works perfect for me. Plus the home power backup is awesome too! I'm seeing three reasons why most people SHOULD buy a Chevy Bolt.
I have a deposit on M3 but decided to drop by my local Chevy dealer - to look at a EUV. - the salesperson took me out the side door to look at a sad looking and very dirty new bolt FYI all the corvette were spotless - it also had a grease pen marker on windshield- “RECALL”. - the salesperson said oh we can only use it for tests and then it had to go back to factory - the inside was spartan and seats were hard - did not test drive - Alan g
Bought my 2020 Bolt in 2021 for 21k. Inking a deal for a new 2021 for 23k today. Two EVs are better than one! So Price is not an issue. We travel from Northwest Arkansas to East TX in our 2020 no problem. Fast charge in 4 hours, back on the road again. 270 miles is very possible.
not spending money on gas is only half the equation. charging is not free and the batteries have a limited number of charge cycles. they arent getting 500,000 miles a pack yet so the replacement cost of 10,000-20,000 needs to be factored in. if the packs can get 250,000 miles which would cost about 30,000 in fuel for a car then the math works in favor of the EV.
It depends on where you live. I live in so cal and L2 charging is free(VOLTA) and they're everywhere. L3 charging costs at Electrify America is only $.31 per KWH. I pay on avg. $10 to charge 80% on 2018 Chevy Bolt premier. The only drawback is charging time. It takes me more than an hour to charge from 20 to 80%. While Tesla's supercharging network is fast, It still takes 30 minutes to charge 80% and costs a lot more than electrify America. I hope companies like Lucid will mass produce their vehicles soon so that we could get a range of more than 400 miles with charging time of less than 25 minutes.
In a way he has a point if you're buying a brand new one but the thing to do is do like I did Wait till someone turns one in off a lease an older gentleman had the one I bought it only had 7,000 mi on it I got it for 16,500 I'm a happy camper I have had this car 2 years and had not to do a thing with it as far as maintenance goes I now have 14,000 miles no more spark plugs no more gas no more oil changes I don't miss putting $40 a week in the gas tank I charge the car at night when rates are low I don't think my electric bill went up more than $5 for the month I don't really go anywhere the furthest I might go is 20 miles one way 20 miles in the other way this car is perfect for me I love all the bells and whistles for me it would be silly to buy a brand new one wait till it comes off a lease get a Carfax whoever had it the first 3 years took a big hit so get one that just came off a lease with low mileage I'm good to go
Wow. This video did not age well. I bought my 2019 Bolt for $31k. I got a $3750 tax rebate. It started with a 239 mile range. It lost about 10 miles of range in 3 years. I just got a new battery, at no cost to me, and now have 258 mile range. And it has a cash value at "We buy any car" of 23k. I am keeping it.
LMAO!!!! Your opinions are your own, but not mine. The 2023 Bolt EV 2LT should be fine for me and plan to get in the spring of 2023. Prices have come down quite a bit so that is not a concern. I am retired and range is fine for me. Just do short trips or around town on just one charge needed. Most the time should be able to go several days before next charge. I then charge the car at home. I do not want to lease any car, no matter what it is.
When I got my first LEAF in 2012, Nissan passed the entire $7500 federal credit to me, along with my trade, as a down payment on the lease, which was good, because I did not have enough tax liability to get it if bought the car myself. However, a friend just got a 2023 LEAF and Nissan kept most of the $7500 for themselves, and only passed about $1000 through to him. I purchased my 2022 LEAF outright; I had enough tax liability to claim the entire $7500 from converting IRA to Roth IRA. The 2012 LEAF was a futuristic driving experience back then, but with all the enhancements, the 2022 driving experience is even more futuristic. I'm one of those who can live with an EVs range most of the time; for the few times I need more I rent a conventional car.
The AMP ASSY is located in the lowest part of the rear box.. that means if a half-liter water bottle is spilled accidentally, the AMP ASSY will drown in this water and burn up.. the AMP ASSY should have been installed in a higher place, possibly on one of the sides, up Suitable so that it does not sink under half a liter of water, and disables the entire audio system in the car...
Yeah and the BMW, Audi and Mercedes cars are notorious for losing most of their value as soon as you drive a new one off the lot and are worst for reliability after a few years of 50k. Chevy Bolt has best warranty in industry. 8 years 100k
@@rythecarguy2711 haha but snow in April also not that cool 😀. But overall Ann Arbor is a great City. Zingerman alone makes it worth living there 😀. Best Tech Jobs scene and very friendly people also helps 😀.
Comparing iPhone-type batteries to the EV batteries is like comparing Alkaline AAA cells to a Tesla PowerWall. Otherwise I pretty much agree with the video with the exception of the price. I walked into the Chevy dealer pointed at the car and asked them for the Out The Door Price and they took $16,000 off the sticker... for a new car....($45k sticker, $29k price for the car (not counting tax, license, documentation......). The sticker price is insane and not indicative of what the "real" price is.
My point about the Iphone batteries is that the companies that make them will try to hide defects and deny degradation. I am not saying they are the same type of battery technology. I am speaking about shitty business practices where they will do everything that they can do to not spend money on recalls/warranties. When did you go to the dealership? Was it after the bolt was lighting people's houses on fire and destroying their lives and every bolt on the planet was being recalled? Might have something to do with it.